PRECIOUS-Gold edges down as dollar firms; Mideast, Japan support

                                
 * Hawkish comments from Fed officials dampen gold sentiment
                                
 * Gold could retrace to $1,414 -technicals [ID:nL3E7ES02E]
                                
 * Coming up: U.S. pending home sales, Feb; 1400 GMT

 (Recasts; updates prices)	
                                
 By Rujun Shen	
                                
 SINGAPORE, March 28 (Reuters) - Gold prices inched lower on
Monday, weighed down by a firmer dollar, but violent unrest in
the Middle East as well as an unfolding nuclear crisis in Japan
lent support.	
                                
 The dollar index firmed slightly, aided by hawkish
comments from some U.S. Federal Reserve officials, while the
euro continued its decline on news that German Chancellor Angela
Merkel's conservatives had lost a key state election. 	
                                
 Several Fed officials said on Friday that the central bank
was unlikely to extend its bond purchase program with the U.S.
economy now on a firmer footing, while others called to trim the
program or raise interest rates soon, increasing the greenback's
appeal and weighing on gold. [ID:nN27146855] [ID:nN25260798]	
                                
 "The bar for future quantitative easing seems to have been
raised, and this is weighing on the sentiment of the gold
market," said Ong Yi Ling, an analyst at Phillip Futures. 	
                                
 The Fed's money-pumping into the economy has raised concerns
of inflation down the road, helping gold extend its
record-breaking rally. Some investors had expected the Fed to
extend its loose monetary policy, which could further increase
demand for gold as inflation hedge.	
                                
 Spot gold edged down 0.2 percent to $1,424.55 an
ounce by 0618 GMT, off the record high of $1,447.40 hit on March
24. U.S. gold futures <GCv1> were little changed at $1,424.90.	
                                
 A strong support was seen at the $1,420 level, Ong said.	
                                
 "There is some light buying around $1,425 and $1,426 from
speculators, but we are not seeing much activity on the physical
market," said a Singapore-based dealer.	
                                
 "People are holding back, hoping that prices might go lower
towards $1,420 before they buy again."	
                                
 The fighting in Libya and spreading unrest in other nations
in the Middle East, in addition to the nervousness around
Japan's nuclear crisis, are supportive of gold prices, she
added.	
                                
 
                                
 Technical analysis showed that spot gold could extend
Friday's losses to $1,414, Reuters market analyst Wang Tao said.
[ID:nL3E7ES02E]	
                                
 Investors will focus on the U.S. non-farm payroll data for
February, scheduled for release on April 1, to assess the status
of the economic recovery. 	
                                
 "Based on recent data, the number won't look too bad," said
Hou Xinqiang, an analyst at Jinrui Futures in China. "Gold is
likely to go through some correction, with the dollar bottoming
out."	
                                
 Spot silver lost 0.7 percent to $37.02 an ounce, off
its 31-year high at $38.13 reached on last Thursday.	
                                
 Net long positions by speculators in gold and silver rose
last week as prices rose, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading
Commission said. [ID:nN25292765]	
                                
 Platinum group metals tracked the decline in industrial
metals as well as equities. Spot palladium fell as much
as 1.7 percent to $735.13 before trimming some losses to trade
at $738.97.  	
                                
 Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange shed
1 percent to $9,585. 	
 	
 Precious metals prices 0618 GMT
  Metal             Last    Change  Pct chg  YTD pct chg    Volume
  Spot Gold        1424.55   -3.20   -0.22      0.36
  Spot Silver        37.02   -0.27   -0.72     19.96
  Spot Platinum    1730.50  -11.95   -0.69     -2.09
  Spot Palladium    738.97   -5.98   -0.80     -7.57
  TOCOM Gold       3752.00    7.00   +0.19      0.62        28950
  TOCOM Platinum   4573.00    2.00   +0.04     -2.62         8869
  TOCOM Silver       97.40   -0.20   -0.20     20.25         1243
  TOCOM Palladium  1946.00  -11.00   -0.56     -7.20          210
  COMEX GOLD APR1  1424.90   -1.30   -0.09      0.25        11876
  COMEX SILVER MAY1  37.07    0.02   +0.06     19.81         5278
  Euro/Dollar       1.4055
  Dollar/Yen         81.74
  TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
  COMEX gold and silver contracts show the most active months
	
 (Editing by Himani Sarkar)	
 	
  
                                
Reuters
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