* Gold to rise to $1,435/oz-technicals []
* Coming Up: ISM semi-annual econ forecast; 1500 GMT
(Updates prices, adds fresh quotes)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, Dec 7 (Reuters) - Gold ticked lower on Tuesday
as speculators booked profits after sending the price to
another record, but worries over Europe's sovereign debt
problems and speculation the U.S. Fed will extend monetary
easing helped cushion the fall.
Silver matched a 30-year high hit on Monday in volatile
trade. Investors shrugged off news that China, the world's
second-largest gold consumer, may raise interest rates this
weekend, saying the move had been widely anticipated to cool
inflation. []
Spot gold fell $2.86 to $1,419.99 an ounce by 0423
GMT after hitting a record around $1,427 on Monday in thin
trade.
"There doesn't seem to be any follow through buying, so
you can say gold is attracting some year-end profit taking.
This is a sign of consolidation," said Ronald Leung, director
of Lee Cheong Gold Dealers in Hong Kong.
"There's no change in sentiment...cautiously bullish."
A bullish target at $1,435 an ounce for spot gold
is intact as the rise to a record high in the previous session
confirmed an extension of the current wave development,
according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.
Gold's role as a hedge against inflation got a boost after
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Sunday the bank
could buy more than the $600 billion in U.S. government bonds
it has committed to purchase. []
"We've seen some retracement but I would still think
fundamentals are strong and we've lost confidence in paper
money," said a dealer in Hong Kong.
"I think the market will keep this momentum in the next
few days and after that we will reach another record high."
Silver slipped below $30 an ounce before
rebounding and hitting a high of $30.25, matching a 30-year
high hit on Monday on European debt woes.
Dealers in Hong Kong said silver was catching up with
gold, while those in Tokyo said the metal was supported by
physical buying from the industrial sector.
The world's largest silver-backed exchange-traded fund,
iShares Silver Trust, said its holdings rose to 10,816.69
tonnes by Dec. 6 from 10,778.68 on Dec. 2. The holdings jumped
to an all-time high of 10,893.68 tonnes on Nov. 23.
[]
U.S. gold futures for February rose $4.9 an ounce
to $1,421 an ounce.
The dollar fell to a three-week low against the yen on
Tuesday, with gains in the Japanese currency pulling Tokyo
stocks lower, while the euro came under renewed pressure as
Europe struggled to contain its debt crisis.
Precious metals prices at 0423 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg Turnover
Spot Gold 1419.99 -2.86 -0.20 29.60
Spot Silver 30.16 0.02 +0.07 79.20
Spot Platinum 1718.50 -2.00 -0.12 17.14
Spot Palladium 759.47 4.00 +0.53 87.29
TOCOM Gold 3774.00 -7.00 -0.19 15.80 41131
TOCOM Platinum 4607.00 -50.00 -1.07 5.16 12592
TOCOM Silver 80.30 0.30 +0.37 55.32 1721
TOCOM Palladium 2029.00 -49.00 -2.36 74.16 1119
Euro/Dollar 1.3341
Dollar/Yen 82.44
TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by Michael Urquhart)
