Gold had a dismal previous week, trading lower for five consecutive days with the worst performance of the week coming on Friday.  Strong US jobs data figures on Friday propelled the USD higher which caused investors to liquidate precious metals positions.  US non-farm payrolls rose by 295,000 in February, easily beating the consensus estimate of 235,000.  The unemployment rate fell to 5.30% from 5.50% as well.  Last week’s poor technical close for gold has fueled sentiment so far this week for speculative shorts.  The euro’s continued slide, now below 1.07 versus the USD, has also not done any favors for the yellow metal.  Previous support for gold at $1,174 has clearly given way and it is now a near term resistance level (also the high of yesterday’s session).  Chart wise, there is no major support until $1,132, the low from October of 2014 and also a five year low.  Silver has performed just as badly as gold recently and has traded lower for seven consecutive sessions.  The $16 handle has become resistance while the quadruple bottom at $15.55 is the next key area to watch on the downside.