Gold prices remained largely flat on Wednesday as a mixed batch of U.S. labor data dampened safe-haven momentum that had been building amid escalating trade tensions between Washington and Beijing. Spot gold hovered at $3,349.19 an ounce by 11:45 GMT, while U.S. gold futures stood unchanged at $3,373.10.
The labor data released Tuesday showed a rise in job openings in April, even as layoffs surged to their highest level in nine months. That softened some fears about a labor slowdown and curbed immediate expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts.
"U.S. labor data gave markets a bit of relief yesterday, causing a small dip in gold prices. However, tensions between the U.S. and China are still keeping risks high and gold prices supported," said Zain Vawda, market analyst at MarketPulse by OANDA.
Investors are now closely eyeing Friday's nonfarm payrolls report for further clarity on the Federal Reserve's monetary stance. "If the data is stronger than expected, interest rate cut expectations are likely to wane, which would weigh on the gold price," said Carsten Fritsch, analyst at Commerzbank. He projected gold prices to remain within a range of $3,300 to $3,400 per troy ounce in the short term.
Trade tensions continued to simmer this week. President Donald Trump on Wednesday doubled tariffs on steel and aluminum imports and reiterated his frustration with China's leadership. Xi Jinping is "extremely hard to make a deal with," Trump said, accusing China of violating a recent agreement to reduce tariffs and restrictions.
Gold, which traditionally thrives during periods of uncertainty and low interest rates, has been buoyed by investor anxiety surrounding global trade and central bank policy.
Precious metals displayed mixed movements in other markets:
- Spot silver fell 0.5% to $34.32 an ounce.
- Platinum rose 1.1% to $1,085.50.
- Palladium slipped 0.5% to $1,005.11.
