Gold pulls back after U.S. weekly jobless claims match expectations, continuing claims rise sharply

NEW YORK (October 12) The U.S. labor market showed mixed results last week as the number of workers applying for first-time unemployment benefits was in line with market expectations, while continuing claims rose sharply.

Thursday, the U.S. Labor Department said that weekly jobless claims came in at 209,000 during the week ending Oct. 6, the same as the previous week's estimate, which was revised upward from the initial 207,000 print.

The latest labor market data matched market expectations. According to consensus forecasts, economists were expecting to see jobless claims at 210,000.

Continuing jobless claims, which represent the number of people already receiving benefits, came in at 1.702 million during the week ending Sept. 29, rising by 30,000 from the previous week's downwardly revised level of 1.672 million. The consensus forecast was for a smaller increase to 1.680 million.

The four-week moving average for new claims – often viewed as a more reliable measure of the labor market since it flattens week-to-week volatility – fell to 206,250, a decrease of 3,000 claims from the previous week's average of 209,250.

The gold market sold off slightly following the employment data, but the reaction was likely due to the simultaneous release of U.S. CPI for September, which showed inflation remaining sticky. Spot gold fell from $1,884.49 an ounce just before the release to $1,779.06 in the minutes afterward.

KitcoNews