Investing.com - Gold prices rose in Asia on Friday with US nonfarm payrolls key for the precious metal and a reading of 190,000 new jobs added in December expected today.
Gold futures for February delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 0.12% to $1,323.20 a troy ounce.
Overnight, gold prices moved off session lows shrugging off the prospect of further Federal Reserve rate hikes amid upbeat labor market data pointing to underlying strength in the US economy.
The recent rally in gold futures came under pressure amid investor concerns that continued upbeat US economic data could strengthen the case for the Fed to raise rates more than currently priced in.
Private payrolls grew by 250,000 for December, a sharp increase from the 185,000 private jobs created in the previous month, according to a report released Wednesday by ADP and Moody's Analytics. That beat economists’ forecast of 191,000.
In a rising interest rate environment, investor appetite for gold weakens as the opportunity cost of holding the precious metal increases relative to other interest-bearing assets such as bonds.
Losses in gold, however, were capped by a continued slump in the greenback as it struggled to rebound from three-month lows.