Investing.com - Gold prices held steady in European morning hours on Friday, after falling on Thursday due a stronger U.S. dollar as investors eyed the release of a highly-anticipated report on U.S. nonfarm payrolls later in the day.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for December delivery were steady at $1,124.30.
The December contract ended Thursday's session 0.80% lower at $1,124.50 an ounce.
Futures were likely to find support at $1,118.40, the low of August 27 and resistance at $1,140.40, Wednesday's high.
The dollar strengthened after the European Central Bank indicated on Thursday that it could expand its quantitative easing program amid increased downside risks to its inflation outlook.The ECB lowered its forecast for growth and inflation, citing oil prices and slowing growth in China.
The comments came after the ECB kept its benchmark interest rate at a record-low 0.05%, in line with the consensus expectation.
Investors were looking ahead to Friday's highly-anticipated jobs report for further indications on the strength of the economy and signs of a potential rate hike by the Federal Reserve this month.
Expectations of higher borrowing rates going forward is considered bearish for gold, as the precious metal struggles to compete with yield-bearing assets when rates are on the rise.
Data on Thursday showed that the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the U.S. in the week ending August 29 increased by 12,000 to 282,000 from the previous week’s total of 270,000.
Analysts had expected initial jobless claims to rise by 5,000 to 275,000 last week.
First-time jobless claims have held below the 300,000-level for 26 consecutive weeks, which is usually associated with a firming labor market.
Elsewhere in metals trading, silver futures for December delivery rose 0.39% to $14.765 a troy ounce, while copper futures for December delivery dropped 0.51% to $2.362 a pound.