WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Gold prices slumped on Thursday as traders opted for profit booking from yesterday's surge. Further, investors compared yesterday's strong non-farm payrolls numbers with today's jobless claims data.
Front Month Comex Gold for February delivery tumbled by $147.90 (or 2.92%) to $4,923.70 per troy ounce.
Front Month Comex Silver for February delivery plummeted by $8.2080 (or 9.80%) to $75.546 per troy ounce.
Yesterday's non-farm payrolls data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics revealed an unexpectedly strong labor market and tempered analysts' expectations of a near-term interest rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve.
The report indicated that the economy added 130,000 jobs in January 2026, following a downwardly revised increase of 48,000 jobs in December. Economists had expected employment to climb by 70,000 jobs.
The unemployment rate ticked down to 4.3% in January 2026 from 4.4% in December 2025, slightly below market expectations of 4.4%.
While the manufacturing payrolls increased by 5,000 jobs in January 2026, private payrolls rose by 172,000 jobs.
Today, the U.S. Department of Labor revealed that initial jobless claims fell by 5,000 from the previous week to 227,000 in the week ending February 7, indicating a resilient labor market.
However, continuing claims increased to 1,862,000 for the week ending January 31 from 1,841,000 of the previous week.
The four-week moving average for the initial jobless claims increased to 219,500 for the week ending February 7 from 212,500 of the previous period.
A poll by Reuters suggested that the Fed may maintain rates throughout the end of Fed Chair Jerome Powell's term in May, and markets expect a likely reduction only after Powell's successor assumes the role of Fed Chair.
All eyes are on the upcoming Consumer Price Index numbers to be released on Friday, which could offer clues on the Fed's monetary policy path.
In the ongoing U.S.-Iran nuclear talks, the stalemate continues. U.S. President Donald Trump warned Iran to act responsibly and reasonably.
After last weekend's meeting in Muscat, Oman, ended without any significant developments, Trump pressed Iran to act soon and threatened that he may deploy a second aircraft carrier near Iran, with USS Abraham Lincoln already close to Iran.
Yesterday, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met Trump, asking to include both Iran's ballistic missile program as well as its support to Houthi and Hezbollah militants in the next round of negotiations.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump stated that he had pushed Netanyahu to permit negotiations to go on.
In a veiled threat, Trump warned Iran that it should remember being hit with the 'Midnight Hammer,' referring to the U.S. military operation in June 2025, when the U.S. destroyed three Iranian nuclear installations.
According to a Wall Street Journal report, the Pentagon is preparing a second aircraft carrier to be deployed to the Middle East.
Though the diplomatic route has taken priority, experts are concerned about the fallout if the talks collapse.
In Europe, the U.S.-authored peace proposal to end the Russia-Ukraine war is still in the formative stage despite multiple rounds of tripartite negotiations.
Yesterday, Russia attacked Ukraine's capital Kyiv, while Ukraine struck an oil refinery in Volgograd, Russia, on Wednesday.
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