Gold prices remained quiet on Monday, lingering after strong losses the previous session as better than projected US unemployment data stoked fears of an aggressive Fed stance, with attention now shifting to important inflation data due this week.

Spot gold steadied at $2,018.38 per ounce, meanwhile gold futures traded mute at $2,025.90 per ounce. The two instruments slumped massively on Friday post previously touching record highs in the week.

Bullion prices fell substantially from historic highs on Friday as higher than-predicted nonfarm payrolls data revealed that the US labor market remained solid despite hiked interest rates.

A healthy job market is projected to contribute to greater inflation, which implies that Fed is intended to continue hiking interest rate, which is bad news for non-yielding assets.

Risk appetite increased as the payrolls number indicated some resilience in the US economy, igniting a stock market surge and putting pressure on gold.

However, gold prices remained above $2,000 per ounce, owing to persistent safe-haven demand as a succession of bank failures in the United States highlighted the mounting economic pressures caused by high interest rates. Markets are expecting a possible recession in the United States this year.