MUMBAI/BENGALURU Physical gold discounts in India widened to their biggest in five months this week as an upsurge in local prices dampened purchases, while China and Singapore saw demand rise from investors looking to hedge against a global slowdown.
* Premiums in China rise to $10-$12.50/oz vs $7-$10 last week
* China May industrial output growth weakest in 17 years (Updates prices, adds comments and details)
* GRAPHIC - 2019 asset returns: http://tmsnrt.rs/2jvdmXl (Updates prices)
(Corrects final paragraph of June 7 story to say palladium prices were trading around $1,362.39 an ounce, not $801.50)
(Corrects final paragraph of June 7 story to say palladium prices were trading around $1,362.39 an ounce, not $801.50) * Gold up 2.5% so far this week * U.S. job growth slowed sharply in May * Dollar plummets to 2-1/2-month low * Platinum on track for first weekly gain in 7 weeks By Arijit Bose June 7 Gold prices jumped 1% on Friday to their highest levels since April 2018 as a sharp slowdown in U.S. jobs growth sent the dollar lower on growing expectations that the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates this year. Gold also has benefited from concerns that U.S. trade wars with Mexico and China will slow the global economy. The precious metal is up more than 2.5% so far this week. Spot gold was 0.4% higher at $1,339.97 per ounce at 2:34 p.m. EDT (1834 GMT), having earlier hit its intra-day high of $1,348.08. U.S. gold futures settled up 0.3% at $1,346.10 an ounce. The U.S. Labor Department reported on Friday that job growth slowed sharply in May and wages rose less than expected. "The U.S. jobs number was weaker than expected and that rallied the gold market. That gives the bulls more technical momentum," said Jim Wyckoff, senior analyst at Kitco. Chances "have significantly increased that the U.S. Federal Reserve is going to lower interest rates sooner rather than later and that is also working in favor of the precious metals bulls," Wyckoff said. Traders of U.S. short-term interest rate futures added to bets that the Fed will start to cut rates as soon as July and reduce them two more times before the end of the year. Lower interest rates boost gold by reducing the opportunity cost of holding the metal and by weakening the dollar, which skidded to its lowest in 2-1/2 months after the U.S. jobs data. The United States granted Chinese exporters two more weeks to get their products into the U.S. before increasing tariffs on those items, according to a U.S. government notice posted online. "On China side this going to be a protracted trade war ... The resulting loss of economic momentum could push more investor allocations into gold and that would be the primary factor driving prices north of $1,350 (in the medium term)," said Daniel Ghali, commodity strategist at TD Securities. President Donald Trump said on Friday there was a "good chance" that the United States would be able to reach a deal with Mexico over a surge of migrants on their border, although his administration was still pushing ahead with a plan to slap import tariffs on all Mexican goods next week. Silver gained 1.1% to $15.01 per ounce, on track for its biggest weekly increase since late December. Platinum dipped 0.2% to $801.50 an ounce, but was headed for its first weekly gain in seven weeks. Palladium was up 0.8% at around $1,362.39 an ounce. (Reporting by Arijit Bose and Eileen Soreng in Bengaluru; Editing by Phil Berlowitz and Bill Trott)
* Speculators raised net longs in gold in week to June 4-CFTC
* Gold up 2.3% so far this week * U.S. jobs data due at 1230 GMT * Platinum on track for first weekly gain in 7 weeks * Silver set to post biggest weekly rise in over 4 months (Updates prices) By Arijit Bose June 7 Gold prices steadied on Friday, but remained on course for their biggest weekly gain since March 2018, after rising expectations for a U.S. rate cut and concerns over trade tussles boosted demand for safe-haven bullion. However, having failed earlier this week to breach its 2019 high of $1,346.73, analysts expect the metal to consolidate until there is fresh impetus. Spot gold was steady at $1,335.35 per ounce at 1153 GMT, while U.S. gold futures were down 0.2% at $1,339.60. "We have had quite a move higher earlier this week, but we are moving towards levels where the market will struggle to go much higher," ING analyst Warren Patterson said. Gold has rallied in a short span of time, having gained about 2.3% this week. "Overall sentiment is still fairly supportive for the gold market," Patterson added, attributing the recent rally to a two-pronged U.S. trade spat with Mexico and China, and hopes for an interest rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve. The United States and Mexico concluded their second day of talks on trade and migration on Thursday and markets rebounded on optimism a deal could be close. However, it remains unclear whether Mexican pledges to curb migration flows will be enough to persuade Washington to postpone tariffs. U.S. President Donald Trump said he would decide whether to carry out his threat to hit Beijing with tariffs on at least $300 billion in Chinese goods after a meeting of leaders of the world's largest economies late this month. Gold's appeal as a safe-haven investment is bolstered in times of geopolitical uncertainty. "Gold is likely to stay muted through the rest of the day before the release of the non-farm payrolls. Investors want to see the impact on the U.S. jobs market before reassessing the current pessimism," Howie Lee, an economist at OCBC Bank, said. U.S. non-farm payrolls data at 1230 GMT will provide clues on the trajectory of interest rates. Meanwhile, New York Fed President John Williams on Thursday acknowledged the impact of trade and global growth concerns on business investment, but said he was keeping an open mind on interest rates. Among other metals, silver rose 0.4% to $14.91 per ounce, on track for its biggest weekly increase since late January. Platinum edged 0.2% lower to $801.40 an ounce. The metal was still headed for its first weekly gain in seven. Palladium dipped 0.2% to $1,348.65 an ounce. (Reporting by Arijit Bose in Bengaluru Editing by Mark Potter and Dale Hudson)
* Gold may consolidate after a strong run in a short time -analyst
* Inactive gold players getting involved again - UBS (Updates prices)
Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in North Korea on Thursday as Beijing looks to bolster its neighbour, hit by U.N. sanctions over its nuclear and missile programmes, a week before Xi and U.S. President Donald Trump meet amid a bitter trade dispute.