Gold prices inched down to the lowest level in five weeks on Thursday, pressured by an uptick in the dollar ahead of US non-farm payrolls data on Friday. Spot gold was down by 0.1 percent at $1,206.46 per ounce, as of 0711 GMT. Earlier in the session, it hit $1,203.25, the lowest since February 1. US gold futures eased 0.3 percent to $1,206.4. Investors are awaiting February non-farm payrolls data on Friday as a barometer of the US economy after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said last week the central bank was poised to lift rates provided jobs and inflation data held up.
Interest rates futures implied traders saw an 86 percent chance of a rate hike next week on Wednesday, compared with 82 percent at Tuesday's close, according to CME Group's FedWatch program. Spot gold may bounce into a range of $1,213-$1,219 per ounce before falling again, as it seems to have lost its bearish momentum around a support at $1,206, according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao. Meanwhile, holdings of the largest gold-backed exchange-traded-fund (ETF), New York's SPDR Gold Trust GLD, remained unchanged on Tuesday from Monday.