* SPDR Gold holdings <XAUEXT-NYS-TT> steady
* Eyes on U.S. GDP data due later on Friday
By Miho Yoshikawa
TOKYO, July 31 (Reuters) - Gold rose towards $940 on Friday
as it continued to benefit from a weaker U.S. dollar, which has
lost its allure as a safe-haven asset amid hopes for an economic
recovery stoked by solid corporate earnings.
The precious metal is on course for a roughly 1.4 percent
fall on the week, but is off a two-week low of $925.10 touched on
Wednesday, when rising risk aversion due to gloomy U.S. economic
news boosted the dollar.
For the month, it is on track for a 1.3 percent rise.
"Gold's getting a bit of a bounce for now after last night's
weakness in the dollar," said Adrian Koh, an analyst at Phillip
Futures in Singapore.
A weaker dollar also makes gold cheaper for holders of other
currencies.
Gold <XAU=> was at $937.35 an ounce at 0307 GMT, up 0.4
percent from the New York notional close of $933.30.
"For the near term, I think gold's very much still in a
sideward consolidation mode and the next key supports are likely
to come in around the $910-$920 regions," he said.
U.S. gold futures for August delivery <GCQ9> were at $937.6
an ounce, up 0.3 percent.
On Friday, first delivery of the August contract begins and
December gold futures become the new benchmark.
Gold's activity was relatively subdued, however, before the
U.S. government's advance report on second-quarter gross domestic
product, due to be released at 1230 GMT, which could shed further
light on the health of the economy.
A Reuters poll of economists gave a median forecast of a 1.5
percent contraction in the U.S. economy in the second quarter.
<ECI/US>
The dollar slipped on Friday as growing hopes for a global
recovery prompted investors to pick up riskier assets such as
stocks. []
Japan's Nikkei stock average hit a 10-month high on Friday,
with sentiment increasingly positive after a slew of solid
earnings announcements. []
U.S. crude oil recouped early losses to trade above $67 per
barrel, after rising close to 6 percent the previous day as
strong U.S. economic data sparked fresh optimism about the
economic outlook. []
Investment demand for gold remained weak with holdings in the
world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund down nearly 48
tonnes in the last four weeks.
The SPDR Gold Trust <GLD> said holdings stood at 1,072.87
tonnes as of July 30, unchanged from the previous business day,
when they fell about 1 percent. []
Analysts fear a broader liquidation of ETF gold holdings
resulting from a recovery in risk appetite could jeopardise
gold's gains.
Gold demand in India, the world's top consumer, is recovering
but remains weak.
The Bombay Bullion Association said on Thursday that gold
imports into India in the first 30 days of July were between 8
and 10 tonnes. []
PRICES
Precious metals prices at 0308 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg Turnover
Spot Gold 937.35 4.05 +0.43 6.50
Spot Silver 13.59 0.14 +1.04 20.05
Spot Platinum 1189.50 10.00 +0.85 27.63
Spot Palladium 258.00 1.50 +0.58 39.84
TOCOM Gold 2882.00 30.00 +1.05 12.01 15269
TOCOM Platinum 3663.00 86.00 +2.40 38.12 6695
TOCOM Silver 417.20 9.30 +2.28 30.66 111
TOCOM Palladium 791.00 8.00 +1.02 43.82 242
Euro/Dollar 1.4123
Dollar/Yen 95.28
TOCOM prices in yen per gram, except TOCOM silver which is
priced in yen per 10 grams. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by Chris Gallagher)
