* Dollar gains against a basket of currencies []
* Spot gold to rise to $1,386.75/oz -technicals []
* Coming up: Federal Reserve Chairman speaks; 2000 GMT
By Rujun Shen
SINGAPORE, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Gold was steady on Tuesday,
and gains were capped by a stronger dollar, but anticipation of
further monetary easing by the U.S. central bank is likely to
keep sentiment bubbling over.
The dollar rose nearly half a percent against a basket of
currencies, extending gains made in the previous session after
Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner said the United States would
not engage in dollar devaluation.[] []
"Gold is likely to continue the rally before the Federal
Reserve meeting in early November. Unless the Fed announces
quantitative easing to a huge extent, gold will retrace," said
Zhu Yilin, general manager of the research and development
department of Jingyi Futures in Shanghai.
"It's all about buying the anticipation. Once the result is
out, it's time to close positions."
U.S. industrial output shrank last month for the first time
in more than a year, a sign the economy was in a slow-growth
rut that appears certain to lead to more stimulus from the
central bank. []
Spot gold <XAU=> was little changed at $1,368.95 an ounce
by 0324 GMT, after moving in a tight range of less than $2 in
the previous session.
U.S. gold futures for December delivery <GCZ0> fell 0.2
percent to $1,369.6.
Technical analysis showed that gold could rise to
$1,386.75, as the retracement is seen to have ended at
$1,352.55, a low touched on Monday, according to Reuters market
analyst Wang Tao. []
For a graphic showing the 24-hour gold technical outlook:
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/WT/20101910085811.jpg
"The support level is at $1,350. Gold is likely to trade
around the current level, until we know how much the stimulus
is going to be," said a Hong Kong-based dealer.
He added that premiums were little changed from last week,
at about 70 cents above London prices.
"Demand from China is steady, as people still like to buy
gold, betting on prices to rise to $1,400, $1,500 and even
$1,600. The yuan appreciation also helps buying from China."
China has allowed its currency to rise more swiftly in
recent weeks after depegging it from the dollar in June, but a
central bank spokesman said the country must ensure the yuan
moves in a controllable manner and not become over-adjusted in
response to market forces. []
Spot silver <XAG=> was flat at $24.35 an ounce, gaining 45
percent so far this year, leading gains in the precious metals
complex.
Holdings in the iShares Silver Trust <SLV>, the world's
largest silver-backed exchange-traded fund, remained at its
peak of 10,224.05 tonnes by Oct 18.
Precious metals prices at 0324 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 1368.95 0.50 +0.04 24.94
Spot Silver 24.35 0.00 +0.00 44.68
Spot Platinum 1696.50 6.50 +0.38 15.64
Spot Palladium 586.50 2.92 +0.50 44.64
TOCOM Gold 3589.00 32.00 +0.90 10.13
25194
TOCOM Platinum 4467.00 57.00 +1.29 1.96
9045
TOCOM Silver 64.00 1.30 +2.07 23.79
927
TOCOM Palladium 1541.00 39.00 +2.60 32.27
518
Euro/Dollar 1.3937
Dollar/Yen 81.35
TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
