Illustrative image. (Source: AFP)

In afternoon trading on September 7th, gold prices in Asian markets struggled near their lowest level in two and a half weeks, maintaining the downward trend from the previous three sessions after the US Department of Labor released statistics showing that non-farm employment in August was not as high as expected and not strong enough to prompt the Fed to decide on raising interest rates at its upcoming policy meeting.

At 1:37 PM Vietnam time, the spot gold price in the Singapore market remained largely unchanged at $1,123.15 per ounce.

The precious metal fell to $1,116.75 per ounce on Friday (September 4), its lowest level since August 19 and marking the second consecutive week of declines.

The U.S. Department of Labor released statistics showing that non-agricultural employment increased by 173,000 in August, following a 245,000 increase in July, although the unemployment rate fell to its lowest level in seven and a half years.

The SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold exchange-traded fund, said its gold holdings fell 0.04% to 682.35 tonnes on September 4.

According to Vietnamplus