Gold set for seventh weekly gain as US shutdown clouds rate path

With the US shutdown set to delay Friday’s government payroll report, investors have become reliant on private data for crucial clues about an already murky economic outlook

Gold headed for a seventh weekly advance, as the US government shutdown added another layer of uncertainty for investors seeking signals on the Federal Reserve’s monetary-easing path.

Bullion held near $3,860 an ounce, after ending Thursday slightly lower as traders booked profits following a five-day rally that pushed prices to a record earlier in the session. The torrid pace of the advance has left gold vulnerable to pullbacks, with technical indicators showing it’s been trading in overbought territory for the past month.

With the US shutdown set to delay Friday’s government payroll report, investors have become reliant on private data for crucial clues about an already murky economic outlook. Figures from outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas on Thursday showed US employers dialed back hiring plans in September and announced fewer job cuts.

The blackout will also make it harder for central bankers to interpret the economy’s direction, Fed Bank of Chicago President Austan Goolsbee said this week. Money markets are still almost fully pricing a quarter-point cut at the end of the month, and are widely expecting another in December. Lower borrowing costs tend to benefit non-yielding precious metals.

Gold has soared more than 45% this year in a rally that’s seen successive all-time highs, with prices now on track for the biggest annual gain since 1979. The precious metal has been supported by central-bank buying and rising holdings in gold-backed exchange-traded funds, as the Fed resumed interest-rate cuts.

Spot gold edged 0.1% higher to $3,860.70 an ounce at 8:12 a.m. in Singapore — about $35 shy of Thursday’s peak. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was steady. Silver eased 0.2% lower to $46.9007 an ounce, after rallying above $48 on Thursday before paring gains. Platinum was flat, while palladium rose.