- Goldman Sachs pushes back $3,000/troy ounce gold forecast to Q2 2026
- Economic data will be crucial for gold this week, says analyst
- U.S. nonfarm payrolls report, due on Friday, in focus
By Rahul Paswan
Jan 6 (Reuters) - Gold prices dipped on Monday on profit-booking after gaining last week, while investors awaited a slew of U.S. economic data including the December nonfarm payrolls report for further guidance on the Federal Reserve's stance on interest rates.
Spot gold XAU= lost 0.5% to $2,627.36 per ounce by 0807 GMT. U.S. gold futures GCcv1 dropped 0.6% to $2,639.40.
Bullion hit a three-week high and registered a weekly gain on Friday. GOL/
"The pressure on gold is mostly due to profit taking after the recent rally last week and all eyes are now on Donald Trump returning to office, which could be a game changer," said Ajay Kedia, director at Kedia Commodities in Mumbai.
The U.S. jobs report, due on Friday, is expected to provide more clues to the Fed's rate outlook. ADP hiring and job openings data, as well as minutes of the Fed's last policy meeting are also on investors' radar.
How the U.S. jobs data fares this week could hold the key to whether gold breaks out of its recent range, said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade.
Gold flourishes in a low-interest-rate environment and serves as a hedge against geopolitical uncertainties and inflation.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is set to return to office on Jan. 20 and his proposed tariffs and protectionist policies are expected to fuel inflation.
This could prompt the Fed to go slow on rate cuts, limiting gold's upside. After three rate cuts in 2024, the Fed has projected only two reductions for 2025 due to persistent inflation.
Goldman Sachs pushed back its gold price forecast of $3,000 per troy ounce from December 2025 to the second quarter of 2026, citing expectations of fewer U.S. rate cuts in 2025.
Spot silver XAG= was steady at $29.64 per ounce, platinum XPT= dipped 0.6% to $932.59 and palladium XPD= fell 1% to $912.75.
Spot gold price in USD per oz https://reut.rs/3W6fBRw
(Reporting by Rahul Paswan in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu, Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Mrigank Dhaniwala)
((RahulKumar.Paswan@thomsonreuters.com ; If within U.S. +1 646 223 8780;;))
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