* Gold, silver steady; iShares holdings at record
* Coming Up: U.S. Unemployment claims Weekly; 1330 GMT
(Updates prices, adds quotes)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, March 10 (Reuters) - Gold held steady on Thursday despite a
rebound in oil prices as investors waited to see if the international community
would agree to a "no fly" zone for Libya, while holdings in the world's largest
silver exchange-traded fund struck a record high, reflecting greater interest in
the relatively cheaper precious metal.
Bullion traders remain focused on mounting unrest across the Arab World and
renewed concern about euro zone debt -- factors which sent prices to an all time
high above $1,440 earlier this week. Platinum and palladium were mostly steady
but falling equities were likely to weigh on sentiment.
Spot gold was steady at $1,429 by 0231 GMT, having struck a record
high of $1,444.40 an ounce on Monday.
The U.S. military would be able to establish a "no-fly" zone over Libya
within a couple of days if the international community decided that such a move
was needed, a top U.S. general said on Wednesday, but the United Nations
Security Council is split on whether to authorise such an action.
"Another factor that could see gold and silver higher would be the return of
the euro zone sovereign debt crisis. Investors will be looking forward to euro
zone policy makers meeting this Friday. If there's no resolution, perhaps we
could see a new high," said Ong Yi Ling, investment analyst at Phillip Futures
in Singapore.
"I think there's an increase in investment interest in silver with gold
hitting new record highs. Silver is commonly perceived as the poor man's gold."
Silver was steady at $35.92 an ounce, off a 31-year peak around $36
hit on Monday.
The iShares Silver Trust said its holdings hit a record high at
10,974.06 tonnes by March 9. The previous record was 10,964.14, set on Dec. 14,
2010.
<------------------------------------------------------------
For details of the ETF's silver holdings, click on:
http://link.reuters.com/wux96h
TAKE A LOOK-Unrest in N.Africa, Mideast
-------------------------------------------------------------->
"I think silver is only chasing gold. Some people think silver could reach
$100. But I guess it needs to surpass $40 first before hitting a new high," said
a dealer in Hong Kong.
"Sentiment in gold is neutral. People won't commit too much at these price
levels. There's a bit of buying at around $1,425. I guess jewellers would have
to buy. They have to do the business."
The physical gold market also lacked activity in Singapore, a centre for
bullion trading in Southeast Asia.
The euro steadied on Thursday off a one-week low, but the currency is
increasingly undermined by worries about how Europe will mend fiscal problems of
several euro zone countries as the market looks to a European policymaker
meeting and stress tests on banks planned in the coming weeks.
The goal for Friday's euro zone summit, to be attended by 17 heads of state,
is to agree a competitiveness pact to be adopted by the bloc members to show
their commitment to overhauling their economies.
U.S. gold futures for April traded around $1,429.6 an ounce. The
contract hit record at $1,445.70 on Monday, mainly due to unrest in North Africa
and the Middle East that sent oil prices higher.
Oil rose around 0.4 percent on Thursday with U.S. crude near $105 and Brent
above $116 a barrel, after forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi bombed
oil industry infrastructure, inflicting what could be longer-term damage on the
country's exporting capacity.
The White House on Wednesday strongly defended its response to the turmoil
in Libya, insisting it has taken "dramatic action" and rebutting criticism that
its consensus-based approach is too cautious.
With Libyan rebels fragmented and disorganized and Gaddafi's forces
successfully counter-attacking, the Obama administration has been struggling to
craft a strategy that forces Gaddafi from power without entangling the United
States in a new war in the Muslim world.
China's import of commodities, most of which posted strong increases in
January, may finally show signs of easing in February as an extended holiday
season disrupted shipments and high prices cut orders.
Precious metals prices 0231 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg Turnover
Spot Gold 1429.00 0.21 +0.01 0.67
Spot Silver 35.97 -0.08 -0.22 16.56
Spot Platinum 1796.99 0.50 +0.03 1.67
Spot Palladium 777.22 0.25 +0.03 -2.79
TOCOM Gold 3810.00 -3.00 -0.08 2.17 27755
TOCOM Platinum 4855.00 -25.00 -0.51 3.39 6593
TOCOM Silver 94.90 -0.50 -0.52 17.16 653
TOCOM Palladium 2077.00 -38.00 -1.80 -0.95 234
Euro/Dollar 1.3918
Dollar/Yen 82.72
TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Reporting by Lewa Pardomuan; Editing by Ed Lane)
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