* Spot gold rises 2 percent
* Euro trims some gains vs dollar after U.S. home sales data
* Analysts favour downside for rangebound bullion
* Platinum up 1 pct as Impala workers plan strike
(Updates prices, adds Impala Platinum)
By Veronica Brown and Humeyra Pamuk
LONDON, Aug 21 (Reuters) - Gold climbed 2 percent to a
one-week high on Friday, in tandem with a stronger euro, after
robust euro zone economic data dented the dollar's appeal and
made bullion cheaper for non-U.S. investors.
The euro hit a two-week high against the dollar <EUR=>.
It later pared gains after stronger-than-expected U.S.
housing data and positive comments on the economy by Federal
Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. []
Spot gold <XAU=> rose as high as $957.65 an ounce, its
highest since Aug. 14 and was at $954.65 an ounce by 1445 GMT,
versus $939.35 quoted late in New York on Thursday.
But the upside looked capped for bullion in the absence of
physical demand and analysts said the struggle to break out of
recent ranges could well result in downside capitulation, before
another attempt to break above psychological resistance at
$1,000.
"There isn't really the driving force of physical demand
from either the jewellery sector or from the investment
sector...to help carry the price higher," said Tom Kendall,
precious metals strategist at Mitsubishi Corp.
On the macro front, a provisional purchasing managers' poll
revealed the decline in the euro zone's dominant services sector
almost came to a halt in August and businesses' expectations for
the future soared to their highest level in more than two years.
[].
This helped the euro <EUR=> and European share markets
<> to secure a firmer footing, but later in the day, data
showing sales of U.S. existing homes notched their fastest rise
in nearly two years in July lifted the dollar off its lows.
On precious metal markets, analysts say potential inflation
that could accompany a fledgling recovery may boost gold's
appeal as a hedge against rising price pressures.
PHYSICAL DEMAND LACKING
Asia-based traders said the absence of demand for gold
jewellery, as demonstrated by falling imports in India, was a
factor weighing on the spot market.
India's July gold imports fell two-thirds from a year
earlier as high prices dented demand in one of the world's top
markets where gold jewellery is often given as gifts during
festival seasons or at weddings, a trade body said this week.
[]
"Gold is a luxury item but in this day and age money is
going where it is needed ... and a prime example of that
happening is in India," said Kazuhiko Saito, chief analyst at
Tokyo's Fujitomi Co Ltd.
The SPDR Gold Trust <GLD>, the world's largest, said its
holdings held steady at 1,065.49 tonnes as of Aug. 20, unchanged
for almost two weeks and down 68.54 tonnes from a record marked
on June 1. []
In other metals, platinum <XPT=> firmed to $1,249.00 an
ounce from $1,236.50 an ounce after Impala Platinum <IMPJ.J>,
the world's second-biggest platinum producer, said on Friday it
would meet South Africa's miners' union on Saturday in a bid to
avert a strike planned for Monday.[]
Silver rose over 2 percent to $14.21 <XAG=>, following gold
and base metals, while palladium gained nearly 2 percent to $277
an ounce.
(Additional reporting by Miho Yoshikawa in Tokyo; editing by
James Jukwey)
