Daily Gold & Silver Market Report – 2/5/2016

Jennifer Carter

2/5/2016 9:46:00 AM

WEAK JOBS REPORT STRENGTHENS GOLD              

Spot Gold hit a three-month high Friday morning, touching $1,158.80 per ounce, its highest since Oct. 29.  Investors await the U.S. non-farm payrolls report for clues to the U.S. economy and if the Federal Reserve could raise interest rates, which would pressure the dollar.  "The assessment of Fed policy has changed quite dramatically," Quantitative Commodity Research consultant Peter Fertig said. "Now the market is assessing whether the Fed might keep rates on hold this year. A stronger-than-expected jobs report could change that and shift market expectations to one to two rate hikes this year, which would be negative for gold."

U.S employment gains slowed more than expected in January while labor recovery remained firm due to surging wages.  Unemployment is at an eight-year low. Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said the economy needs to create just under 100,000 jobs a month to keep up with growth in the working-age population. Against the backdrop of tightening financial market conditions, the deceleration in employment growth could further undercut the case for a Fed interest rate hike in March. The U.S. central bank raised its short-term interest rate in December for the first time in nearly a decade

At 09:46 A.M. (ET), the APMEX Precious Metals spot prices were:

• Gold, $1,150.60 Down $9.00
• Silver, $14.79 Down $0.11
• Platinum, $902.20 Down $4.10
• Palladium, $513.00 Down $3.70

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