Gold holds gain on speculation Federal Reserve won't raise rates this month

[SINGAPORE] Gold held an advance after the US reported weaker-than-expected jobs data, reducing speculation the Federal Reserve may increase interest rates as soon as this month.

Bullion for immediate delivery was 0.1 per cent lower at US$1,323.66 an ounce at 9:25am in Singapore, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. The metal rose 0.9 per cent to US$1,325.21 on Friday, the highest level at close since Aug 23.

Gold has rallied 25 per cent this year as the Fed refrained from further tightening, benefiting bullion which doesn't offer returns, and as the Brexit vote and turmoil in financial markets pushed investors to haven assets.

American employers added 151,000 workers to nonfarm payrolls last month following a 275,000 gain in July, a Labor Department report showed Friday. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey called for 180,000.

Odds of the Fed raising rates this month slid to 32 per cent as of Friday from 42 per cent a week ago, while bets for tightening in December declined six percentage points to 59 per cent, according to Fed funds futures tracked by Bloomberg.

BLOOMBERG