• Gold falls to multi-week low after US labor market data exceeds expectations.
• China’s People’s Bank halts 18-month Gold buying spree, exerts downward pressure on XAU/USD.
• US Treasury yields surge with the 10-year yield up to 4.43%, bolstering the Greenback and pushing Gold’s price lower.
• Traders eye US inflation data and Fed policy meeting next week.

Gold prices plummeted to a four-week low after the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) revealed that the labor market remained strong, and China halted its purchase of the golden metal. Therefore, with the XAU/USD trading at $2,295, the non-yielding metal dropped by more than 3%.

The latest US Nonfarm Payrolls report for May revealed the labor market added more people to the workforce, smashing estimates. Despite that, the same report revealed an uptick in the Unemployment Rate, while Average Hourly Earnings witnessed a slight increase.

After the data release, XAU/USD extended its fall, which began during Friday’s Asian session. News that the People’s Bank of China paused its 18-month bullion buying spree weighed on the precious metal.

“Holdings of the precious metal by the PBOC held steady at 72.80 million troy ounces for May,” according to MarketWatch.

So far, Gold has traveled from $2,387 to $2,304 and is about to fall beneath the $2,300 mark. In the meantime, US Treasury bond yields are skyrocketing, with the 10-year bond yield climbing 14 basis points to 4.43%, underpinning the Greenback.

The DXY, an index of the US Dollar against six other currencies, increased 0.79% to 104.91.

Market participants turn to next week's US inflation data and the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) monetary policy meeting. The US Consumer Price Index (CPI) is expected to remain steady, but a reacceleration could trigger further losses for the golden metal.