Gold Drops but Prepares for a Weekly Gain

Gold futures dragged down 0.07% to $1,841.30 by 11:19 PM ET (4:19 AM GMT), while benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury yields fell on Thursday.

Gold has gained nearly 1.2% this week and is selected for its second weekly gain in three in January. Although it has had a positive beginning to 2022, it could be a difficult year for gold.

Investors now expect the Fed’s next policy decision, scheduled to be handed down on Jan. 25.

The U.S. Data Published

On the data front, U.S. data published on Thursday showed that 286,000 initial unemployed claims were filed throughout the week, a three-month high. The Philadelphia Federal Reserve Manufacturing Index was 23.2 in January. Existing home sales stood at 6.18 million but contracted 4.6% month-on-month in December.

In the Asia Pacific, Japanese data released earlier revealed that the national core consumer price index increased 0.5% year on year, and the national CPI grew 0.8% year on year in December. The Bank of Japan also published the minutes from its most recent policy meeting.

Silver was under 0.4% in other precious metals but selected for its best week in a year and is up nearly 6% so far. Palladium dropped 0.6%, but is heading for a weekly gain of almost 9%. Platinum was down 0.4%, but remained on course for its best weekly showing in seven months and has gained nearly 6.6% so far.