Gold Rises After U.S. Jobless Claims Rose More Than Expected Last Week
Gold traded higher midafternoon on Thursday even as the dollar steadied after U.S. initial jobless claims rose more than expected last week, showing a slowing job market.
Gold for December delivery was last seen up US$20.10 to US$3,453.50 per ounce, the highest since the July 22 record close of US$3,501.80.
The rise comes after initial jobless claims rose to 226,000 last week, up from 218,000 a week earlier and above the FactSet consensus estimate for 221,000 claims. The data is another sign the U.S. labor market is slowing and follows on last week's weaker than expected jobs report.
"We continue to see headline themes pull and push gold ... While headlines and market expectations certainly filter through to gold via these macro drivers, it's clear to us that absolute levels across macro variables point to gold being overvalued, and even forward expectations (such as rate cuts) simply don't justify current prices on their own in our view," Christopher Louney, a commodities strategist at RBC Capital Markets, wrote.
The dollar edged higher early, with the ICE dollar index last seen up 0.11 points to 98.29. Treasury yields also rose, with the U.S. two-year note was last seen paying 3.738%, up 1.8 basis points, while the yield on the 10-year note was up 1.7 points to 4.251%.
Source : MT Newswires
