Gold heads for small weekly gain as US jobs data approaches

Gold prices settled into a narrow band on September 4, trading between $4,469 and $4,477 per ounce, as the market collectively held its breath ahead of the most closely watched economic release of the month. The metal was on track for a modest weekly gain, buoyed by a roughly 2% surge in the prior session. That prior-session rally came courtesy of Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller, whose comments dialed back expectations for an immediate rate hike. The jobs report looms large The August nonfarm payrolls report, due at 8:30 a.m. ET, was expected to show somewhere between 56,000 and 65,000 jobs added, with the unemployment rate projected to land between 4.1% and 4.2%. ADP’s private payrolls report for August showed only 38,000 jobs added, badly missing the 47,000 consensus estimate. That was the weakest monthly gain since January. The CME FedWatch Tool was pricing in roughly 50% odds of a rate increase at the Fed’s September 15-16 meeting, reflecting the tug of war between Fed Chair Kevin Warsh’s hawkish commentary at Jackson Hole and the subsequent pushback from officials like Waller. Gold’s wild August and the Jackson Hole pullback Gold had a strong August, climbing above...