Gold falls 0.55% to $3,924.10, silver retreats 2.13% on Nov. 3
Key Facts
Spot gold and silver prices fell during Tuesday’s session on Nov. 3, 2026, as U.S. Treasury yields rose and investors tracked labor-market and industrial-orders data. Gold was at $3,924.10 an ounce at 2:49 p.m. New York time, down $21.60, or 0.55%, according to Kitco data. Silver was at $49.45 an ounce at the same time, down $1.076, or 2.13%. Silver’s decline was larger in percentage terms in this session reading, as the 10-year Treasury yield rose to 4.96% from 4.91% late Monday. The Associated Press linked the yield increase to the job-openings report, while Kitco said inflation concerns and expectations of further Federal Reserve tightening weighed on metals.
Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed U.S. job openings at 7.523 million in September, versus 7.190 million in August. The bureau described the level as little changed when rounded to the nearest tenth of a million, putting the two detailed monthly figures in the context of the report’s overall description. The Associated Press said vacancies were at their highest since May, after reaching a recent low of 6.9 million in March. The bureau also revised its estimate of August job openings up by 111,000 to 7.2 million. The data therefore showed September’s higher level compared with August, alongside a revision to the previous month’s figures, while the bureau did not describe the overall change in openings as significant.
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) reading covered more than vacancies: the number of quits rose to 3.4 million in September, while the quits rate held at 2.1%, little changed. The Bureau of Labor Statistics said hires and total separations changed little, making quits the clearest move among the indicators cited in the report. These details provide a more balanced picture of the labor market than job openings alone: the overall level of openings was described as little changed when rounded, as were hires and total separations, while the number of quits increased. The rate remained at 2.1%, despite the number of quits rising to 3.4 million. The bureau’s schedule listed the October JOLTS report for Dec. 1, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. Eastern time.
On the manufacturing front, U.S. factory orders rose 1.8% in September to $677.2 billion, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The increase followed a revised 0.3% rise in August, accelerating the monthly change compared with the revised reading for the previous month. This indicator adds to the labor-market data in the economic picture accompanying metals trading on Tuesday, with the figures showing growth in orders while several JOLTS components remained relatively stable. But the figures provided do not specify how much each report contributed to gold or silver’s moves, and they offer no separate forecast for industrial demand for the two metals. The available market commentary focused on the impact of yields, inflation concerns and expectations of further tightening cited by Kitco.
Kitco said the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield was trading near 4.9% on Tuesday; the Associated Press gave a more specific reading of 4.96%, compared with 4.91% late Monday. The news agency attributed the yield rise to a stronger-than-expected job-openings report, while Kitco cited inflation concerns and expectations of further Federal Reserve tightening among the factors weighing on metals. This wording reflects trading expectations about the possibility of further tightening and does not establish a certain path for monetary policy. Meanwhile, JOLTS figures showed hires, total separations and openings, according to the bureau’s description when rounded, changed little, while quits increased. Both metals posted losses by Kitco’s 2:49 p.m. New York time reading, with silver falling by a larger percentage than gold.
Attention now turns to the U.S. employment report for October, which the Bureau of Labor Statistics planned to release on Nov. 6, 2026, at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time. The Associated Press, citing a FactSet survey, reported expectations that employers added 65,000 jobs in October, compared with 29,000 added in September, while the expected unemployment rate remained at 4.2%. These figures provide the survey’s expectations for the coming period; the report had not yet been released during the Nov. 3 session. The October JOLTS report was then scheduled for Dec. 1 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern time. The next employment reading will be another indicator traders watch amid rising Treasury yields and mixed details in the September report, with quits up and other indicators little changed.