On Friday, the gold price pulled back from the session highs of about $3,657 to trade at about $3,641 after the latest U.S. data. The XAU/USD trades within a slightly descending channel formation in the 60-minute chart.
The price of the yellow metal has now fallen to trade at the 100-hour moving average line. However, gold still has room left to run before reaching the oversold levels of the 14-hour RSI.
Gold Price Fundamentals Overview
From a fundamental perspective, the XAU/USD trades during a relatively busy period in the U.S. market. On Friday, the preliminary Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index for September came in lower than expected, with 55.4 versus a forecast of 58. The preliminary Michigan Consumer Expectations Index for the period also fell short of 54.9, with a reading of 51.8.
On Thursday, the U.S. initial jobless claims for last week significantly increased to 263k, up from 235k in the preceding week, missing the forecasted claim count of 236k. The consumer price index for August outshone the (MoM) forecast of 0.3% with a change of 0.4%, while the (YoY) equivalent matched the estimate of 2.9%. The consumer price index ex-food and energy was also in line with forecasts of 0.3% (MoM) and 3.1% (YoY).
Earlier in the week, the US producer price index for August missed the expected (MoM) change of 0.3% with a change of -0.1%. The (YoY) equivalent also fell short of 3.3% with a change of 2.6%. The producer price index ex-food and energy failed to match the forecasts of 0.3% (MoM) and 3.5% (YoY), with -0.1% and 2.8%, respectively.
Gold Price Technical Analysis (the 60-min Chart)
Technically, the gold price trades within a slightly descending channel formation in the 60-minute chart. However, the 14-hour RSI still has room left to run before reaching oversold conditions.
Therefore, the bears will look to extend the current decline towards $3,627 or lower to $3,610. On the other hand, the bulls will look to pounce on profits at about $3,657 or higher at $3,674.
Gold Price Technical Analysis (the Daily Chart)
In the daily chart, the XAU/USD has recently completed an upward breakout from a sideways channel formation. The 14-day RSI also supports a strong bullish bias after entering overbought conditions.
Therefore, the bulls will look to stretch the current spike towards $3,744 or higher to $3,855. On the other hand, the bears will look to pounce on pullbacks at about $3,538 or lower at $3,433.