* Gold above $1,200; Record high of $1,226.10 hit in Dec 09
* For a technical outlook on gold, click on []
* Coming Up - U.S. nonfarm payrolls for April; 1230 GMT
(Updates prices, adds graphic)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, May 7 (Reuters) - Gold edged down on Friday
after rising just shy of an all-time high the previous day on
Europe's escalating debt woes and a tumble in U.S. stocks, but
strong safe haven demand is likely to help the metal test new
highs.
Gold has gained as much as 10 percent this year as
investors spooked by potential contagion from the eurozone debt
crisis rushed to buy to the precious metal, whose safe haven
appeal tends to increase in times of economic and geopolitical
crises.
Spot gold <XAU=> was at $1,202.35 an ounce at 0633 GMT,
down $4.90 from New York's notional close on Thursday, when it
jumped 3 percent to its highest since December 2009 at
$1,210.35 an ounce -- marking its biggest one-day gain in more
than a year.
Gold struck record at $1,226.10 five months ago.
Dealers expected volatile trade ahead, with investors
waiting for U.S. nonfarm payrolls later on Friday which could
give clues on the state of the economy. For a preview, click on
[]
"We could see the recent highs touched and broken in a
blink of an eye in this kind of market. At the same time, we
can easily see it backed down to $1,170 or something," said
Darren Heathcote, head of trading at Investec Australia in
Sydney.
"Tonight, we've got the nonfarm payrolls which are the
fundamentals and strong figures are expected which could be
very very positive in terms of the global outlook. For the time
being, I expect volatility."
Gold priced in sterling <XAUGBP=R> hit record, while
holdings in the world's largest gold-backed ETF, SPDR Gold
Trust <GLD>, rose to another record of 1,185.787 tonnes as of
May 6. []
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^^^ For a graphic showing cash gold movements and a rise in
holdings on the SPDR, click on:
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/10/CMD_GLDPSD0510.gif
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^^^ U.S. gold futures for June delivery <GCM0> added $3.1
an ounce to $1,200.40, having risen to a five-month high the
previous day.
The Nikkei fell more than 4 percent on Friday after U.S.
stocks plunged as much as 9 percent on worries Europe's debt
crisis was spreading. U.S. stocks had plunged in the last two
hours of trading on Thursday in a suspected trading glitch
before clawing back some of the losses. [] []
Europe equity funds saw more than $2 billion in net
outflows in the week to May 5, the most in a year, with fears
of a growing euro zone sovereign debt crisis spreading from
Greece, EPFR Global said on Friday in a report. []
The physical sector saw selling of gold bars from Indonesia
and Thailand, while main consumer India was on the sidelines
because of a weaker rupee against the dollar. <INR=>
"Selling continues but the amount is not that much. It
looks like fundamentals are still good. There's no interest
from India. I think they are running away," said a dealer in
Singapore.
The euro nursed chunky losses on Friday after news that
finance ministers from Group of Seven nations will discuss
debt-stricken Greece later in the day, while sterling hit a
one-year low against the dollar on political uncertainty in
Britain. []
Precious metals prices at 0633 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 1202.35 -4.90 -0.41 9.73
Spot Silver 17.62 0.01 +0.06 4.69
Spot Platinum 1655.00 30.00 +1.85 12.82
Spot Palladium 497.00 -5.50 -1.09 22.56
TOCOM Gold 3571.00 23.00 +0.65 9.57
87415
TOCOM Platinum 4931.00 -83.00 -1.66 12.55
42547
TOCOM Silver 52.80 -0.40 -0.75 2.13
793
TOCOM Palladium 1465.00 -56.00 -3.68 25.75
2032
Euro/Dollar 1.2679
Dollar/Yen 92.08
TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by Ed Lane)
