Morning of August 15: World gold prices slightly decreased after last week's employment report was better than expected

Specifically, according to the US Department of Labor, the number of new unemployment benefits claims in the week ending August 9 was 224,000, lower than the forecast of 228,000. The previous week's figure was revised up slightly from 227,000.

Immediately after the report was released, the world spot gold price dropped to its lowest level of the session, currently trading around 3,340.96 USD/ounce, down 0.69% from the beginning of the day.

Based on today's USD exchange rate at Vietcombank (26,440 VND/USD), the converted world gold price today is equivalent to 106.44 million VND/tael. Currently, the domestic gold price is about 18.26 million VND/tael higher than the converted world gold price.

The four-week average of new claims, which is considered a more stable measure because it limits weekly volatility, came in at 221,750, below the forecast of 223,000. The figure was also better than the previous week's revised average of 221,000.

Continuing unemployment claims — those who have been receiving benefits — fell to 1.953 million in the week ended Aug. 2. That was below the forecast of 1.960 million and below the previous week’s downwardly revised 1.968 million.

Positive jobs data typically sends gold prices lower because it reinforces expectations that the Fed will keep interest rates high. When fewer people are unemployed, the economy is seen as strong, reducing demand for gold as a safe haven.

However, experts say this is only a short-term fluctuation. Gold prices can still recover if factors such as high inflation or geopolitical instability continue to develop complicatedly. The market is still waiting for clearer signals from the Fed on the interest rate adjustment roadmap in the coming months.