Gold prices continued to rise Friday amid a lack of clarity regarding the policies that US President-elect Donald Trump’s upcoming administration will pursue.
Gold prices
Spot gold rose 0.88% to $2,694.73 per ounce as of 9:14 pm AST Arabia Friday.
Gold prices fell to $2,663.09 an ounce after the release of US employment data but later pared losses and are on track for over 2% weekly rise.
The bullion remained one of the strongest performing major commodities in 2024, rising 27% and setting back-to-back records, driven by Federal Reserve rate cuts, which led central banks to boost their holdings, per Bloomberg. Investors also preferred it due to ongoing geopolitical tensions.
The rise in gold prices comes despite a stronger US dollar and treasury yields, which have the potential to act as headwinds.
US jobs data
The US economy added 256,000 jobs in December, data released by the US Labor Department showed Friday. The figure significantly exceeds the rise of 160,000 forecasted by economists. The rate of unemployment came in at 4.1%, falling short of the 4.2% forecast.
The data suggests that the job market remains strong, which has led to expectations that the Fed might cut key rates by 30 basis points this year rather than previous expectations of a 45-basis-point cut.
As the inauguration of Trump inches closer, investors remain concerned about his plans to impose tariffs on key trading countries, which could potentially lead to higher inflation and curtail the Fed’s ability to cut rates further.
Higher interest rates lessen the bullion’s appeal due to its non-yielding nature.
Other metals
Spot silver rose 0.93% to $30.41 an ounce as of 9:48 pm AST Arabia, while spot platinum rose 0.02% to $962.17 per ounce, and spot palladium was up 2.06% to $950.01 an ounce around the same time.
What to watch for
Gold prices are expected to rise to $3,000 per ounce in 2025, according to BullionVault and JPMorgan.
