Gold boosts on U.S. jobs and possible peace deal

Gold boosted Friday morning on positive U.S. jobs data and aims for a weekly gain on the latest reports of a possible peace deal between the U.S. and Iran which helped ease concerns about inflation and elevated interest rates.

Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that April’s U.S. employment increased more than ⁠expected while the unemployment rate held steady at 4.3%. Nonfarm payrolls rose by 115,000 for the month, down from the 185,000 created in an unusually strong March, but better than the 55,000 forecast in the Dow Jones consensus estimate.

The ADP private payrolls report out Wednesday beat economists’ estimates, while the weekly initial jobless claims from the Labor Department Thursday ticked up but remained near decade lows. The ADP private payrolls report showed that the private sector added 109,000 jobs last month, more than economists’ consensus estimate of 99,000. Education and health services led job creation. On Thursday, the Labor Department reported new applications for U.S. unemployment benefits rose 10,000 last week to 200,000, near economists’ consensus estimate of 205,000.

June gold futures rose 0.4% Thursday to $4,710.90 an ounce on Comex, and the most-active contract is up 1.4% so far this week. Bullion dropped 1% last month after sliding 11% in March and climbing 11% in February. It rallied 64% last year. The June contract is currently up $36.90 (+0.78%) an ounce to $4747.80 and the spot price is $4741.80.

U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters Thursday evening that the U.S. ceasefire with Iran was still intact after the two countries fired on each other’s ships earlier in the day in the Strait of Hormuz, the key oil artery. Iran is reportedly considering the latest U.S. peace proposal.

Stability in the labor market may reinforce expectations that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates unchanged for the foreseeable future. Higher interest rates are typically bearish for gold, making it a less attractive alternate investment.

The Fed last week held interest rates steady at 3.5% to 3.75%, as expected, but policymakers were unusually divided. About 94% of the investors tracked by the CME FedWatch Tool are betting on rates staying unchanged again in June. The Iran war has erased expectations that the Fed would cut interest rates this year. Most investors tracked by the tool now expect the central bank to keep U.S. interest rates unchanged until the latter half of next year.

The Fed has kept interest rates unchanged this year after three previous rate cuts. The central bank began raising interest rates in March 2022 to fight inflation, ultimately imposing increases of by 5.25 percentage points before beginning rate cuts in 2024.

Front-month silver futures gained 3.7% Thursday to settle at $80.18 an ounce on Comex, and the July contract increased 4.9% in the first four days of the week. The most-active contract touched a record above $115 in January. Silver lost 1.2% in April after dropping 20% in March and gaining 19% in February. It rose 141% last year. The July contract is currently up $1.575 (+1.96%) an ounce to $81.755 and the spot price is $81.42.

Spot palladium fell 2.7% Thursday to $1,507.00 an ounce and is down 2.8% so far this week. Palladium rose 3.2% last month after tumbling 17% in March and gaining 8.8% in February. Palladium rose 74% last year. The current spot price is down $30.00 an ounce to $1493.00.

Spot platinum declined 0.7% Thursday to $2,041.20 an ounce but is up 1.5% this week. It gained 1.3% in April after declining 17% in March and advancing 15% in February. Platinum increased 122% in 2025. The DG spot price is currently down $9.80 an ounce to $2047.60.