(Repeating to fix typographical errors)
* Gold hits lowest in 8 weeks on rising dollar
* Platinum sheds early gains
(Updates prices, adds quotes, activity in physical market)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, Aug 8 (Reuters) - Gold tumbled to an eight-week
trough in volatile trade on Friday, losing some of its shine as
an alternative investment after the dollar jumped against the
euro, prompting some investors to switch funds back into
currencies.
But lower prices spurred buying from jewellers in India, the
world's main consumer, and other countries in Asia. Platinum
failed to sustain gains as fears of supply curbs following a
one-day strike in main producer South Africa subsided.
Silver tumbled to its weakest since late January, tracking
gold.
Gold <XAU=> hit a high of $873.50 an ounce before dropping
back to $863.25/864.25 an ounce, down from $871.05/872.45 late
in New York. The metal also hit an intraday low of $862.00 an
ounce, an eight-week trough, on selling pressure from the rising
dollar.
"It's very bearish. Oil prices are dropping, the dollar is up
and platinum is very bad. People are scared about the volatile
market," said Ronald Leung, director of Gold Dealers in Hong
Kong.
Gold has dropped more than 15 percent in value since spiking
to a record high of $1,030.80 hit in March.
The euro extended losses against a broadly stronger dollar
to fall more than 1 percent as concerns about the region's
growth outlook weighed on the European currency. []
In Singapore, physical dealers reported buying interest from
India ahead of Hindu festivals which culminate with Diwali in
October, pushing up premiums for gold bars to 75 U.S cents to
the spot London price from 60 cents last week. <GOLD/ASIA1>.
"In the absence of commodity-type news, I think the market
is probably going to be weaker. I think it's mainly
dollar-dominated today," said Mark Pervan, an ANZ senior
commodity analyst.
"I think around $850 would be a critical level," said
Pervan, who pegged resistance at $900.
Spot platinum <XPT=> fell to $1,565.00/1,577.00 an ounce
from $1,572.00/1,592.00 late in New York, having hit a high of
$1,578.50 an ounce.
"As for platinum, $1,550 may be the next target. If you
compare with Johnson Matthey's forecast, this is incredibly
cheap," said Yukuji Sonoda, precious metals analyst at Daiichi
Commodities.
Platinum prices have taken a dramatic turn since spiking to
a record high at $2,290 an ounce in early March, losing much of
their gains to profit taking and a slowing U.S. economy that
threatens to slash demand for autocatalysts.
The current price was well below the target of $2,500
forecast in May by Johnson Matthey <JMAT.L>, the world's largest
platinum refiner and distributor, citing output shortfalls and
strong demand.
The bulk of the world's platinum is used by automakers in
autocatalyst systems that scrub exhaust fumes of dangerous and
environmentally damaging chemicals.
The most active Tokyo platinum contract for June 2009
delivery <0#JPL:> on the Tokyo Comodity Exchange fell 49 yen per
gram to 5,506 yen.
New York gold futures <GCZ8> fell $6.3 to $871.60 an ounce.
Spot palladium <XPD=> dropped to $342.00/350.00 an ounce
from $344.00/352.00 late in New York. Silver <XAG=> fell to
$15.85/15.90 an ounce from $16.14/16.23.
Precious metals prices at 0739 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 863.95 -7.25 -0.83 3.75
Spot Silver 15.83 -0.33 -2.04 7.18
Spot Platinum 1565.00 -7.00 -0.45 2.96
Spot Palladium 342.00 -1.00 -0.29 -7.07
TOCOM Gold 3074.00 -46.00 -1.47 0.46
51932
TOCOM Platinum 5507.00 -48.00 -0.86 3.15
18062
TOCOM Silver 563.60 -26.20 -4.44 4.18 1090
TOCOM Palladium 1227.00 -38.00 -3.00 -9.18 497
Euro/Dollar 1.5164
Dollar/Yen 109.90
TOCOM prices in yen per gram, except TOCOM silver which is
priced in yen per 10 grams. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by Ben Tan)
