Gold gains as employers add fewer jobs in the US

London: Gold in London rose for a second day after US employers added fewer than jobs than forecast, boosting prospects for the Federal Reserve to use additional stimulus measures to spur growth.

Payrolls climbed by 120,000 in March, the Labour Department said on Friday. Economists forecast a gain of 205,000, the median of 80 projections in a Bloomberg News survey. Minutes from a Fed policy meeting released last week indicated that the central bank will hold off on increasing monetary accommodation unless economic expansion falters.

"There's going to be this feeling that the Fed's minutes that said easing was off the table is not going to pan out," Michael Gayed, the chief investment strategist who helps oversee $150 million (Dh550.83 million) at New York-based Pension Partners LLC, said in a telephone interview. "We're getting the consistent message that stimulus is good for gold."

Bullion for immediate delivery gained 0.3 per cent to settle at $1,636.43 an ounce.

Gold has surged 86 per cent since the end of 2008.