Gold rises ahead of US jobs report

April gold futures climbed 0.9% to $5,076.9 an ounce

Gold and silver futures rose in Wednesday’s trading as US Treasury yields fell ahead of the release of the US nonfarm payrolls report for January.

April gold futures climbed 0.9%, or $45.9, to $5,076.9 an ounce.

Spot gold rose 0.55% to $5,053.31 an ounce, while spot silver jumped about 1.6% to $82.08 an ounce.

The dollar index, which measures the US currency against a basket of six major currencies, slipped 0.25% to 96.53 at 9:05 a.m. Mecca time.

March silver futures rose 1.95% to $81.96 an ounce. Spot platinum gained 1.95% to $2,128.68 an ounce, while palladium added about 1.65% to $1,740.11 an ounce.

The move followed US retail sales data showing no growth in December, defying expectations for an increase, as households cut spending on cars and other durable goods. The data pointed to a potential slowdown in consumer spending and economic growth, reinforcing expectations of interest rate cuts.