* Gold tracks oil lower but well above recent 13-mth low
* Oil slips $1 ahead of OPEC meeting
* OPEC has not ruled out making third supply cut
(Updates prices)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Gold barely changed on Friday
but was heading for its biggest monthly gain since 1999 as
investors awaited an OPEC consultative meeting that could
support bullion if the group agrees to cut oil output.
Gold often tracks oil due to the metal's role as a hedge
against inflation. Fears of rising energy costs helped send
gold to a record of $1,030.80 in March before retreating oil
prices, the equities sell-off and a firm dollar erased some of
the gains.
Deadly attacks in India's financial capital of Mumbai
failed to trigger safe-haven buying, which dealers blamed on
the absence of U.S. speculators during Thursday's Thanksgiving
Day holiday.
Gold <XAU=> was trading at $814.00 an ounce, down $0.60
from Thursday's levels, and off a six-week high of $830.10 hit
on Tuesday. It has bounced nearly 20 percent since tumbling to
a 13-month low of $680.80 last month and has risen 12 percent
this month.
"We are waiting for the outcome of the OPEC meeting and
other economic news. I'd expect the market to hold around $808
to $818," said Ronald Leung, director of Lee Cheong Gold
Dealers in Hong Kong, referring to the current tight range.
"We can say gold is still in a range for a little while."
Foreign and Indian guests holed up by militants in a luxury
hotel were being evacuated room by room on Friday, as commandos
stormed a nearby Jewish centre where Israeli hostages were
being held by Islamist gunmen. []
Oil <CLc1> dropped more than $1 a barrel to below $54 on
persistent worries about demand as OPEC ministers prepared to
meet in Cairo on Saturday to discuss falling prices and another
potential supply cut. []
Weaker oil prices dragged down gold prices to an intraday
low of $811.30 an ounce on Friday.
The euro was barely changed at $1.2890 <EUR=>. Trading was
muted due to the Thanksgiving Day holiday.
"Some analysts are still talking about gold exceeding
$1,000 again. But if the market is really bullish, why can't it
react to terror attacks in India?" asked a dealer in Hong Kong.
"I guess people don't know where gold is heading. Gold has
rebounded to the current level from $700 within a space of a
few weeks but the market has been very thin," he said.
Japan's Nikkei average climbed 1.7 percent on Friday for
its best week in a month on reassurance that an aggressive
Chinese interest rate cut may counter a slowing economy there,
boosting shippers and trading houses. []
Recent losses in equities had forced investors to sell gold
to cover losses.
Platinum <XPT=> was trading at $851.50 an ounce, down $1.50
from Thursday's levels.
New York gold futures <GCZ9> added $3.1 an ounce to $814.4
in electronic trade.
Precious metals prices at 0617 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 814.00 -0.60 -0.07 -2.25
Spot Silver 10.24 -0.07 -0.68 -30.67
Spot Platinum 851.50 -1.50 -0.18 -43.98
Spot Palladium 184.50 -3.00 -1.60 -49.86
TOCOM Gold 2485.00 2.00 +0.08 -18.79
17365
TOCOM Platinum 2618.00 -22.00 -0.83 -50.96
6668
TOCOM Silver 314.70 2.50 +0.80 -41.83
225
TOCOM Palladium 581.00 -14.00 -2.35 -56.99
507
Euro/Dollar 1.2913
Dollar/Yen 95.30
TOCOM prices in yen per gram, except TOCOM silver which is
priced in yen per 10 grams. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
