On Friday, the price of gold remained steady at about $2,000 an ounce. However, it looked like it was going to fall for the second week in a row. This drop is happening because strong data on US inflation has raised concerns. People are worried that the Federal Reserve might not lower interest rates as soon as everyone had hoped.
The data on weekly jobless claims also showed that the US job market is still strong. On Thursday, the price of gold went up by 0.6%. This increase happened because the data on US retail sales was weaker than expected. As a result, people sold off the dollar and Treasury yields went down.
Investors are now waiting for the US producer inflation numbers that will come out on Friday. They hope these numbers will give them more information on what might happen next.
In terms of monetary policy, Raphael Bostic, the President of the Atlanta Fed, made a statement this week. He said that even though there has been progress in fighting inflation, he is not ready to suggest lowering interest rates. He mentioned there are still risks that need consideration.
On the contrary, Austan Goolsbee, the President of the Chicago Fed, shared a different view. He warned that the central bank should be careful not to wait too long to cut rates.