Fresnillo and Endeavour Mining fall as gold retreats to two-week low

Gold prices retreated to near $4,450 per ounce, marking a two-week low and pulling back from the three-month high reached late last week. December-delivery US gold futures also dropped roughly 1% to $4,483 per ounce, down from Friday's settlement price of $4,529.90. The downturn in bullion dragged down London-listed precious metals miners, with Fresnillo and Endeavour Mining dropping as much as 3% and 3.9% respectively during early London trading. The decline in gold is primarily driven by hawkish commentary from the Federal Reserve, warning that further monetary policy tightening may be required to bring inflation back to target. Consequently, rising US interest rate expectations have bolstered the US dollar and lifted government bond yields, dampening investor appetite for non-yielding bullion. Although ongoing geopolitical friction between the US and Iran provided modest safe-haven support, the accompanying spike in oil prices compounded inflation fears. Market focus is now shifting to upcoming US labor market releases, including job openings and the headline non-farm payrolls employment report, which will likely determine the Fed's next rate decision and the near-term trajectory for precious metals.