03.11.202310:00:00UTC+00Gold Poised For Weekly Decline

Gold prices were flat to slightly higher on Friday as investors awaited cues from the U.S. jobs report due later in the day, expected to show a slowdown in hiring for October.

Economists expect employment to increase by 180,000 jobs in October after an addition of 336,000 jobs in September. The unemployment rate is expected to remain at 3.8 percent.

Spot gold rose 0.2 percent to $1,989.56 per ounce but was on course to snap a three-week winning streak. U.S. gold futures were up 0.2 percent at $1,996.75.

Bullion struggled for momentum after recent strong gains on optimism that major central banks including the Federal Reserve, Bank of England and the European Central Bank are nearly done with interest rate hikes.

A weaker dollar offered some support as overnight data showing an uptick in weekly jobless claims and declining labor costs added to bets that the Fed is done raising interest rates.