* Commodities, equities edge higher on recovery hopes
* Silver hits 2-month high at $15.16 an ounce
(Updates prices, details)
By Martina Fuchs
LONDON, Aug 14 (Reuters) - Gold rose in Europe on Friday as
the dollar softened versus a basket of currencies ahead of a
raft of U.S. data due later in the session, while oil and
equities firmed on hopes for an economic recovery.
Spot gold <XAU=> was bid at $957.00 an ounce at 1130 GMT,
against $953.50 an ounce late in New York on Thursday. U.S. gold
futures for December delivery <GCZ9> on the COMEX division of
the New York Mercantile Exchange rose $3.20 to $959.70.
"The U.S. dollar is the only reason for the gold price to
stay at the current level and trading around $950, otherwise it
would be much lower," Commerzbank analyst Eugen Weinberg said.
"Demand from investors is almost non-existent for gold, and
the ETF trust is experiencing outflows," he added. "This is
something which is not supporting the gold price and we expect
the U.S. dollar going forward will become stronger."
The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, New
York's SPDR Gold Trust <GLD>, was flat at 1,065.49 tonnes on
Thursday, having seen an outflow of 29 tonnes in the last four
weeks. []
The dollar <.DXY> slipped against a basket of currencies as
traders awaited a spate of U.S. data due later in the session. A
softer dollar makes gold cheaper for holders of other
currencies. []
U.S. CPI inflation numbers at 1230 GMT, industrial production
data at 1315 GMT and consumer confidence figures from the
University of Michigan at 1355 GMT could all impact the dollar.
UPBEAT
The numbers will also be closely watched for further clues
on whether the U.S. economy is improving, after a smaller than
expected fall in July payrolls last week and an upbeat statement
from the Federal Reserve earlier in the week helped sentiment.
Hopes that the worst of the recession was over helped oil
rise for a third day towards $71 a barrel, while European shares
rose in early trade, amid growing confidence of a global
rebound. [] [] []
Among other precious metals, silver <XAG=> was lifted to a
two-month high due to the rise in gold prices and a sharp rally
in copper in Asia overnight. []
It was bid at $14.99 an ounce at 1130 GMT, but jumped to a
two-month high of $15.16 an ounce earlier in the session.
Analysts said silver is benefiting from hopes the economic
downturn may be bottoming out, which could lift industrial
demand for the metal.
Silver, like gold, is often used as an investment metal, but
is primarily consumed by industry, where it is used in
electronic components and for soldering and brazing. As such, it
often mirrors moves in industrial metals such as copper.
A fall in the gold-silver price ratio to around 63 from 72 a
month ago suggests silver is now good value compared to gold.
"If base metals are set to move sharply higher, silver, with
its high proportion of industrial demand, could benefit too,"
said UBS analyst John Reade in a note.
"But...we are wary of the moves seen in many base metals, as
we are not expecting a strong V shaped economic recovery and
investors appear to have become too enthusiastic about the
commodity story," he added.
Among other precious metals, platinum <XPT=> was at
$1,268.00 an ounce against $1,265, while palladium <XPD=> was at
$276.50 against $274.
(Editing by Keiron Henderson)
