Gold inched higher on Monday, extending gains from the previous session after better-than-expected US employment data lent support to risk appetite, weighing on the dollar. "Market participants are now betting on Fed action at next month's FOMC (Federal Open Market Committee) meeting as the unemployment rate ticked up, even though the payrolls figure beat expectations," said Chen Min, an analyst at Jinrui Futures in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen.
Spot gold inched up 0.2 percent to $1,605.99 per ounce by 0646 GMT, extending the previous session's 0.9 percent rise. The US gold futures contract for December delivery was little changed at $1,609.40. Hedge funds and money managers raised their net long positions in US gold and silver futures and options by 35 percent in the week to July 31, as price gains based on speculation of more Federal Reserve stimulus prompted speculators to boost their bullish bets. Gold shipments from Hong Kong to mainland China fell 10 percent in June from the previous month to just below 68 tonnes, while gold flow from China to Hong Kong declined 9 percent to about 27 tonnes, Hong Kong's official trade data showed.
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