Gold hits its lowest level since March

Gold edged lower Friday as a stronger U.S. dollar and higher yields weighed on the market after U.S. nonfarm payrolls beat expectations.

“Both nominal and real rates have been ticking higher and that’s been putting gold under pressure,” said UBS precious metals strategist Joni Teves. “But we think gold should be supported overall so we do see value around these levels.”

UBS has a three-month price target of $1,300. Gold has shed about 6 percent since touching a seven-month peak of $1,295.97 on June 6.

Spot gold edged down 0.23 percent to $1,221.89 per ounce. It has dropped 1.6 percent this week and is set for its biggest weekly fall since the week of May 5.

U.S. gold futures for August delivery is near its low of session of $1,213.70, the lowest level since March 15th when gold traded as low as $1,196.80. It is on pace for its fifth consecutive negative week for the first time since December 23.

Gold miner stocks also fell, with the VanEck Vectors Gold Miners exchange traded fund falling 0.83 percent. The ETF was also down 3.5 percent for the week and was on pace for the worst week since April 28.

The dollar hit a seven-week high against the yen after the Bank of Japan increased its purchases of government bonds, expanding monetary policy at a time when other major central banks are moving towards tightening. U.S. Treasury yields rose on Thursday, with benchmark yields touching nearly eight-week highs.

Dollar-denominated bullion typically loses value when the greenback and U.S. Treasury bond rates rise since the metal does not bear interest.

The better-than-expected June jobs report is a sign of labor market strength that could keep the Federal Reserve on course for a third interest rate rise this year.

“We are somewhat concerned about gold’s ability to hold up and see more weakness that could set in, especially if Friday’s payroll number sets off another spike in U.S. yields,” INTL FCStone analyst Edward Meir said in a note.

Silver fell 1.2 percent to $15.81 per ounce.

Earlier in the session, silver touched $14.86 an ounce, its lowest in 15 months, which appeared to have been driven by an accidental order, according to traders. It is down 4.2 percent on the week.

Palladium fell 0.1 percent to $833.50 per ounce after hitting its lowest since June 2 earlier in the session.

Platinum dropped 1.1 percent to $899.60 per ounce. It is down about 2 percent so far this week.

Source: Reuters