Gold futures bounce off 8-week low on bargain buying..

Forexpros - Gold futures rose for the first time in four sessions on Thursday, as the previous day’s steep drop to an eight-week low created bargain buying opportunities for investors reluctant to bet that prices would fall further.On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for April delivery traded at USD1,647.55 a troy ounce during early European morning trade, gaining 0.26%.      It earlier rose by as much as 0.4% to trade at a session high of USD1,649.25 a troy ounce. Prices plunged nearly 2% to hit USD1634.75 on Wednesday, the lowest since January 16.Gold futures were likely to find support at USD1,625.85 a troy ounce, the low from January 13 and resistance at USD1,682.75, the previous day’s high.Gold futures plunged nearly 5% in the three sessions leading up to Thursday, as gold traders continued to unwind long positions after the Fed gave an upbeat assessment of the U.S. economy on Wednesday, which reduced expectations for a third round of U.S. monetary easing by the central bank.A reduced likelihood of additional monetary stimulus can be viewed as a negative for gold, as the metal is seen as a safe store of value and benefits when inflationary fears rise.Gold prices lost nearly 5% on February 29, when Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke failed to mention another round of easing in a statement in his testimony to the U.S. Congress.The upbeat Fed assessment boosted the dollar, which tends to weigh on gold, as it dampens the metal's appeal as an alternative asset and makes dollar-priced commodities more expensive for holders of other currencies.However, Fed officials reiterated their intention to keep the benchmark interest rate unchanged at a record low through late 2014 and made no changes to its Operation Twist program to replace shorter-term Treasurys in its balance sheet with longer-term debt. Global financial service provider Barclays said in a report that it expected prices to find support at these levels as investor appetite for gold remains healthy due to decent physical demand, negative real interest rates and longer-term inflationary concerns.Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for May delivery eased up 0.15% to trade at USD32.23 a troy ounce, while copper for May delivery added 0.1% to trade at USD3.852 a pound.

U.S. stocks dip amid profit taking; Dow down 0.02%

Forexpros - U.S. stocks finished Friday lower as investors sold for profits on sentiment that global economic activity doesn't support rising share prices.The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 0.02%, the S&P 500 index was down 0.32% while the Nasdaq Composite index finished down 0.43% amid lackluster trading.Stocks still managed to finish the week in positive territory.Stocks prices have performed well in 2012, and U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has said the U.S. Central Bank has no set plans to intervene with measures such as quantitative easing to prop up the economy.Under quantitative easing, the Fed buys assets like mortgage-backed securities and Treasury bonds from banks with the aim of boosting liquidity, keeping borrowing costs low and sending stock prices rising in hopes investment and more organic growth will follow.Bernanke told the U.S. Congress that the economy, while far from recovered, is showing signs of improvement, which markets interpreted as a signal that easing remains on hold for now, which was bearish for stocks and bullish for the dollar.Leading Dow Jones Industrial Average performers included AT&T, up 0.82%, JPMorgan Chase, up 0.67%, and IMB, up 0.64%.Leading index losers included American Express, down 1.14%, Caterpillar, down 0.84%, and General Electric, down 0.73%.European indices were mixed to higher.After the close of European trade, the EURO STOXX 50 fell 0.10%, France's CAC 40 rose 0.04%, while Germany's DAX 30 finished down 0.29%. Meanwhile, in the U.K. the FTSE 100 closed down 0.34%.  On Monday, the U.S. Institute of Supply Management will release its Non-Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index.

U.S. stocks higher despite surging oil, conflicting data ..

Forexpros - U.S. stocks closed higher Thursday, despite conflicting U.S. economic data and surging oil prices. Near the close of U.S. trade, the Dow climbed 0.22%, the S&P 500 advanced 0.62% and the Nasdaq added 0.74%. Dampening the rally, the Institute for Supply Management reported manufacturing activity expanded at a slower rate than expected in February. The ISM index of purchasing managers’ fell to 52.4 last month, from a reading of 54.1 in January, disappointing expectations for an increase to 54.6. However, in bullish news, government data showed that U.S. initial jobless claims declined modestly last week, holding steady near the lowest level since March 2008.Labor