Gold holds near lowest in three months as US payrolls loom

[SINGAPORE] Gold traded near the lowest level in more than three months as investors wait for the monthly US payrolls report on Friday for a steer on the strength of the economy and the chances of an interest-rate hike this year.

Bullion for immediate delivery was little changed at US$1,267.20 an ounce as of 9:39am Singapore time, near the US$1,262.22 low reached on Wednesday. Prices slumped 3.3 per cent the previous day, the biggest drop in more than a year, on worries that central banks are set to gradually curb stimulus.

Gold has been rattled by rising bond yields and concern that policy makers are starting to question whether monetary easing alone will be enough to revive the global economy. Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer called on Wednesday for "transparent and sound monetary policies" as well as investments in infrastructure and education, to boost growth in the long run.

"Ultra-low interest rates are not necessarily here to stay, especially if the right policies are put in place to address at least some of their root causes," Mr Fischer said in the text of a speech he was scheduled to deliver in New York.

US employers, including government agencies, took on 172,000 workers in September, while the jobless rate held at 4.9 per cent, economists estimate.

BLOOMBERG