(Kitco NewsWire) – Spot gold and silver prices are sharply lower in late-afternoon U.S. trading Friday, after a stronger-than-expected May jobs report lifted Treasury yields, firmed the U.S. dollar and triggered heavy selling across precious metals. At the time of writing, spot gold was trading near $4,323.70 an ounce, down 3.39%, while spot silver was trading at $67.895, down 8.12% on the session.
U.S. employers added 172,000 jobs in May, while the unemployment rate held at 4.3%. Leisure and hospitality added 70,000 jobs, local government added 55,000 and health care also gained, while financial activities employment declined by 22,000. The payrolls beat shifted the metals trade away from rate-cut support and back toward higher real-rate pressure.
The Strait of Hormuz remains the main geopolitical transmission channel into gold, oil, rates and risk assets, but oil settled lower Friday as traders kept pricing some probability of a diplomatic path. For gold, the Hormuz premium is being offset by the hotter U.S. labor print, higher Treasury yields and a firmer dollar. For equities, the same mix is negative for long-duration tech; for energy, it leaves crude bid on weekly geopolitical risk but vulnerable to any headline suggesting U.S.-Iran de-escalation.
U.S. equities sold off sharply into the close as bond yields surged and AI-linked technology shares led the decline. The S&P 500 fell 200.57 points, or 2.6%, to 7,383.74. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 695.15 points, or 1.3%, to 50,866.78. The Nasdaq Composite fell 1,121.53 points, or 4.2%, to 25,709.43. The Russell 2000 fell 101.83 points, or 3.5%, to 2,833.50.
The key outside markets see Nymex WTI crude oil prices lower and settling around $90.54 a barrel, while Brent crude was near $93.09. The U.S. dollar index is firmer. The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield is higher, last trading at 4.532% but hitting a session high of 4.552% earlier.
Technically, spot gold bulls’ next upside price objective is to push prices back above the $4,350.00 to $4,370.00 resistance zone, with a sustained move targeting $4,482.30 and then the $4,600.00 area. Bears’ next near-term downside price objective is a break below $4,311.00, with deeper downside targets at the $4,180.00 to $4,200.00 support zone and then the $4,100.00 area. First resistance is seen at $4,350.00 and then at $4,370.00. First support is seen at $4,311.00 and then at $4,200.00.
Spot silver bulls’ next upside price objective is to drive prices back above the $71.00 to $72.00 area, with a move above that zone targeting the 50-day moving average at $76.17 and then $78.00. The next downside price objective for the bears is a break below the $65.00 to $66.00 support zone, with deeper downside targets at $61.00 and then $60.00. First resistance is seen at $71.00 and then at $72.00. Next support is seen at $66.00 and then at $65.00.
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