JOLTS hits record
Gold prices continued to rally on Tuesday as the dollar declined and yields moved higher. This move came as the number of jobs opened in the U.S. climbed to the highest level on record. Help wanted rose by 597,000, or 8%, to 8.12 million, in March while hiring rose just 215,000, or 3.7%, to just over 6 million.
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Gold prices moved higher on Monday, continuing to break out above trend line resistance. Support is now seen near former resistance, a downward sloping trend line near 1,799. Target resistance is seen near the Fibonacci retracement level of 50.0%, which is seen near 1,876. Additional support is seen near the 10-day moving average at 1,800 and then the 50-day moving average at 1,746. The 10-day moving average has crossed above the 50-day moving average, meaning that a short-term uptrend is now in place. Short-term momentum has turned negative as the fast stochastic generated a crossover sell signal. Medium-term momentum has turned positive as the MACD (moving average convergence divergence) index generated a crossover buy signal. This occurs when the MACD line (the 12-day moving average minus the 26-day moving average) crosses above the MACD signal line (the 9-day moving average of the MACD line).
Job openings popped to a record high in March. Help wanted rose by 597,000, or 8%, to 8.12 million, in March while hiring rose just 215,000, or 3.7%, to just over 6 million. Total separations declined, falling by 107,000 to 5.32 million. The total number of employment opportunities set a new standard for the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey. For March, opportunities expanded sharply in government jobs, with openings jumping to 833,000, a 26.6% increase from February. Retail also saw a sizeable gain while education and health services saw a decline. Quits, or voluntary exits from jobs, were little changed at 2.4%.
David Becker focuses his attention on various consulting and portfolio management activities at Fortuity LLC, where he currently provides oversight for a multimillion-dollar portfolio consisting of commodities, debt, equities, real estate, and more.