Gold drops over 1% from Thursday's all-time high

• Gold dives lower and slips below $2,925 on Friday. 
• The Trump administration puts lifting trade bans against Russia on the table. 
• Traders are mulling the upcoming US preliminary S&P PMI data for February. 

Gold's price (XAU/USD) slides over 1% lower from its Thursday all-time high of $2,954 and trades around $2,925 at the time of writing on Friday. The move comes ahead of the United States (US) preliminary Purchase Managers Index (PMI) reading for February and after the US President Trump administration commented on the possibility of lifting sanctions against Russia. 

Meanwhile, S&P Global and Hamburg Commercial Bank (HCOB) data showed that business activity in the services sector declined in February in France, Germany and the overall Eurozone, with the French preliminary Services PMI data falling further into contraction to 44.5, missing the 48.9 estimate and contracting further from the previous 48.2. 

Now, all eyes will be on the US preliminary S&P Global PMI data for February. The services sector will be the leading indicator, expected to tick up to 53.0 from 52.9 in January. 

The focus will move to Germany this weekend for the general election, being held on Sunday and where the far-right party Alternative for Germany(AfD), which enjoys great participation from Elon Musk, could be up for a landslide victory.  

Daily digest market movers: On the table

• The US Trump administration signaled that sanctions relief for Russia could be on the table in talks over the war in Ukraine as US President Donald Trump wants to have a quick resolution for the conflict, Bloomberg reports. 
• Shares from Chinese Laopu Gold Co. Ltd, a company that manufactures and sells jewelry, rose as much as 21% to a record high after its net profits more than tripled this year, bucking a slowdown in luxury spending, Reuters reports.
• South African company Sibanye Stillwater Ltd.'s full-year loss narrowed after higher Gold prices offset low Palladium rates that weighed on the company's US mining operations. The loss came in at $398 million for 2024, Bloomberg data reports.

Technical Analysis: Monday's start

All eyes are on Germany this weekend as people head to the voting booths for a new government. Although this might not directly impact Gold's price, it could see a more harsh or softening stance from US President Trump on Europe in the grander scheme of things. The market reaction on Monday will be interesting. 

The first level to hold on Friday comes in at the S1 support at $2,923. Further down, the S2 support stands at $2,908.

On the upside, a big catalyst would be needed to see Gold completely recover its incurred daily losses. The Pivot Point at $2,939 is the first level to regain, followed by the R1 resistance and the all-time high converging at $2,954. From there, the R2 resistance at $2,969 is next to watch before looking ahead again at $3,000.

XAU/USD: Daily Chart