PRECIOUS-Gold eases as US jobs data lifts dollar, Trump softens tone on Iran

By Anmol Choubey

Jan 15 (Reuters) - Gold prices declined on Thursday as weaker-than-expected U.S. weekly jobless claims data boosted the dollar, while U.S. President Donald Trump's moderated tone on Iran further weighed on safe-haven demand for the metal.

Spot gold XAU= was down 0.1% at $4,614.93 per ounce, as of 01:30 p.m. ET (1830 GMT). Bullion hit a record $4,642.72 on Wednesday. U.S. gold futures GCcv1 for February delivery

settled 0.3% lower at $4,623.70.

Data showed new applications for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week, pushing the dollar index .DXY to its highest level since December 2 and making bullion more expensive for overseas buyers. USD/

"Recent data sort of keeps expectations towards Fed on hold perhaps for the first half of the year, so the dollar index is at a multi-week high and that's providing a bit of a headwind for gold at this point," said Peter Grant, vice president and senior metals strategist at Zaner Metals.

Trump said on Wednesday he has no plans to fire Jerome Powell despite a Justice Department criminal investigation into the Federal Reserve chair, but it was "too early" to say what he would ultimately do.

The Fed is broadly expected to maintain interest rates at its January 27-28 meeting, despite Trump's calls for cuts. Markets, however, anticipate at least two 25-basis-point rate reductions later in the year. FEDWATCH

Trump also said he had been told that killings in Iran's crackdown on protests appeared to be easing and saw no immediate plan for large-scale executions, signaling a wait-and-see approach after earlier threats of intervention.

Grant said easing geopolitical tensions had slightly weighed on prices, but viewed gold's move as corrective and expected traders to treat downticks as buying opportunities.

Safe-haven gold tends to do well during times of geopolitical and economic uncertainty, as well as in low-interest-rate environments.

Poland's central bank had 550 tons of gold at the end of 2025 and wants to raise its reserves to 700 tons, its governor Adam Glapinski said on Thursday.

Spot silver XAG= slid 0.3% to $92.50 per ounce after hitting an all-time high of $93.57 earlier in the session.

Spot platinum XPT= receded 0.8% to $2,404.18 per ounce, while palladium XPD= held steady at $1,826.32 per ounce.