March 7 (Reuters) - Gold prices edged up on Friday, poised for a weekly gain on safe-haven inflows and a U.S. jobs report revealing lower than expected job growth in February, suggesting the Federal Reserve is on track to cut interest rates this year.
Spot gold added 0.3% to $2,918.11 an ounce as of 09:24 (1424 GMT). Bullion has gained over 2% so far this week, as U.S. President Donald Trump's ever-shifting tariff policies fanned uncertainty.
U.S. gold futures steadied at $2,925.
The U.S. dollar index is on course for its worst weekly performance since November 4, making greenback-priced bullion less expensive for foreign buyers.
"Weaker than expected number is giving gold a slight boost... also a weaker dollar for the week right now is helping," said Bob Haberkorn, senior market strategist at RJO Futures.
A Labor Department report showed the U.S. economy added 151,000 jobs in February, compared with a rise of 160,000 expected by economists polled by Reuters, whereas the unemployment rate stood at 4.1% compared with expectations of 4%.
The market is currently in a consolidation phase, with safe haven interest providing ongoing support, said Peter Grant, vice president and senior metals strategist at Zaner Metals.
Investors are also awaiting Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech on the economic outlook later in the day, which could provide further insights into the monetary policy path.
Despite being an inflation hedge, higher interest rates may dampen non-yielding gold's appeal.
The market is currently pricing 76 bps of Fed rate cuts by the year-end, starting in June.
China continued its gold purchases for the fourth consecutive month in February, the People's Bank of China data showed.
Spot silver fell 1% to $32.28 an ounce and platinum shed 0.1% to $965.58, while palladium edged 0.5% up to $946.
Reporting by Anmol Choubey in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber
