TOKYO, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Gold prices held steady around
$1,130 per ounce on Monday as the closure of the New York market
later in the day kept many investors on the sidelines.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold <XAU=> was at $1,132.40 per ounce as of 0006
GMT, up 0.2 percent from New York's notional close of $1,129.90.
* It hit a five-week high of $1,161.50 on Jan. 11. Gold has
fallen 2.5 percent since then, as a rise in the dollar hurt
investor sentiment.
* U.S. gold futures for February delivery <GCG0> were at
$1,132.60 per ounce, up 0.2 percent. On Friday, the contract
settled down $12.50, or 1.1 percent, at $1,130.50 an ounce on the
COMEX division of NYMEX.
* Spot palladium <XPD=> fell 0.4 percent to $450.50 per ounce
from New York's notional close of $452.50 on Friday, when it hit
an 18-month high of $453 on strong investment demand related to
the U.S. exchange traded funds.
* The holdings by the world's largest gold-backed
exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Trust <GLD>, fell 0.914 tonnes to
1,113.750 tonnes on Jan 15. []
* New York energy and commodity markets will be closed Monday
in observance of Matin Luther King Jr. Day.
* On Friday, electronic trading of the NYMEX/COMEX products
on CME Globex closed early at 1615 EST for trade date Jan. 15.
CME Globex trade reopens on Sunday at 1800 EST for trade date
Jan. 19. []
MARKET NEWS
* Net long noncommercial U.S. gold futures positions rose by
1,575 contracts, or 0.7 percent, to 229,342 contracts in the week
to Jan 12, according to the weekly Commitments of Traders report
published by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
[]
* On Thursday, the CFTC unveiled proposed regulations on how
many energy contracts hedge funds, investment banks and other
speculators can control. []
* Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Gary Gensler
said on Thursday the CFTC will discuss possible position limits
on gold and silver contracts at a March meeting.
* The London Metal Exchange said it will offer clearing for
gold over-the-counter (OTC) contracts in London by the second
half of 2010. []
* Purchases from gold jewellers in India stirred up physical
trade in Asia, while a drop in bullion prices ignited demand from
other consumers in the region and kept premiums steady, dealers
said on Friday. []
* U.S. stocks slid on Friday after JPMorgan Chase & Co
reported deep fourth-quarter loan losses and raised concerns
about bank profits. []
* The U.S. dollar and the yen were firm on Monday while
currencies leveraged to global growth like the Australian dollar
ran into a bout of profit-taking after an impressive run up since
the start of the new year. []
DATA EVENTS
* The following data is expected on Monday: <ECON>
- Bank of Japan governor Shirakawa speaks (0030 GMT)
- IMF's Strauss-Kahn speaks in Tokyo (0230 GMT)
- Japan revised Nov industrial output (0430 GMT)
- Italy trade balance for Nov (0900 GMT)
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PRICES
Precious metals prices at 0004 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg 2 day chg MA 30 RSI
Spot gold $1131.95 $4.00 +0.35% -2.24% $1117.99 52
Spot silver $18.28 $0.04 +0.22% +0.55% $17.64 62
Spot plat $1599.00 $30.50 +1.94% +0.16% $1490.00 71
COMEX gold $1132.20 $1.70 +0.15% -0.94% $1125.37 49
TOCOM gold 3,320 -11 -0.33% -0.66% 3,288 48
TOCOM plat 4,645 -7 -0.15% -0.30% 4,363 68
Currencies
Euro/dlr $1.437 $0.003 +0.21% -0.10%
Dlr/yen 90.87 0.09 +0.10% +0.14%
TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Reporting by Risa Maeda; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)
