* Equities, oil, euro slip on concerns over economic outlook
* Coming up: U.S. July existing home sales data, 1400 GMT
* Platinum underperforms palladium as both retreat
(Updates prices, adds comment)
By Jan Harvey
LONDON, Aug 24 (Reuters) - Gold fell more than 1 percent on
Tuesday to a near two-week low as the dollar rose against the
euro and the metal was caught up in selling of other assets like
stocks as investors fretted over the economic outlook.
While these concerns are likely to support gold in the
medium run, gold is being sold in the short term to cover losses
on other markets, analysts said.
Spot gold <XAU=> touched a low of $1,210.10 an ounce and was
bid at $1,213.15 an ounce at 1303 GMT, against $1,223.40 late in
New York on Monday. U.S. gold futures for December delivery
<GCZ0> fell $13.00 an ounce to $1,215.50.
The dollar rose 0.4 percent against the euro on Tuesday,
extending earlier gains. Strength in the U.S. unit typically
weighs on gold, curbing its appeal as an alternative investment
and making dollar-priced assets more expensive for other
currency holders. []
"It is currently more the dollar story which is weighing on
gold," said Peter Fertig, a consultant at Quantitative Commodity
Research. "The correlation between gold and the U.S. dollar has
normalised again."
Elsewhere, European shares fell to one-month lows on
Tuesday, tracking losses overnight in Asia, as investors worried
about an anaemic global recovery. U.S. stock index futures also
pointed to a lower opening on Wall Street. []
On the bond markets, September Bund futures <FGBLc1> hit a
record high of 133.77. Bund futures have risen more than 500
ticks since July 27 as the global outlook deteriorated.
[]
Such concerns also weighed on industrial commodities, with
crude oil falling nearly 2 percent and base metals like copper,
zinc and nickel also sliding. [] []
Gold hit a 1-1/2 month high at $1,237.15 an ounce last week
as concerns over the global economic recovery fuelled interest
in the metal as a haven from risk, but has since retreated.
"Last week as we started to see euro zone risk rise, there
was a pick-up in defensive buying out of Europe," said Credit
Suisse analyst Tom Kendall. "But with everything else sliding
lower, and the dollar coming back a bit, it is struggling."
"But I don't think it is going to struggle for too long with
this risk-aversion environment," he added. "Money is going to
continue flowing into longer-dated Treasuries and gold."
YEN-PRICED GOLD SLIDES
Meanwhile, the yen hit a 15-year high against the dollar and
a nine-year peak versus the euro as investors tested the resolve
of Japanese authorities to stem the yen's rise.
Gold priced in Japanese yen <XAUJPY=R> fell 2.6 percent on
Tuesday to a low of 101,394 yen an ounce.
"This week we've seen some liquidation (of gold) come to the
fore on Tocom, with some of the Japanese investors repatriating
cash into yen," Kendall noted.
Investors will be closely watching U.S. existing home sales
data for July, due for release at 1400 GMT, for its impact on
the financial markets.
Further concerns about the strength of the economic recovery
could spark new interest in gold as a safe haven, analysts said.
Silver <XAG=> was at $17.80 an ounce versus $17.93, platinum
<XPT=> was at $1,492.50 an ounce versus $1,504.50 and palladium
<XPD=> at $475 against $481.
Platinum and palladium are chiefly used in autocatalysts,
and have been heavily exposed to the global economic slowdown.
However, palladium has slightly outperformed platinum, as its
potential for demand growth is seen as stronger.
(Reporting by Jan Harvey; Editing by Alison Birrane)
