On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for October delivery traded at USD1692.85 a troy ounce during U.S. afternoon trade, climbing 0.46%.
Earlier in the day, prices advanced by as much as 0.80% to hit a session high of USD1,698.35 a troy ounce, the uppermost level since March 13.
Gold futures were likely to find support at USD1,644.45 a troy ounce, the low from August 31 and near-term resistance at USD1,706.15, the high from March 13.
Starting the gold rally, a report, the Institute for Supply Management said its index of purchasing managers fell by 0.2 points to 49.6 in August from a reading of 49.8 in July. Analysts had expected the ISM index of purchasing managers to ease up by 0.2 points to 50.0.
The disappointing data added to speculation the Federal Reserve was moving closer to stimulate growth in the U.S. economy, following a speech by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke last Friday.
Gold traders now looked ahead to Friday’s crucial non-farm payrolls data, which will allow investors to gauge the strength of the labor market and the need for additional easing.
The ISM, along with the jobs data, is key to gauging the probability of further easing by the U.S. central bank at its next policy meeting beginning September 12.
Moves in the gold price this year have largely tracked shifting expectations as to whether the U.S. central bank would pump more money into the financial system.
Gold gained as much as 15% earlier this year to hit USD1,790 an ounce after the Fed said in January it would keep interest rates near zero until at least late 2014 and indicated that it could introduce a fresh round of asset-purchases.
However, prices have lost almost 5% since late February, as the Fed failed to deliver more easing and amid concerns over the euro zone’s deepening debt crisis, which has fueled demand for the precious metal's hedge, the greenback.
Gold prices found further support amid ongoing expectations that the European Central Bank will announce details of measures to help stabilize the region’s sovereign debt markets after its upcoming policy setting meeting on Thursday.
On Monday, ECB President Mario Draghi indicated that he would be comfortable buying bonds with maturities of up to about three years, saying that it would not constitute state financing.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for December delivery surged 2.5% to trade at USD32.22 a troy ounce, the highest level since April 13, while copper for December delivery rose 0.4% to trade at USD3.471 a pound
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