* SPDR Gold ETF sees no new inflows, iShares Silver dips
* Gold scrap sales surge in Asia
* Equities claw back from multi-year lows
(Recasts, updates prices, adds comment)
By Jan Harvey and Rebekah Curtis
LONDON, March 4 (Reuters) - Gold fell in Europe on
Wednesday, flirting with three-week lows as a bounce in equities
lured investors away from the safe haven and back into riskier
assets.
Spot gold <XAU=> was at $911.05/912.25 an ounce at 1603 GMT
from $915.70 late in New York on Tuesday. U.S. gold futures for
April delivery <GCJ9> on the COMEX division of the New York
Mercantile Exchange were up $6.30 at $919.90 an ounce.
Citi analyst David Thurtell said after recent multi-year
lows there had been some willingness to buy riskier assets, such
as equities, at the expense of gold.
"There was some news out of China this morning on a possible
new stimulus package and we are seeing some green shoots
elsewhere," he added. "There are some hopeful signs that maybe
the worst has passed, though it is a big maybe."
Equities worldwide clawed back from multi-year lows. Asian
stocks rebounded on hopes Beijing will step up efforts to
support the Chinese economy. []
"We still expect gold to benefit over the next few months,
especially as stimulus packages around the world (will) take
time to kick in" said Charles Cooper, an analyst at Evolution
Securities.
A stronger dollar also weighed down on gold, as the yellow
metal is often bought as a hedge against weakness in the U.S.
currency. []
FLEETING GAINS
Gold attempted to rise as oil prices rose on news that crude
oil stocks fell unexpectedly last week. Gold is seen as a hedge
against inflation, often triggered by rising oil prices.
[]
It also staged a brief rally earlier when a report showing
further deterioration in the U.S. jobs market fuelled interest
in gold as a haven from risk. []
The numbers are seen as an important precursor to key U.S.
non-farm payrolls data for February, due on Friday.
"We could see gold falling back to $900 in the short term
but ... wouldn't be surprised to see it surpass $1,000 over the
next month or so," Cooper said.
Investors are also concerned about the lack of 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.
Rising gold prices have sent sales of scrap gold rocketing.
Gold refiners are running at full capacity across Asia as people
cash in jewellery and coins, dealers said. []
Among other precious metals, spot silver <XAG=> edged up to
$12.95/13.00 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 fell for a third successive day
on Tuesday, by three tonnes to 7,981.17 tonnes. They have fallen
nearly 200 tonnes in the last three sessions.
Spot platinum <XPT=> edged up to $1,038.5/1,043.5 an ounce
from $1,031, while spot palladium <XPD=> ticked up to $193/198
an ounce from $191.50.
