Gold ticks up on mixed employment data
Gold () futures opened at $3,992.40 per ounce on Thursday, nearly the same as Wednesday’s close of $3,992.90. The price of gold rose above $4,000 in early trading.
The ADP National Employment Report, released Wednesday, reported the U.S. economy added 42,000 private jobs in October. In the prior month, the number of jobs declined by 29,000. However, a separate report by outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas concluded that U.S. employers announced 153,074 layoffs last month — the highest number for October since 2003. With government-provided jobs data paused due to the shutdown, these and other private reports could be more influential to the Fed’s next interest-rate decision.
Gold demand tends to rise when rates fall, because the precious metal doesn’t earn interest. CME FedWatch currently reports about a 67% probability that the Fed will lower interest rates again in December.
The opening price of gold futures on Thursday is flat with Wednesday’s close of $3,992.90. Here’s a look at how the opening gold price has changed versus last week, month, and year:
-
One week ago: +0.8%
-
One month ago: +1.6%
-
One year ago: +46%
Just weeks ago on Oct. 17, the price of gold futures was up 62.4% from one year ago.
24/7 gold price tracking: Don’t forget you can monitor the current price of gold on Yahoo Finance 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Want to learn more about the current top-performing companies in the gold industry? Explore a list of the top-performing companies in the gold industry using the Yahoo Finance Screener. You can create your own screeners with over 150 different screening criteria.
Learn more: Gold vs. crypto: Which should investors own in debasement trade?
If you are socking gold bars away for a rainy day, there may be an opportunity to earn some tax perks in the process. You could establish a gold IRA to hold those assets and diversify your retirement wealth.
A gold IRA is a specialty form of self-directed IRA that’s designed for gold and other precious metals.
The table below compares the main features of standard IRAs and gold IRAs.
You must work with a specialty provider that can ensure your account complies with these IRS restrictions:
-
Storage. Your gold must be held in an IRS-approved facility.
-
Asset types. A gold IRA can hold physical gold, silver, platinum, or palladium — but not all forms of these metals are eligible. For example, gold bullion and silver coins and bars must meet purity requirements. Additionally, gold bars must come from approved refiners.
Whether you’re tracking the price of gold since last month or last year, the price-of-gold chart below shows the precious metal’s steady upward climb in value.
