MTECHTIPS;- Gold hits session high after U.S. data, Bernanke speech eyed

MTECHTIPS;- Gold hits session high after U.S. data, Bernanke speech eyedGold futures shook off earlier weakness to hit the highest levels of the session during U.S. morning hours on Thursday, as investors digested U.S. data on first time jobless claims and consumer spending, while looking forward to a speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Friday.On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for October delivery traded at USD1,663.15 a troy ounce during U.S. morning trade, easing up 0.15%.      Prices were stuck in a tight trading range of USD1,655.05 a troy ounce, the daily low and a session high of USD1,664.15 a troy ounce. Prices rallied to USD1,677.45 a troy ounce on August 27, the highest since April 13.Gold futures were likely to find support at USD1,634.55 a troy ounce, the low from August 22 and near-term resistance at USD1,677.45, the high from August 27.Gold prices hit the highest levels of the day after the U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits held steady at a seasonally adjusted 374,000 last week, compared to expectations for a decline of 4,000 to 370,000.Separate data showed that personal spending rose 0.4% in July, in line with expectations, while personal income rose by 0.3% last month, matching forecasts.The core PCE price index rose at an annualized rate of 1.3% in July, below expectations for a 1.4% gain, after rising at a rate of 1.5% in the preceding month.

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