* Gold edges up as euro stays firm
* Coming up - U.S. Consumer confidence, 1400 GMT
(Updates prices)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, March 30 (Reuters) - Gold inched up in thin
trade on Tuesday as the euro held firm against the U.S. dollar,
but the metal was stuck in a familiar range as it struggled to
clear a recent high above $1,130 an ounce.
There was hardly any activity in the physical market but
dealers expected main consumer India to resume purchases ahead
of the wedding season in April. Consumers from Indonesia and
Thailand were on the sidelines after recent purchases.
Spot gold <XAU=> was at $1,110.10 an ounce by 0553 GMT, up
$1.90 from New York's notional close on Monday, when it rose as
high as $1,114.45, its strongest in nearly two weeks.
Gold hit an intraday high of $1,111.45 on Tuesday before
light profit taking kicked in. It hovered below a 100-day
moving average and was 2 percent below a 1-week high of
$1,132.80 hit on March 17.
"I think sentiment is really neutral. It's stuck in a range
of $1,080 and $1,130," said Ronald Leung, director of Lee
Cheong Gold Dealers in Hong Kong.
"Gold is watching the dollar. Everybody is in a holiday
mood. Nobody wants to commit too much ahead of the Easter
weekend."
The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR
Gold Trust <GLD>, said its holdings stood at 1,129.823 tonnes
as of March 29, up 5.176 tonnes from the previous business day.
[]
Silver, platinum and palladium steadied after rallying in
the previous session on news that China's annual economic
growth will reach 12 percent this quarter following strong
industrial output growth last month. []
The euro <EUR=> inched up on Tuesday as investors pared
some of their record short positions ahead of the quarter-end
and with sentiment also boosted by Greece's ability to raise
money from the debt market. []
Despite recent gains, analysts saw limited upside potential
for the single currency because of the euro zone's debt
problems, while weak economic growth meant the European Central
Bank was in no rush to hike interest rates.
Gold had benefitted from safe-haven buying related to
Greece's debt problems but profit taking as well as frequent
rebounds in the dollar erased some of the gains.
U.S. gold futures for April delivery <GCJ0> hardly moved at
$1,110.2 an ounce, having also risen to its highest in nearly
two weeks on Monday on firm oil and better U.S. economic data
that raised hopes of improving demand for industrial
commodities.
U.S. consumers tapped their savings in February to keep
spending on an upward path for a fifth-straight month, implying
that consumption may be strong enough in the coming months to
keep a recovery going. []
Physical dealers saw demand for gold weakening after prices
bounced from a 6-week low struck last week but there were
inquiries from India as the wedding season approached.
"Thailand is basically waiting for the delivery of the gold
bars they have bought earlier. There's nothing much from India
and I don't think they are in a rush to buy," said a dealer in
Singapore.
Gold jewellery is the most common gift during religious
events in India and local jewellers normally stock up weeks
before key celebrations.
A new gold contract to be launched by the Singapore
Commodity Exchange (SICOM) on Tuesday is likely to face stiff
competition from established Asian trading platforms that often
struggle to boost volumes. []
Oil was steady above $82 on Tuesday after hitting the
highest level in almost two weeks a day earlier on optimism
about the global economic recovery. []
Precious metals prices at 0553 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 1110.10 1.90 +0.17 1.31
Spot Silver 17.35 0.03 +0.17 3.09
Spot Platinum 1621.50 1.00 +0.06 10.53
Spot Palladium 471.25 0.25 +0.05 16.21
TOCOM Gold 3307.00 -6.00 -0.18 1.47
33915
TOCOM Platinum 4802.00 50.00 +1.05 9.61
18442
TOCOM Silver 52.10 0.90 +1.76 0.77
759
TOCOM Palladium 1394.00 32.00 +2.35 19.66
657
Euro/Dollar 1.3497
Dollar/Yen 92.36
TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by Himani Sarkar)
