Gold turns positive as French presidential election draws closer
Published Apr 20, 2017 01:22PM ET
Gold inched higher on Thursday ahead of the first round of French presidential elections
Investing.com - Gold prices traded slightly above breakeven on Thursday, as demand for the precious metal resumed ahead of the French presidential election while bearish economic data underpinned upside momentum.
Gold for June delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose $0.10 or 0.01%, to $1,283.50 a troy ounce by 13:27 EDT.
Gold recovered from its biggest one-day drop in more the six-weeks sustained in the previous session, after weaker than expected manufacturing and jobs data dented the narrative of a strengthening U.S. economy.
The Labor Department said Thursday, initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased 10,000 to a seasonally adjusted 244,000 for the week ended April 15, which was higher than analysts’ forecast of 242,000.
In a separate report, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia said that the Philly Fed manufacturing index rose to a seasonally adjusted 22.0, from 32.8 in the preceding month.
Trading volumes were thin, as investors awaited the outcome of the first round of the French presidential election.
According to Oddschecker, betting market probabilities of the far-right candidate Marine Le Pen or far-left candidate Melenchon making it into the second round are not insignificant at 24% and 11%, respectfully.
Official voting polls for the second round forecast that far-right candidate, Marine Le pen, would lose no matter who she is competing against, while Melenchon would only lose against centrist candidate Macron, who remained the clear favorite to emerge victorious.
Commodities across the board traded mix, as silver futures fell 0.89% to $18.000 a troy ounce while copper rose 0.45% to $2.546.
Platinum added 1.06% to $980.60 while Natural Gas dipped by 1.48% to $3.138.
Get The News You Want
Written By: Investing.com
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.