TOKYO, July 29 (Reuters) - Gold firmed on Wednesday, pausing
after falling more than 1 percent the previous day on receding
risk tolerance as a weak U.S. confidence reading suggested
consumer demand would languish for some time to come.
Oil and share prices were also beaten down by faltering
confidence on Tuesday, but the dollar rose on increased demand
for safe-haven assets, making gold less attractive.
Gold, together with oil and share prices, has recently been
supported by economic optimism.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Gold <XAU=> was at $939.30 an ounce at 0006 GMT, up 0.3
percent from the notional close in New York of $936.65 on
Tuesday, when it fell more than $10.
* Gold touched a low of $933.70 on Tuesday, its lowest since
July 17.
* U.S. gold futures for August delivery <GCQ9> edged up 0.1
percent to $939.80 an ounce. On Tuesday the contract tumbled
$14.40 or 1.51 percent to $939.10 on the COMEX division of the
New York Mercantile Exchange.
* The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, the
SPDR Gold Trust <GLD>, said holdings fell 3.36 tonnes or 0.3
percent to 1,083.25 tonnes on July 28 from the previous business
day, marking the first fall since July 22. []
MARKET NEWS
* The dollar recovered from its lowest level of the year
against a basket of currencies <.DXY> on Tuesday as weak consumer
confidence rekindled worries about the stability of the U.S.
economy's recovery, increasing safe-haven demand for the
greenback. []
* The Dow and the S&P 500 dipped on Tuesday but closed off
lows as investors shrugged off weak consumer confidence data and
focused on positive earnings reports. []
* Oil prices fell on Tuesday after data showing a drop in
U.S. consumer confidence spurred concerns about the economy and
sent investors into safer havens. []
* JP Morgan <JPM.N> lowered its forecasts for gold and silver
in 2009. []
DATA EVENTS
* The following data is expected on Wednesday: <ECON>
- German consumer prices for July (N/A)
- Italy business confidence for July (0730 GMT)
- UK consumer credit data for June (0830 GMT)
- U.S. durable goods for June (1230 GMT)
- Fed releases Beige Book of Economic Conditions (1800 GMT)
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PRICES
Precious metals prices at 0002 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg Day ago pct MA 30 RSI
Spot gold $939.25 $2.60 +0.28% +4.71% $860.10 49
Spot silver $13.70 $0.01 +0.07% +14.36% $11.29 56
Spot plat $1196.00 $3.50 +0.29% -1.56% $1163.73 62
COMEX gold $939.70 -$13.00 -1.36% -1.45% $934.98 45
TOCOM gold 2,863 -66 -2.25% -1.95% 2,856 49
TOCOM plat 3,654 -74 -1.98% -0.87% 3,560 57
Currencies
Euro/dlr $1.415 -$0.007 -0.49% -0.39%
Dlr/yen 94.43 -0.42 -0.44% -0.36%
TOCOM prices in yen per gram, except TOCOM silver which is
priced in yen per 10 grams. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Reporting by Risa Maeda)
