Gold up on US job numbers

Gold futures fell below the $1,300 mark ahead of Friday’s US payrolls report, climbing back over 2% to $1,318 at 8:50 am ET as the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced unemployment dropped from 7.6% to 7.4% in July, the lowest rate since September 2008.

US companies added 162,000 in July, below economists’ expected 165,000, and down from the 195,000 jobs added in June, yet the figure adds optimism about the labour market recovery.

In a rather surprising and negative sign, the total jobs for May and June were revised down by a combined 26,000. These figures have often been revised upwardly.

Weakness in the U.S. dollar and US equities Friday also provided support for dollar-denominated gold.

Gold seems to be having a comeback. It rose more than 7% in July, the biggest monthly gain since January 2012.

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