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Gold futures on Thursday morning flipped into positive territory, following a pair of closely watched U.S. economic reports.
A reading of those seeking initial jobless claims in the week ended Jan. 23, fell by 67,000 to a seasonally adjusted 847,000, marking the lowest level in three weeks, but layoffs were still high early in 2021 as the economy wrestled with a winter surge in the coronavirus pandemic.
Separately, a report on U.S. economic growth, or GDP, showed that the economy grew at a modest 4% annual pace in the final three months of 2020, suggesting that the road to recovery may be longer than more optimistic expectations.
February gold GC00, +0.84% GCG21, +0.84% gained $12.50, or 0.7%, to trade at $1,857.70 an ounce, after falling 0.3% on Wednesday and marking a fifth straight drop. If gold retreats for a sixth straight day it would mark the longest skid for gold since the seven sessions ended March 5. Yesterday’s five-session slump represented the longest streak of lower settlements for a most-active contract since a five-session slide ended on April 30, FactSet data show.
April gold GCJ21, +0.83%, which is also among the most-active futures contracts, was trading $12.80, or 0.7%, higher at $1,861.90 an ounce, after settling down 0.3%.
The moves for gold come after the Fed held monetary policy steady, while noting that the sectors of the economy already damaged by the coronavirus pandemic are experiencing another round of pain. The central bank’s interest-rate committee also said the pace of the economic recovery and employment has “moderated” in recent months.
Silver for March delivery SI00, +5.38% SIH21, +5.38%, meanwhile, added $1.09, or 4.3%, to trade at $26.38 an ounce, after falling 0.6% in the prior session.
