Daily Gold Update

Source:Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

Austin— latest jobs report was much weaker than expected. The metal finished the week 0.5% higher.

The U.S. launched 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles at a Syrian airfield last night, in response to the Assad regime's use of chemical weapons against civilians earlier this week. The action escalated tensions in the volatile region and further strained relations with Russia and Iran, staunch allies of Syria.

The economy added merely 98,000 jobs to nonfarm payrolls in March, the fewest in almost a year and around half of most forecasts. While the unemployment rate fell to 4.5%, the soft data suggested that the labor market is perhaps not as robust as January and February suggested, when more than 200,000 jobs were created per month.

The dollar initially fell to a five-month low against the safe-haven as the Syria conflict bombing and anemic jobs report rattled markets, driving gold to a five-month high near $1,270. A weaker dollar typically boosts commodities priced in it overseas by making them less expensive in other currencies.

The dollar recovered late in the session, pressuring gold, as traders speculated that further military action was unlikely against Syria.

Oil jumped to a one-month high after airstrike on possible risks to Middle East crude output. Gold often trade in sympathy with oil as a hedge against energy-related inflation.

The other precious metals were mixed. Silver lost o.5% on the day and week. Platinum gained 0.4% today and 0.7% this week. Palladium dipped 0.1% today but rose 0.8% this week.

At the Comex close: June gold gained $4 to $1,257.30; May silver fell 10 cents to 18.15; July platinum picked up $3.84 to $962.60; and June palladium edged down 40 cents to $803.70 an ounce.