Gold rose overnight in a range of $1237.30 - $1243.15, where resistance at $1242 – 44 (triple top 10/26, 12/4, and 12/6 highs) held.
Gold was able to climb despite the US dollar remaining fairly steady (DX between 96.77 – 96.93), and with mixed global equities. The NIKKEI was up 0.8%, the SCI was flat, Eurozone shares were up from 0.5% to 1.4%, and S&P futures were off 0.5%.
At 8:30 AM, the much-awaited US Payroll Report was weaker than expected. Nonfarm Payrolls were much lower than anticipated (155k vs. exp. 198k) and Average Hourly Earnings were lighter (0.2% vs. exp. 0.3%).
S&P futures rose (2698) with equity investors hoping the Fed will be less aggressive in hiking rates. The US 10-year bond yield declined to 2.89% and the DX tumbled to 96.53. Gold – which had previously pulled back to $1240 - pushed higher and took out resistance at $1242-44 briefly to trade $1245. However, profit taking sent it back to $1243.
US stocks opened stronger (S&P +13 to 2709), boosted by some optimistic comments on trade from Larry Kudlow, a better than expected University of Michigan Sentiment Report (97.5 vs. exp. 97), and an OPEC production cut (1.2M bpd) that lifted oil to $54.15. The 10-year yield edged back over 2.90% to 2.906% while the DX rebounded to 96.80. Gold remained resilient, however, trading between $1242.50 - $1244.
Later in the morning, US stocks turned down (S&P -28 to 2667) as tech shares rolled over. Some pessimistic comments on US-China trade from Peter Navarro contradicting the early more conciliatory remarks from Kudlow weighed.
The 10-year yield ticked down to 2.89%, and the DX pulled back to 96.69. Gold probed higher and took out the double top at $1245-46 (7/16 and...