WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Gold prices tumbled on Friday, as the dollar gained in strength after data showing a stronger-than-expected jobs data dented hopes of any steep interest rate cut in the near-term by the Federal Reserve and took shine off the yellow metal.
The dollar index rose to 97.44 and despite paring some gains subsequently, was still up by a notable margin of over 0.5% at 97.32.
Gold futures for August ended down $20.80, or 1.5%, at $1,400.10 an ounce.
On Wednesday, gold futures for August settled up $12.90, or 0.9%, at $1,420.90 an ounce, after rising to a high of $1,441.00 earlier in the session.
Gold futures shed about 1% in the holiday-shortened week.
Gold prices rose to over six-month highs on Wednesday amid growing expectations that the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates as early as this month, after key Fed officials sounded dovish and recent economic data too hinted at such a move.
Silver futures for September ended down $0.335, at $15.001 an ounce, while Copper futures for September settled lower by $0.0220, at $2.6610 per pound.
Data released by the U.S. Labor Department today said employment surged up by 224,000 jobs in June after edging up by a downwardly revised 72,000 jobs in May.
Economists had expected employment to increase by about 160,000 jobs compared to the addition of 75,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.
However, the unemployment rate inched up to 3.7% in June from 3.6% in May. The unemployment rate had been expected to hold steady.
On the trade front, talks between the U.S. and China will resume next week after U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to trade war truce at the G20 summit.
U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin are expected to engage in talks with China's Vice Premier Liu He.
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