(Kitco News) - The gold market remains under pressure but is not seeing any increase in selling momentum, even as the number of Americans applying for first-time unemployment benefits sees a sharp drop.
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits came in at a seasonally adjusted 191,000 for the week ending November 29, the Labor Department announced on Thursday. Initial claims dropped by 27,000 from last week’s revised level of 218,000. The data were significantly better than expectations, as consensus estimates forecast a reading of 219,000 claims.
“This is the lowest level for initial claims since September 24, 2022, when it was 189,000,” the report said.
Better-than-expected labor market data is having little impact on gold, which is seeing some technical selling pressure as it has been unable to hold gains at initial resistance at $4,200 an ounce. Spot gold last traded at $4,194 an ounce, down 0.19% on the day.
Meanwhile, the four-week moving average for new claims – often viewed as a more reliable measure of the labor market since it smooths week-to-week volatility – came in at 214,750, a decrease of 9,500 from the previous week's revised average of 224,250.
Continuing jobless claims, which represent the number of people already receiving benefits, were at 1.939 million during the week ending November 22, down from the previous week’s revised claims of 1.943 million.
Some analysts note that the Thanksgiving holiday last week could have impacted this week’s data, as the better-than-expected report is creating some confusion in the marketplace. Private-sector labor market data published Wednesday showed a clear contraction in the U.S. labor market.
Payroll processor ADP said that 32,000 jobs were lost in November and wage growth declined slightly.
At the same time, jobless claims have had no impact on interest rate expectations ahead of the Federal Reserve monetary policy meeting next week. Markets are pricing in an 89% chance of a cut following the final meeting of 2025.
