Gold remains lower after upbeat U.S. GDP, jobless claims data

Gold futures remained lower on Thursday, after official data showed that the U.S. economy grew more than initially expected in the second quarter, fuelling speculation the Federal Reserve will taper its bond-buying program next month.

Gold traders have closely been looking out for U.S. data reports recently to gauge if they will strengthen or weaken the case for the Fed to reduce its bond purchases.

On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for December delivery traded at USD1,413.00 a troy ounce during U.S. morning hours, down 0.4%. 

The December contract settled 0.1% lower at USD1,418.20 a troy ounce on Wednesday, after rising to a three-and-a-half month high of USD1,433.50 a troy ounce.

Gold futures were likely to find support at USD1,368.40 a troy ounce, the low from August 23 and near-term resistance at USD1,433.50, the previous session’s high.

The Commerce Department said gross domestic product increased at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 2.5% in the three months to June, above expectations for growth of 2.2% and up from a preliminary estimate of 1.7%.

A separate report from the U.S. Department of Labor showed that the number of individuals who filed for unemployment assistance fell by 6,000 to a seasonally adjusted 331,000 last week, compared to forecasts for a decline of 5,000.

The stronger-than-expected data added to speculation the Fed could taper down its bond purchases at its next policy meeting amid increasing signs of a recovery in the U.S. economy.

The central bank is scheduled to meet September 17-18 to review the economy and assess policy.

The possibility that the Fed could scale back its stimulus program helped buoy the U.S. dollar. 

The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback against a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.65% to trade at 81.97, the strongest level since August 5.

A stronger U.S. dollar usually weighs 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.

Meanwhile, market participants remained cautious amid concerns over an impending U.S.-led military strike against Syria, following the alleged use of chemical weapons.

On Wednesday, President Barack Obama said the U.S. has concluded that the Syrian government carried out a chemical weapons attack near Damascus, but added that he had not yet made a decision about whether to intervene militarily.

Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for December delivery fell 0.35% to trade at USD24.36 a troy ounce, while copper for December delivery shed 0.45% to trade at USD3.297 a pound.