New York, Feb 9, 2026, 17:14 EST — After the bell
- Gold climbed roughly 2%, staying above $5,000 an ounce.
- The U.S. dollar eased, carrying the load as traders waited on postponed jobs and inflation figures out of the U.S.
- China’s central bank kept up its gold purchases, tacking on another month to its buying run and further boosting demand.
Spot gold jumped 1.9% to $5,056.21 an ounce by mid-afternoon in New York, building on Friday’s steep rebound. U.S. gold futures for April wrapped up 2% higher at $5,079.40. The dollar dropped 0.8%. “The big mover” was the greenback, said TD Securities’ Bart Melek. B2PRIME’s Eugenia Mykuliak noted that official buying is “increasingly putting a structural floor” under prices. Reuters
The rally’s got weight, since upcoming data releases could easily shake up the rate outlook once more—and gold’s been reacting to every hint. Bullion tends to jump when rate-cut bets look solid, but if those wagers pull back, prices can just as swiftly slump.
Gold doesn’t offer interest. That means when U.S. rates are seen moving down, the “opportunity cost” tied to owning gold falls, making the metal appear cheaper compared to cash or bonds—even after it’s rallied.
The dollar index slipped 0.8%, settling at 96.83, while yields on the U.S. 10-year benchmark ticked down to roughly 4.202%. According to CME’s FedWatch tool, traders were positioning for the first U.S. rate cut of the year in June. Eyes were on the delayed January nonfarm payrolls data, expected Feb. 11, and the January CPI numbers out Feb. 13.
January’s CPI numbers drop at 8:30 a.m. ET on Feb. 13, according to the U.S. Labor Department’s statistics agency calendar.
China’s central bank is back in focus. The People’s Bank of China bought gold for the 15th month running in January, nudging holdings up to 74.19 million fine troy ounces, compared with 74.15 million the previous month. Reported gold reserves rose in value, hitting $369.58 billion versus $319.45 billion in December. These moves followed a wild ride for gold in January, with prices nearing $5,600 before tumbling, reaching $4,403.24 by early February.
When speculative flows surge and vanish, the market’s had a floor thanks to the official-sector bid. Swings in the dollar and U.S. data? Those just add to the action, riding over a backdrop of persistent demand rather than replacing it.
Silver jumped 6.3% to $82.86 an ounce, and platinum and palladium registered gains as well. The rally in these metals has kept traders’ attention, particularly as liquidity has thinned out during the bigger swings.
The next move up isn’t a lock. Any upside shocks in jobs or inflation could send Treasury yields and the dollar higher—typically bad news for bullion, especially after such a brisk leap above a major round level.
Right now, the calendar’s steering the conversation. Eyes turn to the Feb. 11 payrolls numbers, quickly followed by the Feb. 13 CPI print—two data drops that may settle the big one: does the Fed have enough to justify a rate cut, or does it wait?
