profitaddaweb.com - Gold prices traded higher on Thursday, as investors continued to back the precious metal amid geopolitical concerns while mostly upbeat economic data failed to weigh on sentiment.
Gold for June delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange added $10.05, or 0.78%, to $1,288.15 a troy ounce by 13:39 EDT. Gold is on track for its best week since June.
Gold prices shrugged off upbeat economic data as investors continued to pour into safe haven assets such as gold amid concerns geopolitical tensions could escalate, as a U.S. carrier group sailed towards the Korean Peninsula.
The Labor Department said on Thursday,initial jobless claims fell by 1,000 to a 234,000 for the week ended April 8 while the producer price index for final demand slipped 0.1% last month.
The University of Michigan said its consumer sentiment index climbed to 98.0 in April, well above expectations of a fall to 96.5.
A sharp recovery in the dollar failed to weigh on gold prices as geopolitical tensions remained front and center.
Dollar-denominated gold is sensitive to moves in the dollar – A rise in the dollar makes dollar-denominated assets such as gold, more expensive for holders of foreign currency and thus, reduces demand.
U.S. – Russia relations have strained over the past few days, as U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson received an icy reception on arrival at Moscow on Wednesday, after the U.S. launched an airstrike on a Syrian airbase.
U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday, the U.S. is “not getting along” with Russia and relations are at an “all-time low”.
Silver futures added 1.14% to $18.508, a troy ounce while copper gained 0.94% to trade at$2.569.
while Natural Gas rose by 0.72% to $3.210.
