Gold prices on Friday held on to gains from the previous session as investors remained cautious ahead of a US jobs report, which could provide clues on the pace of further interest rate hikes. Spot gold was flat at $1,232.81 per ounce, as of 0702 GMT. Prices climbed to their highest since Oct. 26 at $1,237.39 per ounce on Thursday, as the dollar sagged.
US gold futures were down 0.3 percent at $1,235.1 per ounce. "The industry is being a little cautious ahead of the jobs data today ... It's certainly a time for them to take a bit of stock after the volatility in the equities markets," said ANZ analyst Daniel Hynes.
According to a Reuters survey of economists, non-farm payrolls probably rebounded by 190,000 jobs in October after Florence depressed restaurant and retail payrolls in September. "Friday's non-farm payroll number will be doubly important since another miss in the number, as was the case last month, could generate further weakness in the greenback and give gold a shot at taking out the $1,245 high," said INTL FCStone analyst Edward Meir in a note.
Gold prices have slipped more than 9 percent from their April peak as investors turned to the dollar as a safe-haven with the trade war unfolding against a backdrop of higher US interest rates. Spot gold may retrace to a support at $1,224 per ounce before, following its failure to break a resistance at $1,237, according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.
Holdings in SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, rose 0.90 percent to 760.82 tonnes on Thursday, biggest since late August.