(Kitco News) - The gold market could see renewed selling pressure as the U.S. labor market remains resilient, with the private sector creating slightly more jobs than expected in May.
According to some analysts, the healthy labor market will force the Federal Reserve to pay more attention to the ongoing inflation threat.
Private-sector payroll processor ADP said Wednesday that 122,000 jobs were created in May, up from 109,000 jobs in April. The data came in slightly better than expected, as consensus estimates had forecast a reading of 118,000.
"Hiring was more broad-based in May than we've seen in the last few years," said Dr. Nela Richardson, chief economist at ADP. "The labor market continues to show sustained momentum going into the summer hiring season."
The report said that eight out of 10 supersectors posted gains last month and that employers of all sizes were hiring.
Expectations that the Federal Reserve will have to raise interest rates by the end of the year continue to pressure the gold market, with prices struggling below $4,500 an ounce. Spot gold last traded at $4,460.40 an ounce, down 0.60% on the day.
Along with the solid headline number, the report noted relatively steady wage inflation. Wages for workers who stayed in their jobs rose 4.4% annually last month, unchanged from April. At the same time, workers who changed jobs saw their annual wage increase 6.5%, down slightly from 6.6% in April.
