Data on US employment, the Fed meeting in the spotlight



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The price of gold hit a one – week high on Monday as the dollar dipped slightly, while investors waited for the minutes of the March meeting of the US Federal Reserve later this week.

Spot gold gained about 0.4% to $ 1,295.81 per ounce at 0358 GMT, after hitting a session record of $ 1,296.69 earlier.

Gold futures in the US also rose 0.4% to $ 1,300.10 an ounce.

"The dollar index is moving away from the highs reached for several weeks," said Margaret Yang, market analyst at CMC Markets in Singapore, adding that a weaker dollar was acting as a drag on the dollar. # 39; gold.

"While non-farm payroll data has been better than expected, jobs in the manufacturing sector have fallen, which is a bad signal for the sector and does not give a bright picture of the economic outlook."

The dollar was down 0.1% from its major rivals, making the bullion cheaper for holders of other currencies.

Although employment growth accelerated from a 17-month low in March, data released on Friday showed slower wage growth and job cuts in the manufacturing sector. the first decline in plant payroll since July 2017.

Moderation in wage growth has supported the Fed's decision to suspend further interest rate hikes this year.

Lower interest rates reduce the opportunity cost of holding unproductive ingots.

Markets are now waiting for the March FOMC policy meeting minutes, scheduled for Wednesday, to get an idea of ​​the Fed's future monetary policy stance.

The sharp increases in Asian equities, which reached their highest level in seven months, allowed investors to gain a rebound in the payroll in the United States and give the impression of new stimulus measures in China.

Gold had dropped to its lowest level since Jan. 25 at $ 1,280.59 the previous week, mainly under the effect of rising stocks prompted by the optimism sparked by the loonie. Sino-US trade agreement.

US and Chinese negotiators are expected to resume talks this week in an attempt to reach a deal to end the year-long dispute over the tariff bill.

A recovery in equity markets led investors to liquidate their gold invdivestments, analysts said.

Hedge funds and fund managers slashed their upside bets on COMEX gold during the week that has elapsed until April 2, the US Securities and Exchange Commission announced on Friday. goods (CFTC).

Holdings in the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Trust, also lost up to 3% the previous week, its highest percentage of weekly decline since end-November 2016 .

Among the other precious metals, platinum was up 1.1% to $ 904.44 an ounce, after peaking at over 10 months of $ 912.90 earlier in the session.

Palladium rose 0.7% to $ 1,378.96 and silver by 0.5% to $ 15.15.

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