* Dollar firms versus the euro, pressuring gold
* U.S. nonfarm job data shows Dec losses over 0.5 million
* Expected U.S. stimulus package helps silver, platinum
(Recasts, updates with quotes, closing prices, adds NEW YORK
to dateline)
By Frank Tang and Jan Harvey
NEW YORK/LONDON, Jan 9 (Reuters) - Gold ended just a tad
lower in a back-and-forth trading session Friday on the back of
a dollar bounce, after a long awaited nonfarm payrolls report
showed U.S. job losses in December were not as dismal as the
market had feared.
"The gold market right now is totally following the euro.
Even though the job number came in where it was expected, it is
still going to be a slow period for dollar growth," and that
should benefit gold, said Frank McGhee, head precious metals
trader at Integrated Brokerage Services.
The government report showed U.S. employers slashed
payrolls by more than half a million in December, driving the
unemployment rate to its highest level in nearly 16 years.
[]
In addition, short-covering ahead of the weekend and
heightened geopolitical tensions also lifted gold from its
session lows, traders said.
Spot gold <XAU=> was at $855.60 an ounce at 2:00 p.m. EST
(1900 GMT), down just a hair from its late Thursday quote of
$856.10.
Gold futures for February delivery <GCG9> settled up 50
cents at $855.00 an ounce on the COMEX division of the New York
Mercantile Exchange.
"The nonfarm payrolls were only a few thousand off
consensus, so that took some of the surprise away from the
market," said BNP Paribas metals analyst Michael Widmer.
Gold is taking its cues predominantly from the currency
markets. The dollar turned higher against the euro in choppy
trading after the data, with the single currency hitting a
session low of $1.3588. []
A stronger dollar tends to pressure gold, which is often
bought as an alternative asset to the U.S. currency.
While the data was very poor, Widmer said, recent economic
reports from the euro zone economies have also been weak,
draining support from both the dollar and the euro.
Oil prices, which also tend to influence gold, slipped more
than $1 a barrel after the data to below $41 a barrel, as the
rise in unemployment deepened gloom over the demand outlook in
the world's largest oil consumer. []
However, jewelry buying is relatively lackluster and strong
demand for investment coins and bars is said by traders to have
slackened since its autumn peak.
In India, the world's leading market for gold jewelry,
buying remains muted with prices at relatively high levels.
FORECAST CUT
Platinum has posted modest gains since the beginning of the
year after a sharp sell-off in the last nine months of 2008,
which knocked prices down 65 percent from their March highs.
However, it is still likely to suffer in 2009 as demand
declines from carmakers, the major consumers of the white
metal.
Investec cut its 2009 platinum forecast by 28 percent to
$970 an ounce, although it said it remains positive on the
longer-term outlook. []
Spot silver <XAG=> was quoted at $11.28 an ounce, up 1.8
percent from its previous session close of $11.08.
The world's largest silver-backed exchange-traded fund, the
iShares Silver Trust <SLV.A>, said its bullion holdings rose 1
percent or just over 55 tonnes on Jan. 8.
"Industrial metals such as copper, silver and platinum are
starting to pickup to a certain extent on an anticipation that
there will be a stimulus package coming through," said McGhee
of Integrated Brokerage Services, referring to a fiscal plan by
President-elect Barack Obama. []
Spot platinum <XPT=> was last quoted at $989.50 an ounce,
down 0.1 percent from its last finish of $991.50 late in New
York on Thursday, while palladium <XPD=> was at $189.50 an
ounce, 2.6 percent lower than its previous close of $194.50.
(Reporting by Frank Tang; editing by Jim Marshall)
