Gold holds above $1,200 after best day in 2 months
CNBC - Apr 01, 2015
Gold hovered above $1,200 an ounce on Thursday, clinging to gains from the prior session when it rose the most in two months, after weak U.S. private jobs data suggested that a more comprehensive employment report could disappoint.
Spot gold was flat at $1,203.70 an ounce by 2324 GMT, after climbing 1.8 percent on Wednesday. That was bullion's biggest single-day rally since Jan. 30, nearly reversing a 2.4-percent slide in all of March. U.S. gold for June delivery slipped 0.4 percent to $1,203.70 an ounce.
U.S. private employers added the smallest number of workers in more than a year in March. The ADP National Employment Report showed private payrolls rose by 189,000, well below economists' expectations for an increase of 225,000.
The ADP report came ahead of Friday's U.S. nonfarm payrolls report which is forecast to show an increase of 245,000 in March after rising 295,000 in February, according to a Reuters poll of economists.
A weaker number on Friday could push back expectations for a U.S. interest rate hike which some analysts had predicted to come as early as June.