Gold turns higher after ECB launches QE

Investing.com - Gold turned higher on Thursday, after the European Central Bank unveiled a government bond-buying program at the conclusion of its highly-anticipated policy meeting.

On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for February delivery tacked on $4.90, or 0.38%, to trade at $1,298.60 a troy ounce during U.S. morning hours, after hitting a session low of $1,279.70, down $14.00.

A day earlier, gold hit $1,307.00, the most since August 15, before settling at $1,293.70, down 50 cents, or 0.04%.

Futures were likely to find support at $1,272.10, the low from January 20, and resistance at $1,316.50, the high from August 15.

Also on the Comex, silver futures for March delivery inched up 5.5 cents, or 0.3%, to trade at $18.24 a troy ounce. On Wednesday, silver rallied to $18.50 an ounce, the highest level since September 19, before ending at $18.19, up 23.7 cents, or 1.32%.

The ECB announced that it would launch a €60 billion monthly bond buying program that would start in March and last until September 2016, in a bid to stave off the threat of deflation in the euro area and boost growth.

In total, the program could total €1.08 trillion, much higher than market expectations for a figure of around €500 billion.

The decision came after the ECB held its benchmark interest rate at a record-low 0.05%. The central bank also kept its marginal lending at 0.30% and left its deposit facility rate unchanged at -0.20%.

The QE announcement pressured the euro and sent the dollar higher. The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was up 0.65% to hit a 12-year high of 93.62.

Also Thursday, the U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits decreased by 10,000 to 307,000 last week from the previous week’s total of 317,000.

Analysts had expected initial jobless claims to decline by 17,000 to 300,000 last week.

Elsewhere in metals trading, copper for March delivery slumped 4.0 cents, or 1.53%, to trade at $2.573 a pound, as concerns over the global economic outlook and the impact on future demand prospects dampened the appeal of the commodity.