Gold prices decline below $1,900 per ounce

Gold prices inched lower on Thursday as investors awaited key economic readings for more clarity on monetary policy and follow-up on developments of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Patrick Harker, president of Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, called for discussions about the timeframe for the bond-buying program, as the US central bank carries out $120 billion in mortgage-backed bond and securities purchases per month.

Spot gold fell by 0.6% to $1,897.33 per ounce, and gold futures contracts for August fell by 0.5%, or by $10.30, to $1899.60 per ounce by 09:40am Makkah time.

Elsewhere, silver dropped 0.6% to $28.03 per ounce, palladium fell 0.3% to $2,859 and platinum dropped 0.8% to $1,185.22.

The US dollar index - which measures the performance of the US currency against a basket of six currencies - rose by 0.2% at 90.081 points.

US unemployment data for previous week is due later today, June 3, 2021, amid expectations for a drop of 400,000 claims, while the monthly jobs report for May will be released on June 4, and is estimated that the economy added 645,000 jobs.