Gold rises as dollar falls on Egypt unrest, U.S. data

Investing.com - Gold prices rose on Wednesday after mixed U.S. data made timing the end of Federal Reserve stimulus measures more difficult, which gave gold room to rise as the dollar slid.Stimulus measures such as the Fed's monthly USD85 billion bond-buying program weaken the dollar and send gold rising as a hedge, and while the market widely expects the U.S. central bank to scale back such measures later this year, speculation of possible delays bolstered the yellow metal.On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for August delivery were up 0.68% at USD1,251.85 a troy ounce in U.S. trading on Wednesday, up from a session low of USD1,236.05 and down from a high of USD1,258.95 a troy ounce.Gold futures were likely to find support at USD1,224.85 a troy ounce, Monday's low, and resistance at USD1,300.55, the high from June 24.Payroll processor ADP reported earlier that the U.S. private sector added 188,000 jobs in June, beating expectations for an increase of 160,000.Separately, the U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial unemployment assistance last week fell by 5,000 to 343,000, slightly better than expectations for a drop of 3,000 to 345,000.Separate data showed that service-sector activity in the U.S. grew at a slower rate than expected in June.The Institute of Supply Management said its non-manufacturing purchasing managers' index fell to 52.2 in June from 53.7 in May, compared to expectations for an increase to 54.0.Collectively, the data pointed to a picture of an economy on the mend though doubts as to whether the Federal Reserve feels it merits an end to stimulus programs gave gold room to rise.Elsewhere, news reports that the military was preparing to establish its own roadmap for the country and possibly end Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi's administration via coup spooked investors worldwide and sparked safe haven demand for the yen, which came at the dollar's expense.Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for September delivery was up 2.13% at USD19.720 a troy ounce, while copper for September delivery was up 1.01% and trading at USD3.175 a pound.
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