Gold retreats from daily highs, steadies above $1,710
- XAU/USD pair looks to register modest weekly gains.
- Upbeat market mood hurts safe-haven gold on Friday.
- USD struggles to find demand after US jobs report.
The XAU/USD pair is fluctuating in a relatively tight range on Friday and struggles to make a decisive move in either direction. As of writing, the pair was down 0.08% on the day at $1,715. Despite today's uninspiring performance, the troy ounce of the precious metal is looking to register modest weekly gains.
USD looks to end week on a weak note
Heightened optimism about the US economy having left the worst behind already boosts the risk sentiment on Friday and weighs on safe-haven gold. At the moment, Wall Street's three main indexes are gaining between 1.2% and 1.6%.
Meanwhile, the highly-anticipated Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) report showed that the Unemployment Rate in the US jumped to 14.7% in April with more than 20 million Americans losing their jobs. However, investors paid little to no mind to the historically bad NFP reading. Commenting on the data, "with many states now beginning to gradually re-open their economies, we could see some signs labour market healing as early as May," said Royal Bank of Canada analysts.
With the initial reaction, the greenback gathered strength against its rivals and the US Dollar Index (DXY) edged higher toward the 100 handle. Nevertheless, week-end flows and the risk-on atmosphere caused the USD to lose interest and helped XAU/USD limit its losses. At the moment, the DXY is down 0.17% on the day at 99.67.
Technical levels to watch for