* Platinum briefly rises above $1,600 ounce
* Strike in South Africa shut mines and factories
* Gold firms on bargain hunting
(Updates prices)
SINGAPORE, Aug 7 (Reuters) - Platinum briefly spurted above
$1,600 an ounce on Thursday, extending a 2 percent rally in New
York, as supply fears resurfaced after a national strike in
main producer South Africa forced mines and factories to shut.
Supply fears that sent platinum to a record high of $2,290 in
March reappeared after striking workers in South Africa forced
mines and factories to shut on Wednesday in a one-day protest
against rising power, food and fuel prices. []
Spot platinum <XPT=> hit an intraday high of $1,603 ounce
before slipping to $1,587/1,607 an ounce, dowm from
$1,594.50/1,614.50 late in New York on Wednesday.
"I guess it's a bit of everything. A bit on the strike, a
bit on bargain hunting and maybe a bit on a technical rebound,"
said Adrian Koh, an analyst at Philip Futures in Singapore.
Platinum struck a six-month low of $1,517 this week as the
slowing U.S. economy and poor car sales raised worries of
falling demand for autocatalysts, which account for more than
60 percent of global platinum use.
A $10 billion takeover bid by Xstrata <XTA.L> for the
world's third-biggest platinum producer Lonmin <LMI.L> spurred
early buying. Lonmin rejected the bid but dealers said the
company may attract other suitors as the mining industry
consolidates.
But dealers said Thursday's sharp movements showed the
outlook remained shaky for platinum, with automakers showing
little interest although prices were well below the record.
"There may be a bit of bargain hunting at lower levels, but
I dont see any signs that we are out of the sharp downtrend
yet. For support, I am looking around $1,507 and resistance
around $1,685," said Koh of Philip Futures.
Xstrata's swoop is part of a wave of consolidation in the
metals sector amid booming demand from China that has sent
prices soaring over the past few years. []
The most active Tokyo platinum contract for June 2009
delivery <0#JPL:> on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange ended the
morning session 17 yen per gram higher at 5,562 yen, having hit
a high of 5,655 yen.
Gold <XAU=> edged up to $883.50/884.50 an ounce from
$878.70/879.90 late in New York on bargain hunting following a
drop to a seven-week low this week, but dealers a rebound in
the dollar could trigger selling.
The euro inched up to $1.5430 <EUR=>, ahead of a policy
meeting on Thursday at which the European Central Bank is
widely seen leaving interest rates unchanged at 4.25 percent.
[]
Gold futures for December delivery <GCZ8> on the COMEX
division of the New York Mercantile Exchange added $5.9 to
$888.90 an ounce.
Spot palladium <XPD=> rose to $351.00/356.00 an ounce from
$349.50/357.50 late in New York. Silver <XAG=> edged up to
$16.57/16.64 an ounce from $16.51/16.57 late in New York.
Precious metals prices at 0219 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 883.50 4.90 +0.56 6.10
Spot Silver 16.57 0.07 +0.42 12.19
Spot Platinum 1586.50 -8.00 -0.50 4.38
Spot Palladium 349.00 -0.50 -0.14 -5.16
TOCOM Gold 3122.00 22.00 +0.71 2.03
19158
TOCOM Platinum 5562.00 17.00 +0.31 4.18
14234
TOCOM Silver 588.10 1.60 +0.27 8.71
281
TOCOM Palladium 1260.00 -27.00 -2.10 -6.74
441
Euro/Dollar 1.5440
Dollar/Yen 109.38
TOCOM prices in yen per gram, except TOCOM silver which is
priced in yen per 10 grams. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Reporting by Lewa Pardomuan; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
