WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Gold prices rose to fresh record highs on Wednesday, and extended gains to a seventh straight session, as rising geopolitical tensions continued to prompt investors to seek the safe-haven yellow metal.
A weak U.S. dollar contributed as well to the yellow metal's notable climb up north. The dollar index dropped to 104.23, losing about 0.55%.
Gold futures for June ended higher by $33.20 or about at $2,315.00, a record closing high.
Silver futures for May ended up by $1.137 at $27.060 an ounce, while Copper futures for May settled at $4.1940 per pound, gaining $0.1235.
According to a report from the Institute for Supply Management, the pace of U.S. service sector growth slowed down in the month of March.
The ISM said its services PMI dipped to 51.4 in March from 52.6 in February. While a reading above 50 still indicates growth in the sector, economists had expected the index to inch up to 52.7.
Notably, the report also showed a substantial slowdown in the pace of price growth in the sector, with the prices index tumbling to 53.4 in March from 58.6 in February. The index fell to its lowest level since March 2020.
The data helped ease recent concerns about the outlook for interest rates.
A report from payroll processor ADP showed stronger than expected private sector job growth in the U.S. in the month of March.
ADP said private sector employment jumped by 184,000 jobs in March after climbing by an upwardly revised 155,000 jobs in February. Economists had expected private sector employment to increase by 148,000 jobs compared to the addition of 140,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.
Meanwhile, Fed Chair Jerome Powell reiterated during remarks at Stanford University that the central bank is not in a hurry to begin lowering interest rates.
Powell pointed to higher inflation data over January and February as a reason for the Fed to be cautious but acknowledged it is 'too soon to say whether the recent readings represent more than just a bump.'
'We do not expect that it will be appropriate to lower our policy rate until we have greater confidence that inflation is moving sustainably down toward 2 percent,' Powell said.
He added, 'Given the strength of the economy and progress on inflation so far, we have time to let the incoming data guide our decisions on policy.'
Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX
© 2024 AFX News
