Gold steady in wake of disappointing jobs data

Discounts in India narrowed to the smallest in three months

Gold was steady on Monday after climbing as much as over one per cent in the last session as weaker-than-expected US jobs data trimmed expectations of a Federal Reserve rate hike in September.

Fundamentals

Spot gold was mostly unchanged at $1,323.64 per ounce by 0120 GMT. The metal rose 0.9 per cent to $1,324.65 on Friday.

US gold futures were nearly flat at $1,327.40.

US employment growth slowed more than expected in August after two straight months of robust gains and wages were tepid.

Still, Richmond Federal Reserve Bank President Jeffrey Lacker said on Friday that the US economy appears strong enough to warrant significantly higher interest rates.

Wall Street's biggest banks are sticking to bets that the Fed will raise interest rates once this year, and the increase would most likely occur in December after a tepid employment report for August quashed most talk of a move as early as this month.

Asian physical gold demand improved slightly this week as a correction in prices prompted consumers to buy for the upcoming festival and wedding season, with discounts in India narrowing to the smallest in three months.

Hedge funds and money managers reduced their bullish stance in COMEX gold contracts in the week to August 30 to the lowest in nearly three months, US Commodity Futures Trading Commission data showed on Friday.

Russia's largest gold producer Polyus is considering placing global depository receipts in London in the future, its chief executive said on Friday, less then a year after it left the London market.