* Gold eases on profit taking, after rising 5 pct in New
York
* Dollar rises against basket of currencies
* Nikkei up 3.2 pct, tracking U.S. rallies
(Updates prices)
SINGAPORE, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Gold slipped on Wednesday as
speculators booked profits from a 5-percent rally in New York,
while a rebound in the dollar ahead of the outcome of the U.S.
presidential election also spurred selling.
The dollar jumped against a basket of major currencies,
having posted its biggest one-day slide in 13 years the
previous session, which in theory reduced bullion's appeal as
an alternative investment.
Gold <XAU=> was trading at $756.10 an ounce, down $5.85 an
ounce from New York's notional close on Tuesday, when it hit an
intraday high of $767.20 an ounce after the dollar dropped
against the euro and triggered safe-haven buying.
"Given the significant rise in the price overnight, it
bodes well for the rest of the day. We may well want to test
the highs again in late afternoon, particularly around the
opening of Europe and London," said Darren Heathcote of
Investec Australia.
"I am still trying to determine whether or not the weakness
in the dollar overnight is a result of expectation of Obama
winning. It's very difficult to pin down," he said.
Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain traded
victories in several states they were expected to win on
Tuesday, but Obama scored the first big win in their White
House battle by capturing Pennsylvania. []
Some analysts say a win by Obama would be marginally better
for the dollar, if only because the Democrats already control
Congress. That would make it easier for a new administration to
push through activist policies to boost markets.
The dollar index rose to 84.773 <.DXY>, after falling
around 2.5 percent on Tuesday for its biggest one-day drop in
13 years. Dealers focused on the outcome of the U.S.
presidential election, and how equity markets would react to
the results. []
Gold has rebounded more than 10 percent since falling to
13-month low at $680.80 in late October, when investors cashed
in bullion to pay losses in stock markets. The metal was still
below a two-month high of $931 also hit last month as it
struggled to revisit a record high of $1,030.80 in March.
The broad-based Reuters/Jefferies CRB commodity index
<.CRB> rose more than 5 percent on Tuesday, and gold was still
supported by signs that a global recessionseemed averted for
the moment as U.S. stocks jumped. []
The Nikkei <N.225> rose 3.2 percent on Wednesday to track
rallies in the United States.
Platinum <XPT=> was trading at $863.50 ounce, up $2.61 New
York's notional close.
New York gold futures <GCZ8> fell $0.1 an ounce to $753.2.
For the latest U.S. election news, click on
[]
Precious metals prices at 0123 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 756.10 -5.85 -0.77 -9.20
Spot Silver 10.07 -0.10 -0.98 -31.82
Spot Platinum 863.50 22.00 +2.61 -43.19
Spot Palladium 206.00 -0.50 -0.24 -44.02
TOCOM Gold 2421.00 108.00 +4.67 -20.88
19775
TOCOM Platinum 2822.00 184.00 +6.97 -47.14
8085
TOCOM Silver 323.60 12.10 +3.88 -40.18
335
TOCOM Palladium 688.00 32.00 +4.88 -49.07
316
Euro/Dollar 1.2921
Dollar/Yen 99.46
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)
