JOLTS job openings: gold before and after
Before and after Release: Tue Sep 29, 2026, 10:00 ET (2026-09-29 14:00 UTC)
Before the release
What it is and why gold cares
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey counts open positions across the US economy, a gauge of labor demand that the Fed follows closely. It comes out at 10:00 ET, often in the same minute as other data.
The consensus figures for this release were not archived (our calendar archive starts on Oct 4, 2026), so this page compares the result with the previous value only.
| Line | Consensus | Previous |
|---|---|---|
| JOLTS Job Openings | n/a | 7.27M |
How gold reacted to past JOLTS releases
In the 11 past JOLTS releases in our data since Apr 2025, gold futures moved a median of $1.5 (up or down) in the first 5 minutes and $8.6 after 30 minutes. The median high-to-low range in the first hour was $19.0, the largest $74.8. The direction of the first 5 minutes was still in place after 60 minutes in 3 of 10 cases. This describes past releases only, measured on our own 1-minute futures data.
| Release | 5-min move | 60-min move | 60-min range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tue Jun 30, 2026 | -$3.5 | +$8.1 | $38.6 |
| Tue Jun 2, 2026 | -$0.3 | +$1.6 | $17.4 |
| Tue May 5, 2026 | -$0.6 | +$3.5 | $21.1 |
| Fri Mar 13, 2026 | +$4.0 | -$61.7 | $74.8 |
| Thu Feb 5, 2026 | -$15.9 | -$29.2 | $67.2 |
| Tue Dec 9, 2025 | -$5.1 | +$8.2 | $27.6 |
Where price sat before the release
At Tue Sep 29, 2026, 09:45 ET, gold futures traded at 4,187.3 GC (≈4,154 XAUUSD), inside the previous day's value area (≈4,121 to ≈4,165 XAUUSD, 4,154.2 to 4,198.3 GC), above the daily VWAP (≈4,140 XAUUSD, 4,172.6 GC) and above the weekly VWAP (≈4,149 XAUUSD, 4,182.0 GC).
| Level | GC | XAUUSD | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Above | New York high | 4,195.5 | ≈4,163 | +$8.2 |
| Above | London high | 4,193.3 | ≈4,160 | +$6.0 |
| Above | Developing weekly VAH | 4,191.8 | ≈4,159 | +$4.5 |
| Below | Prev day POC + Weekly VWAP | 4,182.0 | ≈4,149 | -$5.3 |
| Below | New York low | 4,180.6 | ≈4,148 | -$6.7 |
| Below | Asia high | 4,179.5 | ≈4,147 | -$7.8 |
Nearest reference levels from futures volume: above, Developing weekly VAH at 4,191.8 GC (≈4,159 XAUUSD), $4.5 away; below, Prev day POC + Weekly VWAP at 4,182.0 GC (≈4,149 XAUUSD), $5.3 away. These are levels to watch around the release, places where price reacted before; they are not forecasts.
Spreads and volatility
Around a release, spreads on XAUUSD CFDs often widen, prices can jump several dollars between two ticks and stop orders can fill far from their price. In past JOLTS releases the release minute alone had a median high-to-low range of $6.6.
This BEFORE section was rebuilt after the fact from the data available 15 minutes before the release (backfilled page). XAUUSD equivalents use the GC to XAUUSD gap of -32.81 measured at that time; your broker's price can differ by a few dollars.
After the release
| Line | Consensus | Actual | Surprise | Previous |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JOLTS Job Openings | n/a | 7.08M | n/a | 7.27M |
JOLTS Job Openings: 7.08M, previous 7.27M (revised to 7.33M in this release).
Gold futures (GC) 1-minute candles, 30 minutes before to 60 minutes after the release; dashed lines are levels known before the release. Right axis: XAUUSD equivalent.
The measured reaction
Gold futures were at 4,189.8 GC (≈4,157 XAUUSD) just before 10:00 ET. After 1 min +$6.1; after 5 min +$7.7; after 15 min +$8.4; after 30 min +$14.3; after 60 min +$12.2. The first-hour range was $18.7: high 4,207.2 GC (≈4,174 XAUUSD) at +23 min, low 4,188.5 GC (≈4,156 XAUUSD) at +1 min.
| Time | GC | XAUUSD | Move |
|---|---|---|---|
| Before (09:59 close) | 4,189.8 | ≈4,157 | |
| +1 min | 4,195.9 | ≈4,163 | +$6.1 |
| +5 min | 4,197.5 | ≈4,165 | +$7.7 |
| +15 min | 4,198.2 | ≈4,165 | +$8.4 |
| +30 min | 4,204.1 | ≈4,171 | +$14.3 |
| +60 min | 4,202.0 | ≈4,169 | +$12.2 |
| First-hour high (+23 min) | 4,207.2 | ≈4,174 | +$17.4 |
| First-hour low (+1 min) | 4,188.5 | ≈4,156 | -$1.3 |
Volume and order flow
The release minute traded 776 contracts, 3.3 times the median minute of the half hour before (236). Net delta (aggressive buying minus aggressive selling): +84 over 1 min, +165 over 5 min, +272 over 15 min.
Order flow in the first 15 minutes (Bookmap trade capture (exchange data; icebergs not rebuilt)): no single aggressive order of 60+ lots. No iceberg (hidden order) of 30+ lots was recorded in this window.
Levels: held, swept or broken
Levels known before the release, in the order price reached them: Developing weekly VAH (≈4,160 XAUUSD, 4,192.7 GC) broken at +1 min: price went $14.5 through it and was still beyond it at +60; London high (≈4,160 XAUUSD, 4,193.3 GC) broken at +1 min: price went $13.9 through it and was still beyond it at +60; New York high (≈4,164 XAUUSD, 4,196.8 GC) broken at +1 min: price went $10.4 through it and was still beyond it at +60; Prev day VAH (≈4,165 XAUUSD, 4,198.3 GC) broken at +1 min: price went $8.9 through it and was still beyond it at +60.
| Level | GC | XAUUSD | Reached | Result | Through |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Developing weekly VAH | 4,192.7 | ≈4,160 | +1 min | broken | $14.5 |
| London high | 4,193.3 | ≈4,160 | +1 min | broken | $13.9 |
| New York high | 4,196.8 | ≈4,164 | +1 min | broken | $10.4 |
| Prev day VAH | 4,198.3 | ≈4,165 | +1 min | broken | $8.9 |
Compared with past releases
Compared with the 11 past JOLTS releases in our data: the 5-minute move ($7.7) was larger than 9 of 11 (median $1.5), and the first-hour range ($18.7) was larger than 5 of 11 (median $19.0).
By +60 minutes
At +60 minutes gold futures were at 4,202.0 GC (≈4,169 XAUUSD), +$12.2 from the pre-release price. The first 5-minute move (up $7.7) was not retraced (39% given back at most). At +60 price was still on the same side of the pre-release level.
XAUUSD equivalents use the GC to XAUUSD gap of -32.81 at the release (MT5 XAUUSD tick + NinjaTrader GC bar); dollar moves are the same for both.
Sources: Release time: ALFRED release dates (backfilled page; dated releases are checked against FRED or the volume burst in our data); Actual values: FRED / ALFRED first prints and Federal Reserve statements; Prices, volume and delta: COMEX gold futures (GC) 1-minute data, AK Order Flow; Big orders and icebergs: Bookmap trade capture (exchange data; icebergs not rebuilt). Times are New York (ET); the release time is also shown in your time zone.
Education only. Not financial advice. Trading futures and CFDs carries a high risk of loss.