Gold traded just shy of last week's all-time high as unexpectedly weak economic data and rising expectations for inflation helped boost haven demand. 

Bullion was around $2,937 an ounce, after notching its eighth weekly gain — the longest run since 2020. Gains have been supported by a sharp increase in demand for bullion-backed exchange-traded funds, with holdings last week jumping the most since 2022.

Reports on Friday showed US business activity slowed, consumer confidence waned and expectations for inflation surged. The Federal Reserve's Chicago President Austan Goolsbee downplayed concerns about price pressures, telling News Nation on Sunday that the figure "wasn't a great number, but it's only one month of data. You need at least two or three months for that to count."

Swaps markets priced in more interest-rate cuts by the Federal Reserve this year following the prints, with traders now expecting the first reduction for 2025 to land in July rather than September. Lower borrowing costs tend to benefit gold, which doesn't pay interest.

The precious metal hit a fresh peak on Thursday, after climbing 27% in 2024, with mounting concerns over President Donald Trump's disruptive trade and geopolitical agendas driving demand. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. last week raised its year-end target for the metal to $3,100, saying central-bank buying would be a key driver.

Economic data this week includes the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation metric on Friday, which is expected to cool to the slowest pace since June. However, glacial progress on taming price pressures overall will keep policymakers cautious about lowering interest rates further.

Spot gold was steady at $2,936.82 an ounce at 8:14 a.m. in Singapore. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was down 0.1%, after three weeks of losses. Silver, palladium and platinum all climbed. 

Source: Bloomberg