PRECIOUS-Gold steady on weak U.S. data; dlr caps gains

                                
 SINGAPORE, Oct 15 (Reuters) - Gold held steady on Friday,
pausing in its record-breaking rally, as the dollar rebounded
from a 10-month low, but expectations of a Federal Reserve
easing move hardened after disappointing jobless data,
supporting bullion.
                                
  FUNDAMENTALS
                                
 * Spot gold <XAU=> was little changed at $1,377.05 an ounce
by 0051 GMT, after hitting a new record high at $1,387.10 on
Thursday.
                                
 * U.S. gold futures for December delivery <GCZ0> were
trading at $1,377.9, up 30 cents from the previous session.
                                
 * Both SPDR Gold Trust and iShares Silver Trust experienced
hefty gains in holdings after the metals continued to hit new
highs, showing increased interest from investors.
                                
 * Holdings in the SPDR Gold Trust <GLD.P> gained 1.5
percent from the previous day to 1,304.342 tonnes, regaining
nearly all the outflow from the fund this month. [GOL/SPDR]
                                
 * The world's largest silver-backed exchange-traded fund,
iShares Silver Trust <SLV> said its holdings rose 38.03 tonnes
to a new all-time high at 10,163.20 tonnes by Oct 14.
                                
 * The weak job market data from the United States added to
the expectation that the Federal Reserve would pump more money
into the economy to stimulate growth. New jobless claims
unexpectedly rose last week. [ID:nN14277059]
                                
 * Chinese investors snapped up gold bars on Thursday as
volatile stock markets and a government move to tackle property
speculation lured consumers into the metal despite record
prices. [ID:nSGE69D0CH]
                                
 MARKET NEWS
                                
 * Banks led U.S. stocks lower on Thursday as investors
fretted a widening foreclosure crisis could undermine the
market's strength over the last five weeks.[.N]
                                
 * The dollar edged higher on Friday, pulling away from a
10-month low hit against a basket of currencies the previous
day as investors trimmed short positions in the greenback
following its recent slide. [USD/]
                                
 DATA/EVENTS
                                
 0430 Japan  Industrial output rev         Aug   
<JPIP4=ECI>
                                
 0900 EZ     Inflation, final yy           Sep  
<EUHICY=ECI>
                                
 0900 EZ     Eurostat trade                Aug  
<EUTBAL=ECI>
                                
 1215 U.S.   Fed Chairman Bernanke speaks on monetary policy
                                
 1230 U.S.   Consumer Price Index          Sep   
<USCPN=ECI>
                                
 1230 U.S.   Real earnings                 Sep  
<USEARN=ECI>
                                
 1230 U.S.   Retail sales mm               Sep   
<USRSL=ECI>
                                
 1355 U.S.   Michigan sentiment index      Oct-P  
<USMN=ECI>
                                
 1400 U.S.   Business Inventories mm       Aug  
<USBINV=ECI>
                                
 1430 U.S.   ECRI index                    Weekly
<USECRW=ECI>
                                
   :: U.S.   Cleveland Fed CPI             Sep  
<USCCPI=ECI>
                                
   :: U.S.   General Electric earnings     Q3           
<GE>
                                
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 (Reporting by Rujun Shen; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)