U.S. March non-farm employment data exceeded expectations, and the price index rose to a nearly four-year high. Gold ETF Huaxia (518850) turned positive during trading.

In the early trading on April 7, New York gold prices fell slightly during the session, now down 0.7%. The China Huaxia Gold ETF (518850) turned positive during the session; as of the time of writing, it was up 0.03%, the China Huaxia Gold Stocks ETF (159562) was down 0.45%, and the China Huaxia Nonferrous Metals ETF (516650) was up 0.62%.

On the news front, according to China News Service, on the 3rd the U.S. Department of Labor released data showing that in the U.S. March nonfarm payrolls added 178,000 jobs, with an unemployment rate of 4.3%, down 0.1 percentage point month over month. Compared with February’s nonfarm employment, which decreased by 133,000 jobs, the rebound in the above employment data exceeded market expectations.

In addition, according to reports, based on data released by the U.S. Institute for Supply Management (ISM), the U.S. March manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rose from 52.4 in February to 52.7, reaching the highest level since August 2022, indicating that the industry has maintained expansion for the 17th consecutive month. The production index rose to 55.1, indicating that output activity accelerated significantly. However, behind this stellar data, there is huge inflation pressure.

Guangda Futures analysis pointed out that the situation in the Middle East has remained tense. The market’s concerns about inflation amid persistently high oil prices and worries about liquidity fears under central bank policy tightening are ultimately the trading expression of geopolitical risks, and it is expected to remain for some time. Strategically, the near-term pattern in which gold prices face downward pressure is unlikely to change; lower expectations for gold in the first half of the year, and take a cautious approach of “defense first, and build positions on dips.”