Investing.com - Gold prices rose on Monday after investors ignored soft factory data out of the U.S. that sent the dollar rising.
The precious metal continued to applaud Friday's U.S. unemployment data and consumer sentiment readings.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for April delivery were up 0.27% at USD1,675.05 a troy ounce in U.S. trading on Monday, up from a session low of USD1,662.55 and down from a high of USD1,678.25 a troy ounce.
Gold futures were likely to test support USD1,658.75 a troy ounce, Thursday's low, and resistance at USD1,682.85, Friday's high.
Friday's jobs and consumer sentiment data continued to push gold prices higher.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the economy added a net 157,000 jobs in January, roughly in line with expectations for a gain of 160,000.
December's numbers were revised to 196,000 from 155,000, while November's figures were revised to 247,000 from 161,000, which drew market applause.
The headline unemployment rate rose to 7.9% from 7.8% in December.
Elsewhere, the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's final reading of its consumer sentiment index improved to 73.8 in January from 71.3 the previous month, beating expectations for a reading of 71.5.
Separately, the Institute of Supply Management said that its manufacturing purchasing managers' index rose to 53.1 last month from 50.2 in December, well above expectations for a rise to 50.6.
On Monday, the U.S. Census Bureau said factory orders rose by a seasonally adjusted 1.8% in December, missing expectations for a gain of 2.2%.
Factory orders in November fell by a revised 0.3%, though investors largely ignored the data and snapped up gold positions on sentiment the Federal Reserve will continue to keep monetary policy loose for the near future.
Meanwhile on the Comex, silver for March delivery was down 0.77% and trading at USD31.712 a troy ounce, while copper for March delivery was down 0.36% and trading at USD3.771 a pound.
The precious metal continued to applaud Friday's U.S. unemployment data and consumer sentiment readings.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for April delivery were up 0.27% at USD1,675.05 a troy ounce in U.S. trading on Monday, up from a session low of USD1,662.55 and down from a high of USD1,678.25 a troy ounce.
Gold futures were likely to test support USD1,658.75 a troy ounce, Thursday's low, and resistance at USD1,682.85, Friday's high.
Friday's jobs and consumer sentiment data continued to push gold prices higher.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the economy added a net 157,000 jobs in January, roughly in line with expectations for a gain of 160,000.
December's numbers were revised to 196,000 from 155,000, while November's figures were revised to 247,000 from 161,000, which drew market applause.
The headline unemployment rate rose to 7.9% from 7.8% in December.
Elsewhere, the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's final reading of its consumer sentiment index improved to 73.8 in January from 71.3 the previous month, beating expectations for a reading of 71.5.
Separately, the Institute of Supply Management said that its manufacturing purchasing managers' index rose to 53.1 last month from 50.2 in December, well above expectations for a rise to 50.6.
On Monday, the U.S. Census Bureau said factory orders rose by a seasonally adjusted 1.8% in December, missing expectations for a gain of 2.2%.
Factory orders in November fell by a revised 0.3%, though investors largely ignored the data and snapped up gold positions on sentiment the Federal Reserve will continue to keep monetary policy loose for the near future.
Meanwhile on the Comex, silver for March delivery was down 0.77% and trading at USD31.712 a troy ounce, while copper for March delivery was down 0.36% and trading at USD3.771 a pound.