TOKYO, Oct 26 (Reuters) - Gold eased on Monday as the dollar
held firm after rising against the euro and sterling the previous
business day on a strong U.S. housing report and bleak UK
economic data.
FUNDAMENTALS
* As of 0005 GMT, spot gold <XAU=> was down 0.1 percent at
$1,052.4 an ounce from New York's notional close of $1,053.95.
* U.S. gold futures for December delivery <GCZ9> eased 0.3
percent to $1,053.4 an ounce, compared with $1,056.40 on the
COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
* The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, the
SPDR Gold Trust <GLD>, said its holdings stood at 1,108.094
tonnes as of Oct. 23, unchanged from the previous business day.
[]
* Noncommercial net long U.S. gold futures positions fell 1.5
percent to 250,107 lots in the week to Oct. 20 from a record
253,955 lots the week before, the weekly Commitments of Traders
report published by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission
showed. []
MARKET NEWS
* Japan's Nikkei stock average opened down 0.1 percent. []
* U.S. stocks fell on Friday, with the major indexes slipping
for the first week in three, as industrial companies' weak
results overshadowed robust earnings from tech and retail
heavy-weights. []
* The dollar was firmer on Monday after soaring against
sterling on Friday when data showed the UK economy was still
mired in recession, stunning investors who had expected it to
return to growth.
* The dollar rose to a one-month high of around 92.20 early on
Monday <JPY=> while the euro eased to just below $1.5 <EUR=>. The
single currency has climbed more than 7 percent against the
dollar this year, rising above $1.5 last week on expectations
U.S. interest rates will remain low well into next year. []
* Gold has gained on the dollar's decline, as a weaker dollar
boosts investor interest in gold as a hedge and makes bullion
cheaper for non-dollar holders.
DATA, EVENTS
* The following data and events are expected on Monday:
<ECON>
- German GFK index for November. (0700 GMT)
- ECB governing council member and Bank of France Governor
Christian Noyer attends forum. (N/A)
- Chicago Fed national activity index for September. (1230
GMT)
- Chicago Fed Midwest manufacturing index for September.
(1600 GMT)
RELATED NEWS
>Gold drops as dollar rebounds []
>Turkish gold imports to hit low in'09 []
>Russia to sell 20-50 T gold in '09 - source []
>U.S. home sales scale 2-year high in September []
>Oil falls toward $80 as dollar firms, stocks dip[]
PRICES
Precious metals prices at 0007 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg Day ago pct MA 30 RSI
Spot gold $1052.60 -$1.35 -0.13% +17.35% $860.10 55
Spot silver $17.56 -$0.09 -0.51% +46.58% $11.29 55
Spot plat $1352.50 -$6.00 -0.44% -0.44% $1323.02 56
COMEX gold $1053.70 -$4.90 -0.46% -1.01% $1028.87 59
TOCOM gold 3,125 -34 -1.08% -0.64% 3,001 71
TOCOM plat 4,018 -37 -0.91% -1.23% 3,853 68
Currencies
Euro/dlr $1.498 -$0.001 -0.08% -0.11%
Dlr/yen 91.99 -0.12 -0.13% -0.05%
(Reporting by Chikako Mogi; Editing by Chris Gallagher)
