* Investors await Bernanke's testimony on Wednesday
* Worries over Greek debt resurface
* Fears over potential U.S. rate hikes linger
(Recasts, updates prices, adds details)
By Maytaal Angel
LONDON, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Gold edged lower on Monday after
hitting a one-month high earlier, as risk appetite eased off and
the dollar hit a session high against the euro amid renewed
worries about Greek debt.
"We had a dip in the oil price, also in base metals, the
dollar is a bit stronger and in equity markets, we've seen a
trend lower," said Tobias Merath, analyst at Credit Suisse.
"A lot of fincancial market participants are long so there's
still profit to be taken. Also there's concerns about March -
its usually the worst time of year for gold."
Spot gold <XAU=> was quoted at $1,115.00 by 1539 GMT, up
from $1,117.50 at New York's notional close on Friday, having
hit an intraday high of $1,130.65 an ounce earlier.
The dollar came off earlier lows versus the euro to hit a
session high amid reports Germany has made no decision on aid
for Greece. [] []
A stronger dollar weighs on gold as it dents the metals
appeal as an alternative to the U.S. currency. It also makes
dollar-priced gold costlier for non-U.S. investors.
Also weighing on gold, U.S. stocks fell on Monday as markets
continue to assess the implications of the Federal Reserve's
move to increase emergency borrowing rates for banks and
Greece's debt issues remain unresolved. []
Gold, sometimes bought as a safe haven asset and hedge
against financial uncertainty, has been moving in line with risk
appetite in recent weeks.
Currency markets took the Fed's surprise decision to raise
its discount rate last week as a signal the U.S. central bank
was coming closer to raising its benchmark rate.
Although a benign U.S. inflation reading on Friday caused
markets to reassess that view, there remains underlying
nervousness with regards to U.S. monetary policy.
VOLATILE
Investors await Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's twice-yearly
testimony to Congress and the Senate on Wednesday and Thursday
for further clues on rate policy, and also further clues on the
U.S. economy. []
"Markets are set to remain volatile in the week ahead due to
the line-up of economic data and in particular Friday's GDP
reading as players look for sign of continued growth as the Fed
begins to reign in its emergency measures," said James Moore,
analyst at TheBullionDesk.com
Bullion was about 8 percent below a lifetime high above
$1,200 an ounce struck in early December and but still well
above a three-month low around $1,043 hit almost three weeks
ago.
U.S. gold futures for April delivery <GCJ0> fell $6.7 an
ounce to $1,115.50 an ounce, after hitting an intraday high of
$1,131.50 on Monday, the strongest in a month.
Gold priced in euros <XAUEUR=R> traded at 819.30 euros, off
last week's record of around 830 euros.
Oil held just below $80 a barrel on Monday, paring much of
an earlier gain to a six-week high and denting the appeal of
gold as a hedge against oil-led inflation. []
In other precious metals, silver <XAG=> was at $16.25 an
ounce versus $16.27, platinum <XPT=> was at $1,527.00 versus
$1,530 and palladium <XPD=> was at $437.50 versus $437.00.
(Reporting by Maytaal Angel; Editing by Michael Urquhart)
