GoldPrice

Gold prices have seen modest upward movement today in the face of mixed data from different sectors of the US economy today which led to a slump in the US dollar. US homebuilding saw a major drop, hindering hopes that the housing sector was seeing a comeback. Manufacturing data came in below expectations, industrial production saw a steep decline, and jobless claims saw a modest increase in line with market expectations.

The University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index, released on Friday, came in at 92 for September, recovering from the three-year low of 89.8 seen in August. The reading is still the third-worst result of Donald Trump’s presidency.

The US labor market continues to show signs of strength amid uncertain economic conditions, with initial jobless claims dropping below expectations last week.  210,000 Americans applied for unemployment benefits during the week ended October 5, below expectations of 219,000.

US consumer prices saw no change in September since the month before, matching the weakest reading since the beginning of the year. With underlying inflation reportedly retreating, the latest financial data released by the Labor Department on Thursday supports the case for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates in October for the third time in 2019.

US producer prices took an unexpected fall in September due to the drop in the cost of goods and services. The producer price index (PPI) fell -0.3% last month vs. 0.1% expected after a 0.1% increase in August according to a report released on Tuesday by the Labor Department.

The US economy added 136,000 new jobs in September according to a government report released on Friday. The figure is below expectations of 150,000 jobs, marking the slowest pace of growth in four months and adding to fears of a looming recession.