Daily Gold Update

Source: Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

Austin— With U.S. markets closed for Good Friday, gold edged up to just under $1,203 in London after the release of an abysmal March jobs report from the U.S. Labor Department.

Non-farm payrolls added merely 126,000 jobs in March, the fewest in fifteen months and far below the 245,000 consensus forecast. Gains for January and February were also revised lower by nearly 70,000. The shockingly weak report underscored the overall sluggishness of the U.S. economy, which is projected to grow by just 1% during the first quarter.

Treasury prices rallied and the dollar tumbled in overseas forex markets as traders speculated that the weaker job market will cause the Fed to postpone any interact rate hikes until later in the year. A falling dollar is bullish for gold and other commodities denominated in it for international trade because it makes them less expensive to foreign buyers.