* Platinum off 6-month low on bargain hunting
* Gold firmer but weaker oil caps gains
* Bullion ETF at 1-month low
(Updates prices, adds quotes, ETF holdings)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, Aug 6 (Reuters) - Speculators flocked into
platinum on Wednesday after prices tumbled to a six-month low
the previous day, while gold dropped to its lowest level in
seven weeks before bargain hunters resurfaced.
But worries about falling demand for autocatalysts and poor
car sales capped gains on platinum. Gold was under pressure
from weak oil as well as a rising U.S. dollar, which prompted
investors to ditch bullion exchange-traded funds.
Spot platinum <XPT=> hit a high of $1,575 an ounce, up from
$1,563.00/1,583.00 late in New York on Tuesday, when it hit an
intraday low of $1,517 an ounce, its weakest since Jan. 22.
"Technical wise, it's oversold. I do believe we will see
some relief buying within the next one week," said William
Kwan, bullion director at Gold Capital Management in Singapore.
Platinum prices have taken a dramatic turn since spiking to
a record high above $2,000 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.
"Investors or speculators have entered the market. But at
this moment, buying is not big," said Yukuji Sonoda, analyst at
Daiichi Commodities in Tokyo.
Retail investors re-entered Tokyo futures, but there was
still an absence of buying interest from jewellers and
automakers in Japan, said Sonoda.
"Anyway, platinum prices have decreased so much, so anytime
automobile companies change their minds, they will start to buy
little by little," he said.
Palladium, which tracks movements of sister metal platinum,
also bounced after sliding to its lowest level in eight months
the previous day.
The most active Tokyo platinum contract for June 2009
delivery <0#JPL:> on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange rose 109 yen
per gram to 5,435 yen after tumbling by the 300 yen daily limit
the previous day.
Gold <XAU=> edged up to $878.25/879.20 an ounce from
$876.35/877.95 late in New York. It hit an intraday low of
$872.35 an ounce on Wednesday, its lowest level since June 16.
"Market participants who are still long might be looking
for opportunity to offload their positions that are above
$900," said Kwan of Gold Capital Management.
"Any spike towards $900 will be met by selling pressure for
those who want to get out of their stale positions."
Bullion holdings held by SPDR Gold Trust <GLD.P>, the
world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, dropped to a
one-month low around 659 tonnes, down from an historic high
around 705 tonnes in mid-July. <XAUEXT-NYS-TT>.
The dollar touched a seven-week high against the yen on
lower oil, which helped offset any disappointment the market
may have felt over slightly diminished prospects of an interest
rate hike by the Federal Reserve. []
New York gold futures <GCZ8> added $0.6 to $886.70 an
ounce.
Spot palladium <XPD=> rose to $349.00/357.00 an ounce from
$346.00/354.00 late in New York. Silver <XAG=> edged up to
$16.55/16.61 an ounce from $16.45/16.53 late in New York.
Precious metals prices at 0440 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 878.70 5.45 +0.62 5.52
Spot Silver 16.55 0.15 +0.91 12.05
Spot Platinum 1562.50 -0.50 -0.03 2.80
Spot Palladium 349.00 3.00 +0.87 -5.16
TOCOM Gold 3087.00 -11.00 -0.36 0.88
34639
TOCOM Platinum 5431.00 105.00 +1.97 1.72
16580
TOCOM Silver 581.80 -4.40 -0.75 7.54
982
TOCOM Palladium 1247.00 29.00 +2.38 -7.70
1041
Euro/Dollar 1.5486
Dollar/Yen 108.35
TOCOM prices in yen per gram, except TOCOM silver which is
priced in yen per 10 grams. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by Michael Urquhart)
