Price of gold near flat; The report on US jobs is better than expected: Investing.com

Investing.com – Gold prices are virtually flat on Monday in Asia, with traders remaining cautious before Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's congressional testimony later this week.

August shipments on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 0.02% to $ 1,401.25 troy ounce at 12:16 pm (4:16 pm GMT).

The United States announced Friday a stronger than expected rise in US jobs in June. The country created 224,000 new jobs during the month, according to the report. At the same time, the unemployment rate rose from 3.6% to 3.7% and wages rose by 3.1%, unchanged.

The data has reduced the market's expectations for Fed interest rate cuts and helped push the US dollar up for the past two weeks, putting pressure on the price of gold that closed the week in November. decline of 1% and allowed gains of two weeks.

Traders are now waiting for a testimony from Powell on Wednesday and Thursday for more guidance on the direction of future monetary policies.

The market "is now wondering whether the rebound in job growth has reduced the need for a rate cut in July, especially given the resumption of trade negotiations between the United States and the United States. China, "said Fawad Razaqzada, currency and precious metals technical analyst at FOREX .com.

"We do not think so."

The report on the consumer price index to be released later this week and the July 25 meeting of the European Central Bank could make a difference, Razaqzada added.