Gold ebbs down on profit-taking

Gold futures traded slightly lower in the early part of Friday?s Asian session as traders booked profits in the yellow metal following a strong showing during Thursday?s U.S. session.

On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for August delivery fell 0.11% to USD1,282.75 per troy ounce in Asian trading Friday after settling up 0.52% at USD1,284.15 a troy ounce in U.S. trading on Thursday, up from a session low of USD1,273.35 and down from a high of USD1,287.55 a troy ounce.

Gold futures were likely to find support at USD1,269.45 a troy ounce, Wednesday's low, and resistance at USD1,299.45, Wednesday's high.

Gold got a lift after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke reiterated in congressional testimony earlier that stimulus programs will remain in place for the foreseeable future though they may begin to wind down later this year if the economy improves.

Monetary stimulus programs such as the Fed?s USD85 billion-a-month bond-buying effort are seen as depressing to currencies, which should in turn boost dollar-denominated commodities such as gold. It has not worked out that way this year as gold is coming off its worst quarterly performance in multiple decades.

In U.S. economic news out Thursday, the U.S. Labor Department said initial claims for jobless benefits slid by 24,000 to 334,000 last week. The less volatile four-week moving average dropped by 5,250.