Daily Gold Update

Source: Marketwatch

New York— Gold futures rose Friday as the U.S. dollar dropped sharply against its major rivals after a largely disappointing jobs data, raising gold's investment appeal. Platinum and palladium rose as the first exchange-traded funds backed by the two metals started trading in New York.

Nonfarm payrolls fell by a seasonally adjusted 85,000 in December, the Labor Department reported. Analysts surveyed by MarketWatch were looking for a payroll increase of 15,000. November payrolls, however, were revised to show a gain of 4,000. Gold for February delivery ended up $5.20, or 0.5%, at $1,138.90 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract ended the week up 3.9%. "The weak headline number has been interpreted by the market to mean the Fed will keep its easy money stance, which has resulted in a very weak U.S. dollar," said Brian Kelly, chief executive of Kanundrum Research, a commodities and macroeconomic research firm. "In turn, gold is a major beneficiary." See full story.