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By Bloomberg

Gold rebounded from a three-day loss as the dollar retreated and investors weighed U.S. economic data for clues on when the Federal Reserve may raise borrowing costs.

Bullion for immediate delivery rose as much as 0.5 percent to $1,189.15 an ounce and was at $1,185.75 by 2:30 p.m. in Singapore, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. The metal dropped to $1,178.59 on Tuesday, the lowest level since March 20. Gold in Shanghai advanced for the first time in four days.

Bullion posted a second monthly loss in March as prospects for a rise in borrowing costs spurred a rally in the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index to a decade-high. The gauge of the U.S. currency fell on Wednesday for first time in a week. Jobs figures due on Friday may show U.S. payrolls expanded at a slower pace in March.

“It comes back to whatever direction the U.S. dollar goes,” said David Lennox, a resource analyst at Fat Prophets in Sydney. “The gold price will go in the other direction.”

Fed Chair Janet Yellen said on March 27 she expects the Fed to raise interest rates this year, and that subsequent increases will be gradual without following a predictable path. Fed Bank of Richmond President Jeffrey Lacker said Tuesday a strong case can be made for raising rates in June. Borrowing costs have been near zero since 2008.

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index lost as much as 0.3 percent on Wednesday to head for the first daily loss since March 25. Bullion typically trades counter to the U.S. currency, which capped a ninth monthly advance last month.

The Conference Board’s sentiment index rose to 101.3, the second-highest reading of the current expansion, from 98.8 in February, according to data from the New York-based research group on Tuesday. The jobs report on Friday will show employers added 245,000 jobs in March, down from 295,000 the month before, according to a Bloomberg survey.

Gold for June delivery rose 0.2 percent to $1,185.50 an ounce on the Comex. Bullion of 99.99 percent purity added 0.5 percent to 236.78 yuan a gram ($1,188.40 an ounce) on the Shanghai Gold Exchange, snapping a three-day decline.

Silver for immediate delivery was little changed at $16.6530 an ounce. Spot platinum fell 0.1 percent to $1,141.13 an ounce, while palladium advanced 0.3 percent to $738.30 an ounce.