Gold and silver exchange traded funds were higher Friday after the Labor Department said September nonfarm payrolls rose more than economists had expected.
The largest gold ETF, SPDR Gold Shares (NYSEArca: GLD), is up 1.5% so far this week.
Gold was on track for its largest weekly advance in a month in slow trading Friday ahead of the employment report, Reuters reported.
“The payroll number will be a driver of trade today, but will jostle metals prices only if it’s significantly far from expectations,” said Tom Pawlicki, precious metals and energy analyst at MF Global, in the Reuters article. “Technical factors have been slightly positive recently, but have been slow to create any upside. The bullish focus for the market today will rest on payrolls, recapitalization of European banks, and on generally slow economic growth.”
The gold ETF is up 15.7% year to date, according to Morningstar. It was fractionally higher in preopen trading Friday while iShares Silver Trust (NYSEArca: SLV) also rose.