PRECIOUS-Gold rallies, ends 8-day losing streak

                                
 * Safe haven appeal seems to have waned as stocks rise
                                
 * Dollar rises, but traditional link with gold is weak
 (Updates prices)
                                
 By Miho Yoshikawa
                                
 TOKYO, March 5 (Reuters) - Gold staged a modest bounce on
Thursday on bargain hunting after falling for eight straight
days to a three-week low.
                                
 But analysts said the metal's safe-haven appeal appears to
have waned after U.S. shares snapped a five-day losing streak
on Wednesday on hopes for more economic stimulus in China.
Stocks extended gains on Thursday, focusing on an upbeat growth
forecast despite Beijing failing to announce expanded stimulus
measures.
                                
 In unveiling this year's budget, China's Premier Wen Jiabao
said that China will achieve 8 percent growth this year despite
a deepening financial crisis. [ID:nPEK39999]
                                
 "Technically, we are seeing gold bounce on bargain hunting
buying. The flow of money is a bit opaque at the moment, and
that is causing a bit of uncertainty," said Koji Suzuki, senior
analyst at SBI Futures Co Ltd.
                                
 Spot gold <XAU=> rose 0.6 percent to $912.70 an ounce by
0600 GMT, rebounding after falling on Wednesday as low as
$900.95, the lowest since Feb. 10.
                                
 Prices have fallen about 9 percent since they hit an
11-month high of $1,005.40 on Feb. 20, not far from the record
of $1,030.80 marked last March.
                                
 The dollar's rise against the euro and yen was also
steering investors away from gold. Bullion is often bought as a
currency hedge, though the relationship has not been as strong
as normal in recent sessions.
                                
 "That (dollar strength) is going to put a bit of weight on
gold," said Adrian Koh of Philip Futures.
                                
 The euro inched down against the dollar and the yen on
Thursday as investors expected the European Central Bank to cut
interest rates later in the day to help the sinking euro zone
economy. [USD/]
                                
 Growth in gold-backed exchange-traded funds has also
slowed, which traders said underscored falling interest in the
metal.
                                
 The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, the
SPDR Gold Trust <GLD>, said holdings remained at a record
1,029.29 tonnes on March 4, unchanged from Feb. 26 when they
first hit that level. [GOL/SPDR]
 Precious metals prices at 0558 GMT
 Metal             Last    Change  Pct chg  YTD pct chg
Turnover
 Spot Gold         913.05    6.15   +0.68      3.74
 Spot Silver        13.03    0.13   +1.01     15.11
 Spot Platinum    1054.00    8.00   +0.76     13.09
 Spot Palladium    198.00    2.00   +1.02      7.32
 TOCOM Gold       2924.00   -6.00   -0.20     13.64      
36106
 TOCOM Platinum   3358.00   21.00   +0.63     26.62      
10215
 TOCOM Silver      412.40    8.50   +2.10     29.16        
299
 TOCOM Palladium   642.00   27.00   +4.39     16.73        
312
 Euro/Dollar       1.2606
 Dollar/Yen         99.25
 TOCOM prices in yen per gram, except TOCOM silver which is
 priced in yen per 10 grams. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
 (Additional reporting by Risa Maeda; Editing by Michael
Urquhart)