Weak June US payrolls cool Fed hike bets, lifting gold 1.5% and pushing FTSE 100 up 25 points
US nonfarm payrolls for June rose by just 57,000, far below forecasts of 113,000, and earlier months were revised down, easing expectations for Federal Reserve rate hikes this year. Gold climbed 1.5% to $4,183.92 an ounce on the shift in rate expectations. US equities were mixed, with the Dow hitting a record high while the Nasdaq fell 0.8% and the S&P 500 slipped 0.1%. In London, the FTSE 100 closed Friday up 25 points at 10,679, ending the week 1.6% higher.