Gold edged higher as traders ramped up wagers on a December interest-rate cut by the Federal Reserve, after a report showed surprisingly weak US employment data.
Bullion traded near $3,990 an ounce on Friday, having trimmed losses in the previous session to end little changed. Yields on 10-year Treasuries fell the most in about a month on Thursday after outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. released data showing the biggest October job cuts in more than 20 years. Concerns about a softer labor market may bolster the case for further rate cuts — a scenario that tends to make non-yielding precious metals more attractive.