Gold off nearly 1.5% ahead of the FOMC announcement that will be released later

Gold off nearly 1.5% ahead of the FOMC announcement that will be released later this afternoon. Lack of activity from many global markets, due to holidays, and better than expected consumer confidence data seem to have made the case for investor involvement in the equity arena to start the month. However, with the general consensus pointing to a continuation of QE and this morning’s ADP numbers missing the mark, it is modestly perplexing as to why the yellow metal is under so much pressure. ADP data showed just 119,000 jobs added to the private sector in April, well off the 150,000 that was expected. The all-important Government  Non-Farm Payrolls will be released on Friday and a miss on weekly jobless claims tomorrow, coupled with the ADP whiff today, could have market participants putting one foot back in the safe-havens ahead of the data. Gold now trades at $1451 after closing Tuesday’s session at $1472.10. The rest of the complex is also under pressure following Chicago PMI data that showed the regions manufacturing moving into contraction territory (49) in April after expansion (52.4) in March. Other data coming out today includes construction spending numbers at 10:00 AM. Have a great day!