Gold prices (XAU/USD) advanced late Monday, despite the US dollar registering modest gains bolstered by rising US Treasury bond yields. Softer-than-expected US economic data and a shortened trading week due to Independence Day contributed to the metal trading within familiar territory. Gold settled near $2,331, up 0.23%.
The US economy’s latest business activity figures presented a mixed outlook for the manufacturing sector. The S&P Global Manufacturing PMI indicated expansion, while the ISM Manufacturing PMI contracted for the third consecutive month in June.
Market participants exercised caution, resulting in mixed performances among US equity indices during the mid-North American session. Concurrently, the US 10-year Treasury yield climbed nearly nine basis points to 4.489%, supporting a slight recovery for the Greenback, which had been down 0.33% earlier in the day before rebounding to gain 0.09%.
Traders are keenly anticipating Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s speech on Tuesday, followed by the release of the Fed’s latest monetary policy minutes on Wednesday. The week will also see the release of Services PMIs from S&P and ISM, culminating in the highly anticipated US Nonfarm Payrolls report on Friday.