Gold price dropped by over 0.26% during the North American session on Thursday, trimming some of its earlier losses of nearly 1%. The release of solid economic data from the United States, which supports the Federal Reserve's (Fed) stance to hold rates unchanged at the upcoming July meeting, contributed to this decline. At the time of writing, XAU/USD trades at $3,340.

The market mood remains positive throughout the trading day, which serves as a headwind for Gold prices, as investors digest the latest job and consumer data. Initial Jobless Claims for the last week continued to show improvement in the labor market. At the same time, Retail Sales data indicated that American households remain resilient, although the data suggest that the jump in sales is mainly attributed to higher prices.

After the data, some Fed officials crossed the wires. Governor Adriana Kugler commented that monetary policy needs to remain steady for quite some time. San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly stated that there's some work to be done on inflation, as they have not yet achieved price stability.

In the meantime, investors continued to price in less easing by the Fed as further data became available, which dampens the demand for the non-yielding metal. The December 2025 fed funds rates futures contract shows that traders expect 42 basis points (bps) of easing, as revealed by the CBOT.

On the trade side, Japan's negotiator Ryosei Akazawa held talks with the US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in efforts to avert or diminish 25% tariffs imposed on Japanese products.

Ahead this week, traders will eye Fed speeches and the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment report.

Source: Fxstreet