Gold Price Forecast: XAU/USD closes above the 20 and 200-day SMAs

• XAU/USD found support at the convergence of the 20 and 200-day SMAs at $1,915.
• Jobless Claims for the first week of September from the US came in lower than expected.
• Tightening expectations for the Fed and US yields remain high.

The Gold Spot price XAU/USD recovered some ground after finding support at the $1,915 area, jumping towards $1,920. However, the upside is limited as the expectations of one last Federal Reserve (Fed) hike grow in the markets.

During the American session, it was reported that Initial Jobless Claims for the first week of September came in lower than expected. The figure came in at 216,000, lower than the expected figure of 234,000 and declining from the previous 228,000.

The US Treasury yields, often seen as the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding metals, declined on Thursday and allowed the yellow metal to gather momentum. That being said, they still remain high as markets are placing bets on the Federal Reserve (Fed) hiking again in this tightening cycle, in November or in December, as the US is showing evidence of its economic activity remaining strong despite the Fed's aggressive moves. The focus shifts to next week's Consumer Price Index (CPI) data from the US in order for markets to continue modelling their expectations.

XAU/USD Levels to watch 

Based on the daily chart, XAU/USD maintains a neutral to bearish technical perspective, suggesting that the bears are gradually gaining momentum but are not yet in total control. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) exhibits a positive slope below its midline, while the Moving Average Convergence (MACD) lays out decreasing green bars.

Support levels: $1,915  (Convergence of 20 and 200-day SMA), $1,900, $1,880.

 Resistance levels: $1,930, $1,950, $1,970.

XAU/USD Daily Chart