* Equities rebound in Europe after strong session in Asia
* SPDR Gold ETF sees no fresh inflows, iShares Silver dips
* Gold scrap sales surge in Asia
(Updates throughout, previous TOKYO)
By Jan Harvey
LONDON, March 4 (Reuters) - Gold was little changed in
Europe on Wednesday as traders stuck to the sidelines ahead of a
rate-setting announcement from the European Central Bank and key
U.S. jobs data later in the week.
A recovery in other assets such as stocks is also
distracting attention from gold, analysts said.
Spot gold <XAU=> was at $915.00/916.20 an ounce at 1015 GMT
from $915.70 late in New York on Tuesday.
"People are a bit less interested in gold at this stage,"
said Standard Bank analyst Walter de Wet.
Traders are keen to stay on the sidelines after the sell-off
of the last week and a half, he said, until economic news due
later this week can establish fresh direction for the markets.
The European Central Bank is scheduled to make an
announcement on interest rates on Thursday, while key U.S.
non-farm payrolls data for February is due on Friday.
Traders will be keenly eyeing the U.S. ADP national
employment index, due for release at 1315 GMT, which could set
the tone for Friday's payrolls announcement. It is expected to
show the economy lost 610,000 jobs in February.
Equities rebounded in Europe to break a three-day losing
streak as miners and oils gained on firmer commodity prices.
Asian stocks bounced back earlier on hopes Beijing will step up
efforts to support the Chinese economy. []
A senior Chinese official said on Wednesday the government
will increase spending in areas such as infrastructure and
manufacturing on top of a 4 trillion yuan ($584.7 billion)
stimulus package unveiled in November. [
Meanwhile China's official Purchasing Managers' Index saw a
third monthly improvement and output rose for the first time
since September. [ID:nPEK16693]
The news helped prices of industrial commodities such as oil
and base metals to rise.
De Wet added: "With all the news in China coming out this
morning on the stimulus package, there might be better
opportunities (than gold) for those who look at commodities
specifically."
LACK OF FRESH INFLOWS
Investors are concerned over the lack of fresh inflows into
gold-backed exchange-traded funds in recent sessions. Investment
in ETFs made up a significant tranche of demand early this year.
The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, the
SPDR Gold Trust <GLD>, said holdings remained at a record
1,029.29 tonnes as of March 3, unchanged from Feb. 26.
[]
The trust's holdings surged by over a quarter or 205 tonnes
in the first six weeks of this year, but have climbed by just
5.2 tonnes in the last fortnight.
"Demand for gold-backed exchange-traded funds has stalled in
the past week, curbing aggressive buying in the physical
market," said Pradeep Unni, senior analyst at Richcomm Global
Services.
"The steady flow of money into ETFs has been key in pushing
gold prices higher since the beginning of the year," he said.
Meanwhile sales of scrap gold have rocketed as prices have
risen. Gold refiners are running at full capacity across Asia as
people cash in jewellery and coins, dealers said. []
Turkey imported no gold at all for a second month in
February as burgeoning scrap supply met domestic needs.
Jewellery sold in the domestic market was being melted down for
bullion and exported for sale, a new phenomenon. []
Among other precious metals, spot silver <XAG=> edged up to
$12.84/12.92 an ounce from $12.80. Silver has also suffered from
falling demand from ETFs and even some liquidation, with prices
down 12 percent from the six-month high they hit in February.
The world's largest silver-backed ETF, the iShares Silver
Trust <SLV>, said its holdings declined for a third successive
day on Tuesday, by three tonnes to 7,981.17 tonnes.
Spot platinum <XPT=> edged up to $1,040/1,055 an ounce from
$1,031, while spot palladium <XPD=> eased to $191.50/196.50 an
ounce from $191.50.
(Editing by James Jukwey)
