TOKYO, April 27 (Reuters) - Gold edged up on Tuesday, nearing
a one-week high marked the previous day as a halt in the euro's
decline provided support, while focus is on the Federal Reserve's
two-day policy meeting starting later in the day.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold <XAU=> inched up to $1,155.35 per ounce as of
2355 GMT, compared to $1,153.38 per ounce in New York.
* It hit an intraday high of $1,159.73 on Monday, its highest
since April 15, but came under pressure as the euro fell on
uncertainties about an aid deal for debt-ridden Greece.
* On Monday, euro-priced <XAUEUR=R> gold hit a record high of
868.57 euros, bolstered by the combination of risk-averse buying
and euro weakness. Gold in euro terms stood at 862.43 euros an
ounce on Tuesday.
* U.S. gold futures for June delivery <GCM0> were up 0.2
percent at $1,155.80 per ounce, compared to the settlement of
$1,154 on the COMEX division of the NYMEX.
* The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, the
SPDR Gold Trust <GLD>, said its holdings rose to a record of
1,146.216 tonnes as of April 26, up 6.088 tonnes from the
previous business day. []
* The International Monetary Fund sold 5.6 tonnes of gold in
February under the second phase of its gold sales programme, the
World Gold Council said in a report on Monday. []
MARKET NEWS
* Investor confusion on the timing and amount of emergency
aid for Greece prompted euro selling on Monday as markets worried
whether the euro zone country can avert a debt default. []
* Germany said on Monday it could offer aid for Greece within
days if it agreed to painful new austerity measures.
[]
* U.S. stocks edged lower on Monday as bank shares fell on
fears that financial reform making its way through Congress will
curb profits, while Caterpillar's strong results buoyed the Dow.
[]
* Japan's Nikkei share average <> was down 0.3 percent
in early trade on Tuesday.
DATA EVENTS
* The following data is expected on Tuesday: <ECON>
- Australia Q1 producer price index (0130 GMT)
- German GFK index for May (0600 GMT)
- German imports for March (0600 GMT)
- French consumer confidence for April (0645 GMT)
- ECB's Papademos to present ECB's annual report (0700 GMT)
- Italian consumer confidence for April (0730 GMT)
- UK CBI distributive trades for April (0900 GMT)
- FOMC begins first day of two-day meeting (N/A)
- U.S. S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index for Feb (1300 GMT)
- U.S. consumer confidence for April (1400 GMT)
- Fed Chairman Bernanke speaks (1400 GMT)
- ECB President Trichet speaks (1415 GMT)
- U.S. ISM semi-annual forecasts (1700 GMT)
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PRICES
Precious metals prices at 0002 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg 2 day chg MA 30 RSI
Spot gold $1155.45 $2.07 +0.18% -0.21% $1125.56 52
Spot silver $18.30 $0.04 +0.22% +0.66% $17.60 48
Spot plat $1745.00 $2.00 +0.11% +0.29% $1660.98 66
TOCOM gold 3,500 45 +1.30% +2.04% 3,394 63
TOCOM plat 5,270 60 +1.15% +1.78% 5,014 65
Currencies
Euro/dlr $1.339 $0.000 -0.04% +0.35%
Dlr/yen 93.88 -0.04 -0.04% -0.20%
TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Reporting by Risa Maeda; Editing by Joseph Radford)
