LATEST NEWS... Gold prices edged up on Friday after the release of a slew of U.S. economic data overnight. Gold futures for June delivery, traded on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, were down 0.2% at $1,281.85 per ounce by 1:16 AM ET (05:16 GMT). The U.S. Department of Labor reported that initial jobless claims rose by 37,000 to a seasonally adjusted 230,000 for the week ended April 21, missing economists’ forecast for a rise to 199,000. The Commerce Department said on Wednesday core durable goods orders rose 0.4% last month, beating economists' forecasts for a 0.2% rise. Non-defense capital goods orders excluding aircraft, a closely watched proxy for business spending plans, rose 1.3% last month, well above expectations for a 0.1% increase. Traders’ focus will be on the first-quarter GDP data due later in the day. They are expected to show that the U.S. economy continues to outperform. A 2.2% annualized gain is expected. However, some analysts said