PRECIOUS-Gold pares gains as dollar, bond yields climb after strong US data

BY Reuters | ECONOMIC | 08/15/24 10:41 AM EDT

*

US retail sales rise more than expected in July

*

US weekly jobless claims at one-month low

*

Dollar rises 0.4% against rivals

(Rewrites after US data, adds comments and updates prices)

By Rahul Paswan

Aug 15 (Reuters) - Gold prices pared gains on Thursday as the dollar and Treasury yields rose after stronger-than-expected U.S. economic data that could influence the size of interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve.

Spot gold was flat at $2,445.67 per ounce, as of 10:18 a.m. EDT (1418 GMT), after rising as much as 0.9% earlier in the session. U.S. gold futures rose 0.2% to $2,484.10.

"Retail sales being so positive that shows the economy is strong and that has kind of turned the markets, and the dollar is regaining some of its strength and gold's losing some of its lustre," said Chris Gaffney, president of world markets at EverBank.

U.S. retail sales increased 1.0% last month after a downwardly revised 0.2% drop in June, the Commerce Department's Census Bureau said.

Separately, a Labor Department report showed the number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits came in at 227,000 for the week ended Aug. 10, compared with an estimate of 235,000.

Following the U.S. data, the dollar rose 0.4% against its rivals, making gold more expensive for other currency holders, while benchmark 10-year Treasury yields also jumped.

Meanwhile, two Fed officials on Thursday lined up behind the possibility of an interest rate cut at the U.S. central bank's policy meeting next month, reversing their previous skepticism about lowering borrowing costs too soon.

Markets see a 100% chance of a U.S. cut rate in September, according to the CME FedWatch Tool. However, strong data has taken 50 basis point cut off the table.

A low interest rate environment tends to boost non-yielding bullion's appeal.

"The political uncertainties will continue to be positive for gold prices, but they'll also add to the volatility," said Jeffrey Christian, managing partner of CPM Group.

Among other metals, spot silver gained 2.1% to $28.15 per ounce. Platinum jumped 4.1% to $956.80 per ounce and palladium rose 0.7% to $941.49.

(Reporting by Rahul Paswan and Brijesh Patel in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)

In general the bond market is volatile, and fixed income securities carry interest rate risk. (As interest rates rise, bond prices usually fall, and vice versa. This effect is usually more pronounced for longer-term securities.) Fixed income securities also carry inflation risk and credit and default risks for both issuers and counterparties. Unlike individual bonds, most bond funds do not have a maturity date, so avoiding losses caused by price volatility by holding them until maturity is not possible.

Lower-quality debt securities generally offer higher yields, but also involve greater risk of default or price changes due to potential changes in the credit quality of the issuer. Any fixed income security sold or redeemed prior to maturity may be subject to loss.

Before investing, consider the funds' investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses. Contact Fidelity for a prospectus or, if available, a summary prospectus containing this information. Read it carefully.

fir_news_article