* Gold tracks share prices higher
* For the technicals on gold, click []
* Coming Up; June Eurozone Markit Services PMI, 0758 GMT
(Updates prices, adds quote)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, July 5 (Reuters) - Gold ticked up on Monday
after a drop in the U.S. dollar spurred bargain hunting, with
firmer stock markets helping investors shrug off a slight
decline in ETF holdings.
Jewellers were on the sidelines after buying heavily on
Friday, when bullion fell to a five-week low. With U.S.
investors away for a holiday, the metal was likely to trade in
a tight range of $1,210 to $1,215 an ounce.
Gold <XAU=> rose $2.95 to $1,213.55 by 0440 GMT, having
fallen below the psychological level of $1,200 on Friday. The
metal struck a record above $1,264 in late June on worries the
European debt crisis would spread and the U.S. economy was
slowing.
"I wouldn't say that jewellery or physical buying would
really provide support because prices are still relatively
high. But of course people are buying on dips," said Ong Yi
Ling, investment analyst at Phillip Futures in Singapore.
"I don't foresee it dropping below $1,200. I think on a
long-term basis, I would still be bullish," she added.
For a graphic of the 24-hr gold technical outlook, click:
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/WT_20100507090423.jpg
U.S. gold futures for August delivery <GCQ0> added $5.3 an
ounce to $1,213.
The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR
Gold Trust, said its holdings slipped to 1,318.915 tonnes by
July 2 from 1,319.219 on July 1. The holdings hit a record at
1,320.436 tonnes on June 29. []
"For people to really think that investment demand for gold
is declining, it has to drop a lot more than what we are seeing
right now," said Ong.
The dollar was at its lowest in nearly two months on Monday
and the euro paused after last week's boost from unwinding of
short and leveraged positions, with traders and analysts seeing
scope for it to squeeze a bit higher. []
The MSCI index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan
<.MIAPJ0000PUS> was up 0.2 percent, though gains in resources
and technology shares were mostly offset by declines in
consumer staples, financials and telecom stocks. []
"Bargain hunters have pushed up the gold market. I don't
see much demand from the jewellery sector. They had bought a
lot on Friday," said a dealer in Hong Kong.
"In the absence of U.S. players, the market may have a
chance to edge up in Asia but then drop again when Europe
starts trading."
Oil rebounded from three-week lows on Monday, staying above
$72 as the market assessed the implications of a slowing global
economic recovery on energy use. []
Precious metals prices at 0440 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 1213.55 2.95 +0.24 10.76
Spot Silver 17.88 0.08 +0.45 6.24
Spot Platinum 1510.00 13.50 +0.90 2.93
Spot Palladium 429.00 -1.00 -0.23 5.80
TOCOM Gold 3441.00 12.00 +0.35 5.58
31886
TOCOM Platinum 4299.00 -3.00 -0.07 -1.87
10858
TOCOM Silver 51.10 -0.40 -0.78 -1.16
305
TOCOM Palladium 1231.00 -9.00 -0.73 5.67
277
Euro/Dollar 1.2539
Dollar/Yen 87.90
TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by Michael Urquhart)
