Los Angeles CA, May 5 (Tangible Investments) – by James O’Dell – Precious metals prices were mixed in early trading on Friday as slumping oil prices lift Gold. The yellow metal is up 0.05 percent to $1,228.60 an ounce after sliding $9.70 on Thursday to close at $1,228.00.

Silver is down 0.40 percent to $16.24 an ounce after easing $0.16 on Thursday to close at $16.30. The Gold/Silver ratio rose to 75.34. Platinum is up 1.11 percent to $912.00 an ounce. Palladium is up 0.75 percent to $808.00 an ounce.

Muted Reaction To Jobs Report

Gold edged modestly higher on bargain hunting and short covering in early trading on Friday following a better-than-expected jobs report. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports 211k jobs were created in April, well above the 194k economists were expecting. The unemployment rate also ticked down a notch to 4.4 percent from last month’s 4.5 percent.

Royce Mendesm, Senior economist at CIBC World Markets, says the reason for the market’s muted reaction could be wage growth. “The annual rate of wage growth is now at the bottom end of the range it’s been in since mid-2016, and is notably below the Fed’s 3-4 percent preferred rate,” said Mendesm.

The jobs report together with the hawkish FOMC statement and fading French election concerns are all weighing on Gold. The Fed left rates unchanged on Wednesday yet hinted at a June rate hike. “This is certainly putting Gold under pressure, but Gold has had a good rally since Trump was elected.” said Gold expert Adrian Day.

Direction Determined By Oil

“Risk of further weakness exists, but at this stage the direction is likely to be determined by other commodities, especially oil,” said Ole Hansen of Saxo Bank.

One reason for the resilience we’re seeing in Gold today is the overnight slump in oil prices. Brent and U.S. crude oil prices fell more than three-percent overnight hitting six-month lows and triggering a rally in Gold.

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