* Gold hits 1-week high, then eases on profit taking
* Euro rises against dollar, Nikkei ends up 0.32 pct
* Oil slips to around $36 a barrel
(Updates prices, adds quotes)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, Jan 19 (Reuters) - Gold rose to its highest in a
week on Monday, riding on a recovery in stock markets and a
weaker U.S. dollar against the euro before profit taking erased
some of its gains.
Gold has bounced around 4 percent since tumbling to a
one-month low around $801 an ounce last Thursday, when softer
equities forced investors to cash in to cover losses. Platinum
extended gains on bargain hunting, with prices trading over 50
percent below a record peak hit last March.
Gold <XAU=> rose as high as $845.55 an ounce, its highest
level since Jan. 12, before slipping to $839.80 an ounce by
0635 GMT, down $2.05 from New York's notional close, as oil
prices reversed course and slipped.
"If it drops below $820 again, I think you will see a
little buying," said Ronald Leung, director of Lee Cheong Gold
Dealers in Hong Kong, referring to a level last seen in
mid-December. "There's a little bit of selling in Asia."
But dealers said record bullion holdings in SPDR Gold
Shares boosted sentiment. Gold holdings in the world's largest
gold exchange-traded fund jumped another 5 tonnes to 795.25
tonnes last week. []
"The intact popularity of the metal with investors should
be adequate to help stabilise the price at or at least just
under the $800 mark," precious metals group Heraeus said in a
report, referring to a level last seen in November.
In other markets, the Nikkei <> ended up 0.32 percent,
while the euro firmed to $1.3346 <EUR=> after a rally in stocks
in Europe and the United States revived investor optimism and
some risk appetite. []
But oil <CLc1> edged lower to around $36 a barrel, having
risen 3 percent in the previous session, which in theory
reduced gold's safe-haven appeal. []
"I guess the gold price has gone up too fast, so that's why
we see some profit taking. I would say people are squaring off
positions before Obama is sworn in," said a dealer in Hong
Kong.
"I mean there's still a possibility the dollar may get
stronger again."
The incoming U.S. administration and Britain on Sunday
planned urgent and more forceful moves to reopen the world's
clogged credit markets, and President-elect Barack Obama is
preparing a "strong message" for banks after he takes over the
U.S. presidency this week. []
Platinum <XPT=> was trading at $968.50 an ounce, up $22.00
from New York's notional close on Friday. More than 60 percent
of platinum use goes to autocatalysts to clean exhaust fumes.
Bargain hunting from Japanese investors and buying by
jewellers ahead of the Lunar New Year celebration next week
helped support platinum prices in recent weeks, but
uncertainties lingered, said analysts.
More bad news for automakers emerged on Friday as
manufacturers in Japan, Europe and the United States all warned
their businesses continue to struggle and outlooks remained
uncertain. []
"Given this negative dynamic, support for platinum metals
prices from its most importantdemand sector is foreseeably
going tobe missing this year," said Heraeus in a report.
"Despite this, we do not expect a complete collapse in the
platinum-metals prices. As wehave been seeing for some months
now, newproduction is going to slow down as well."
New York gold futures <GCZ9> added $0.8 an ounce to
$840.7
in electronic trade.
Precious metals prices at 0635 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 839.80 -2.05 -0.24 0.85
Spot Silver 11.20 -0.01 -0.09 -24.17
Spot Platinum 968.50 22.00 +2.32 -36.28
Spot Palladium 182.00 -1.00 -0.55 -50.54
TOCOM Gold 2464.00 81.00 +3.40 -19.48
24255
TOCOM Platinum 2841.00 139.00 +5.14 -46.79
9845
TOCOM Silver 325.00 20.00 +6.56 -39.93
274
TOCOM Palladium 547.00 21.00 +3.99 -59.51
151
Euro/Dollar 1.3346
Dollar/Yen 90.80
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)
