* Aid deal for Greece continues to dent the dollar
* China gold demand to double over next decade - WGC
* Coming Up: Monthyl U.S. payrolls data, due Friday
(Recasts, updates prices, adds details)
By Maytaal Angel
LONDON, March 29 (Reuters) - Gold hit its highest in more
than a week on Monday due to strong physical demand and
lingering dollar weakness following last week's aid deal for
Greece.
Spot gold <XAU=> rose as high as $1,113.95 an ounce, its
strongest since March 19.
At 1323 GMT, it traded at $1,111.55 versus $1,105.10 at New
York's notional close on Friday, when it rose more than 1
percent to regain the psychological level of $1,100.
U.S. gold futures for April delivery <GCJ0> added $7.4 to
$1,111.70 an ounce.
"We're gaining a bit on a weaker dollar, there is continued
evidence of investor interest in gold (and) imports into India
have been good recently," said Dan Smith, analyst at Standard
Chartered.
But he added gold's gains had not been impressive: "It
hasn't regained the losses we saw in early February. For the
time being consolidation is most likely (in gold)."
The euro edged up versus the dollar after euro zone leaders
agreed a financial safety net for Greece late last week, but
gains were capped after Greece launched a highly anticipated
sovereign bond earlier. []
A weak dollar tends to boost gold's appeal as an alternative
asset to the U.S. currency. It also makes dollar-priced gold
cheaper for non-U.S. investors.
"Gold is attracting money in its own right as a currency.
Gold is still an alternative to currencies, which is helping to
keep prices buoyant," said Simon Weeks, head of precious metals
at the Bank of Nova Scotia.
CHINA GOLD DEMAND TO DOUBLE
China's gold demand will double over the next decade from
current levels due to jewellery consumption and investment
needs, the World Gold Council said on Monday, in its first
report on the world's fastest growing user of the metal.
[]
"Physical demand has been excellent. There's certainly been
a lot of demand from China ... you've got the wedding season
coming up in April, people are looking at that," said Weeks.
Gold, seen as a safe haven asset, also gleaned support from
news that two blasts had ripped through packed Moscow metro
stations on Monday, killing at least 34 people and wounding 18.
[]
Investors were awaiting monthly U.S. payrolls data on Friday
for further clues on the outlook for the dollar. They were
unconcerned about data showing stagnant incomes in the U.S. in
February pushed savings to their lowest since October 2008.
[]
"The main thing people are looking for out of the U.S. is
payrolls data, everything else is considered a bit minor," said
Major.
Analysts expect U.S. employers added 190,000 jobs in March,
the second month of jobs growth. Earlier, U.S. data showed
consumer spending, which is impacted by the jobs market, rose as
expected in February. [] []
In other precious metals, silver <XAG=> was at $17.25 an
ounce versus $16.85 at New York's notional close on Friday,
having earlier hit $17.27, its highest in more than a week.
Platinum <XPT=> was at $1,614.50 versus $1,594.00 while
palladium <XPD=> was at $468.50 versus $455.50.
The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR
Gold Trust <GLD>, said its holdings stood at 1,124.647 tonnes as
of March 26, unchanged from the previous business day.
[]
(Reporting by Maytaal Angel, editing by Anthony Barker)
