Gold Gained on Thursday as COVID-19 Variant Spreads

Gold, the world’s number one safe-haven asset, rose by 0.3 percent to $1,774.39 per ounce on Thursday amid rising concerns over the spread of the Delta coronavirus variant.

The precious metal moved further away from a two-month low hit on Tuesday, gold might have called the bottom for the bearish trend started when the U.S Fed announced possible rates increase in 2023.

Rising cases of the Delta variant have prompted France to delay the easing of restrictions in the Landes region, while infections have also surged in Asia.

If the rise of the variant forces authorities to introduce new lockdowns, especially in Europe and the United States, then we may be looking at the risk-averse safe haven trade offering support to gold, Ricardo Evangelista, a senior analyst at ActivTrades.

Also on investors radar is Friday’s U.S. nonfarm payrolls that could provide more clues on timeline for Fed’s shift in monetary policy. The weekly jobless claims data is due later on Thursday.