(Kitco News) - Gold prices are holding steady as the number of American workers applying for first-time unemployment benefits last week came in below expectations.
On Thursday, the U.S. Labor Department said that weekly jobless claims decreased by 1,000 to 202,000 during the week ending Jan. 6, down from the previous week's revised estimate of 203,000 claims.
The number was lower than the consensus forecast, as economists were expecting to see jobless claims rise to 210,000.
The gold market saw some short-term volatility in the minutes following the latest employment data, which was released at the same time as December CPI, with spot gold rising from $2,037.53 just before the release to a session high of $2,045.17 immediately afterward, but quickly returned to the $2,032 range, and is up 0.40% on the day.
The four-week moving average for new claims – often viewed as a more reliable measure of the labor market since it flattens week-to-week volatility – dipped slightly to 207,750, down from the previous week's revised average of 208,000.
Continuing jobless claims, which represent the number of people already receiving benefits, were at 1.834 million during the week ending Dec. 30, 34,000 below the previous week's revised level of 1.868 million, and below the expected 1.853 million.
