Open interest in gold futures markets rose by around 2.6K contracts after four consecutive daily drops on Thursday, according to preliminary readings from CME Group. Volume followed suit and went up by around 67.5K contracts, reversing at the same time the previous daily pullback.

Gold: Extra gains need to surpass $1980

Thursday’s marked advanced in gold prices was on the back of increasing open interest and volume, suggesting that further upside appears on the table in the very near term. For bullion to break out the ongoing consolidative phase it must clear the monthly peaks around $1980 per troy ounce.