Precious-Gold rose on Friday, set for another weekly advance, ahead of the key U.S. nonfarm payrolls data.
Data released this week from the United States was mixed raising investor’s uncertainty about the pace at which the Fed would scale back stimulus.
A report released earlier this week showed that private-employers added lower than forecast jobs in January, but initial jobless claims released yesterday signaled a lower than forecast fall last week.
However, the jobs report due today at 13:30 GMT remains the key determinant about the health of the labor market.
The awaited nonfarm payrolls may show that American employers added 184,000 jobs last month from a meager 74,000 jobs in December.
The Fed decided last week to slash stimulus by $20 billion to $65 billion after signs of economic progress, but any slowdown may prompt policymakers to slow the pace of stimulus withdrawal.
On the physical side, the yellow metal has found some support from the return of Chinese markets, the largest bullion buyers in the world, after the week-long Lunar New Year holiday.
Now, gold is set for a sixth weekly gain out of seven as it benefited from haven demand amid the drop in equity markets on emerging markets rout.
The yellow metal, meanwhile, is trading around $1261.74 an ounce after hitting a high of $1264.13 and a low of $1256.11. Resistance remains near $1280 levels while support is found at $1240.
So far, gold has recorded 1.52 percent advance this week, preparing for another weekly decline, yet it all depends on the market response after the jobs report.
The U.S. dollar surged against a basket of major currencies to hover around 81.06 after opening at 80.96.
Crude oil for March’s delivery retreated to trade around $97.41 a barrel after falling from a high of $97.96.