Gold faces weekly loss on surging bond yields as US payrolls loom

Gold prices looked set to post their worst week in six on Friday as investors braced for a closely watched U.S. jobs report after a string of solid economic data this week drove Treasury yields to nine-month highs.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold was up 0.1% at $1,936.15 per ounce by 0138 GMT, while U.S. gold futures rose 0.2% to $1,971.70 per ounce.

* Gold prices have declined more than 1% so far this week, having slipped to their lowest level since July 11 in the last session.

* U.S. long-term Treasury yields climbed to their highest since November on Thursday after employment and other economic data pointed to easing inflation.

* Rising bond yields dampen the appeal of gold, which pays no interest.

* Data on Thursday showed the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits rose slightly last week, while layoffs dropped to an 11-month low in July as labour market conditions remained tight.

* The Bank of England raised its key interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point to a 15-year peak on Thursday, its 14th back-to-back increase, and warned that borrowing costs were likely to stay high for some time.

* The downturn in euro zone business activity worsened more than initially thought in July as the slump in manufacturing was accompanied by a further slowing of growth in the bloc's dominant services industry, a survey showed.

* European Central Bank board member Fabio Panetta made the case on Thursday for keeping the ECB's interest rates at their current high level for longer.

* China's central bank governor pledged on Thursday to guide more financial resources towards the private economy.

* Spot silver gained 0.2% to $23.6 per ounce and platinum rose 0.3% to $917.29. Both were set for third consecutive weekly losses.

* Palladium was up 0.2% at $1,260.65.