Gold prices hit record close for 5th straight session

Gold prices nudged up at settlement today, March 7, as markets monitored Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's testimony before the Senate Banking Committee, and investors digested economic data.

Bullion for April delivery climbed by 0.3%, or $7, at $2,165.2 per ounce, with the most active contract hitting a record close for the fifth session in a row, after touching $2,172.2 an ounce.

Meanwhile, the US dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, shed 0.5% to 102.87 points at 09:28 pm Makkah time, marking the lowest level since January 24 (102.77 points).

The People's Bank of China announced the strengthening of its gold reserves for the 17th month in a row, as gold reserves increased by about 390,000 ounces in January, bringing the total holding of the central bank to 72.58 ounces, or the equivalent of approximately 2,257 tons.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reiterated that he expects interest rates to start coming down this year but is not ready yet to say when, adding, “The Committee does not expect that it will be appropriate to reduce the target range until it has gained greater confidence that inflation is moving sustainably toward 2%.”

Investors are awaiting the release of the monthly jobs report in US tomorrow, March 8, to learn more about the labor market, after economic data showed that initial applications for unemployment aid remained stable at 217,000 applications during the week ended March 2.