New York, Feb 10, 2026, 13:32 EST — Regular session
- Spot gold slid 1%, landing at $5,014.19 an ounce. U.S. futures for April slipped 0.8% to $5,037.20.
- Traders pulled back on positions before U.S. payrolls and inflation numbers, data that could sway the Fed’s rate view.
- Silver gave up 3.3% following Monday’s jump, with Indian ETF flows still drawing attention.
Gold slipped on Tuesday, giving up ground after a brief two-day rally that took prices above $5,000. By 11:10 a.m. ET, spot gold was 1% lower at $5,014.19 an ounce. April U.S. futures dropped 0.8% to $5,037.20. Silver took a sharper hit, falling 3.3% to $80.60. Platinum dipped 1.1% to $2,099.93, and palladium was down 1.3% at $1,717.33. “We’re seeing a light pullback or consolidation,” said David Meger, director of metals trading at High Ridge Futures. 1
Timing counts here. Bullion now hovers right at that $5,000 psychological floor, and with two key U.S. releases up ahead, the question looms: does this pullback hold, or are things about to get a lot choppier?
Gold doesn’t yield interest. If investors see policy rates heading lower, holding the metal suddenly seems less expensive compared to cash or bonds—and even minor changes in interest-rate expectations can jolt prices quickly.
Wednesday, Feb. 11 will see the U.S. January employment report drop at 8:30 a.m., followed by January’s Consumer Price Index on Friday, Feb. 13, also at 8:30 a.m., according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics calendar. 2
Economists surveyed by Reuters are looking for nonfarm payrolls to show a 70,000 gain in January, following December’s 50,000 uptick. White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett told CNBC there’s no reason for investors to “panic” if the jobs data falls short of expectations. 3
New U.S. numbers out Tuesday fueled more talk of slowing growth behind the recent wave of rate-cut wagers. Retail sales didn’t budge in December—surprising analysts—and Thomas Ryan at Capital Economics noted that “signs of earlier consumer strength may be starting to falter.” 4
The dollar’s drop sent ripples through markets Monday, with spot gold jumping 1.9% to $5,056.21 by early afternoon in New York. April futures wrapped up 2% higher at $5,079.40, as the U.S. dollar slipped 0.8% for the day. “The big mover today is the U.S. dollar,” said Bart Melek, global head of commodity strategy at TD Securities. 5
Away from the U.S. macro backdrop, demand cues remain in focus for investors—these signals have helped support the market, even when sessions turn soft. ETF flows are now part of that narrative.
Indian investors flooded gold exchange-traded funds in January, driving inflows up to 240.4 billion rupees—more than double what they put in the month before, and just surpassing the amount that went into equity funds, according to industry data. “We saw extreme volatility in the markets in January,” said Venkat Chalasani, chief executive at the Association of Mutual Funds in India. 6
Still, gold faces no sure path to $5,000. If payrolls come in above forecasts, or CPI surprises on the upside, bets on rate cuts could get slashed. Higher yields and a firmer dollar usually spell trouble for bullion.
First up: Wednesday’s payrolls. After that, Friday’s CPI. Any surprises could jolt the rate outlook—and you’d probably see it hit the dollar and U.S. yields before gold reacts.
