Staff of Reuters Read for 2 minutes Reuters, July 9 – Gold prices rose for the third week in a row on Friday, as a slight drop in the dollar made bullion less expensive for holders of other currencies, while a drop in U.S. Treasury yields bolstered the safe-haven metal. As of 0108 GMT, spot gold was unchanged at $1,800.85 per ounce. So far this week, prices have risen by 0.8 percent. Gold futures in the United States were unchanged at $1,801 per ounce. In comparison to its peers, the dollar index fell from a three-month high. The opportunity cost of holding non-interest bearing gold has decreased as benchmark 10-year Treasury yields have remained near four-month lows. According to data released on Thursday, the number of Americans filing new unemployment claims increased unexpectedly last week, indicating that the labor market’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic is still choppy. On Thursday, Wall Street lost ground, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq falling from record closing highs in a broad sell-off fueled by concerns about the pace of the US economic recovery. On Thursday, the European Central Bank announced a new inflation target and a major role in the fight against climate change, signaling the start of a major transformation of Europe’s most powerful financial institution. Even though the Fed is expected to discuss tapering of asset purchases at its annual meeting in Jackson Hole in August, three asset management strategists predict that global markets will not have a violent “taper-tantrum” like they did in 2013, some investors see gold as a hedge against higher inflation that could follow stimulus measures. Silver fell 0.1 percent to $25.89 per ounce, palladium dropped 0.4 percent to $2,794.19, and platinum rose 0.1 percent to $1,076.12 per ounce. EVENTS/DATA (GMT) 0130 PPI, CPI YY June 0600 in China 3M/3M GDP Estimates for the United Kingdom May 0600 UK Manufacturing Output MM, YY May 0600 UK GDP Estimate MM, YY (Reporting by Brijesh Patel in Bengaluru, Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)/n
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