* Gold slips on weaker oil, dollar rally
* Platinum extends losses and hits 3-year low
* SPDR gold holdings drop 2 percent
(Updates prices)
SINGAPORE, Oct 6 (Reuters) - Gold fell nearly $4 on Monday,
moving towards a two-week low hit last week, as crude oil
dropped on demand fears and the dollar jumped to a 13-month
high against the euro, reducing bullion's safe-haven appeal.
Platinum extended losses and tumbled to its weakest in
almost three years years on economic weakness and dismal car
sales, especially in the United States. Silver tracked gold
lower, while palladium firmed on bargain hunting.
Gold <XAU=> was trading at $830.90 an ounce, down $3.90
from New York's notional close on Friday, when it hit a
two-week low of $818.70 after the U.S. House of Representatives
voted to pass a $700 billion to bailout the U.S. financial
system.
"If currencies such as euro and pound continue to move
lower, and the dollar higher, then I guess we would see more
downside pressure on gold," said Adrian Koh, analyst at Phillip
Futures in Singapore.
"Apparently, the $820 levels will be the near-term support
to look at. If we do move below those levels, we will probably
be heading back to the 800 levels very soon," said Koh,
referring to levels last seen in September.
Gold hit a two-month high of $920 an ounce in late
September before gradually falling on a rebound in the U.S.
dollar. The metal was below a record high of $1,030.80 struck
in March.
Investors also booked profits, with holdings in the world's
largest gold-backed ETF, the SPDR Gold Trust <GLD>, showing a
drop to 739.95 tonnes as of Oct. 6 from 755.26 last week.
<XAUEXT-NYS-TT>.
Oil <CLc1> fell 2 percent on Monday on fears efforts aimed
at containing the spreading credit crisis would fail to stave
off a deeper decline in oil demand. []
The euro hit a 13-month low against the dollar as investors
shifted their focus to banking problems in Europe and whether a
similar plan would emerge there following U.S. approval of a
key bailout package. []
Platinum <XPT=> was trading at $942.00 an ounce, down $8
from New York's notional close, having hit a low of $932.50 an
ounce, its weakest since November 2005.
"I think the outlook for platinum remains weak and the
effects of the credit crisis is also going to weigh on platinum
more than gold," said Koh of Phillip Futures.
"I don't have any nearby supports, and I have to look all
the way back to the 2005 periods for indications. Probably
around the $920, then $900 levels," he said.
Platinum prices have tumbled more than 50 percent since
hitting a lifetime high of $2,290 in March, when speculators
bought the metal on supply worries following a power crisis in
main producer South Africa.
New York gold futures <GCZ8> added $1.3 an ounce to $834.5
an ounce on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile
Exchange.
Precious metals prices at 0250 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 830.90 -3.90 -0.47 -0.22
Spot Silver 10.94 -0.15 -1.35 -25.93
Spot Platinum 942.00 -8.00 -0.84 -38.03
Spot Palladium 198.00 4.00 +2.06 -46.20
TOCOM Gold 2782.00 -56.00 -1.97 -9.08
17683
TOCOM Platinum 3127.00 -83.00 -2.59 -41.43
8123
TOCOM Silver 366.60 -12.50 -3.30 -32.24
407
TOCOM Palladium 679.00 -17.00 -2.44 -49.74
270
Euro/Dollar 1.3645
Dollar/Yen 104.33
TOCOM prices in yen per gram, except TOCOM silver which is
priced in yen per 10 grams. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Reporting by Lewa Pardomuan; Editing by Ben Tan)
