(Updates prices to late afternoon)
By Chikafumi Hodo
TOKYO, Jan 7 (Reuters) - Gold edged lower on Monday as
falls in oil prices and concerns over the U.S. economy after
weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs data prompted sales, but
sentiment was bullish with investors keen to buy on dips.
Investors sold to lock in their profits as cash gold has
gained more than 10 percent over the last month, but the weak
dollar outlook and lingering geopolitical tensions are likely
to keep the precious metal well-supported.
"It's about time that investors took profits in gold as
uncertainty in financial markets was growing after U.S. jobs
data," said Shuji Sugata, manager at Mitsubishi Corp Futures
and Securities in Tokyo.
"But there is no need to be overly worried as many still
believe that long-term sentiment for gold was bullish as there
are plenty of reasons to hold gold."
Cash gold was weighed by falls in Japanese gold futures,
but still close to last week's historic high of $869.05 an
ounce.
As of 0655 GMT, spot gold <XAU=> was at $857.10/857.80,
down from $862.00/862.70 late in New York on Friday.
Psychological support for gold is seen at $850, Sugata
said, with the five-day moving average seen at $854.
COMEX gold futures extended losses in Asia after falling in
New York on profit-taking on Friday. The most active February
contract <GCG8> was trading down $5.50 or 0.6 percent at
$860.20 from the New York settlement.
Traders said a firmer yen against the dollar undermined
yen-based precious metals futures.
The benchmark December gold contract on the Tokyo Commodity
Exchange (TOCOM) <0#JAU:> was trading at 3,026 yen a gram, down
29 yen or 1 percent from 3,055 yen on Friday.
TOCOM will extend trading by two hours to 5:30 p.m. (0830
GMT) from Monday.
"A stronger yen was weighing on TOCOM prices and also put
pressure on overall prices," said a senior trader at a Japanese
trading house.
"Weak oil prices also pressured gold, but you really cannot
sell gold heavily as many investors want to hold gold for
safe-haven purposes due to geopolitical tensions."
DOLLAR FALL
On Friday, the dollar tumbled after a U.S. government
report showed that employers added a scant 18,000 jobs in
December and the national unemployment rate kicked up to 5
percent, its highest level in more than two years.
Oil prices extended their losses on Monday, which also put
pressure on precious metals.
U.S. crude futures fell on Monday as the market weighed
OPEC's comments on the price outlook against bleak U.S.
employment data.
NYMEX crude for February delivery <CLc1> fell 47 cents to
$97.44 a barrel in Globex electronic trading. U.S. oil closed
$1.27 lower at $97.91 on Friday, slipping further from the
record high of $100.09 struck on Jan. 3 after poor U.S. jobs
data heightened concerns about the health of the economy.
Cash platinum <XPT=> was dragged down by falls in key TOCOM
platinum futures <0#JPL:>, which fell by more than 1 percent.
Key TOCOM platinum was trading at 5,235 yen a gram, down 71
yen or 1.3 percent from Friday. It fell to an intraday low of
5,215 yen -- the lowest since Dec. 19.
Platinum fell to $1,528/1,533 an ounce from $1,541/$1,545
in New York on Friday.
Palladium <XPD=> inched down to $364/369 an ounce from
$365/$368 in New York.
Silver <XAG=> fell to $15.21/15.26 an ounce from
$15.29/15.34 late in New York.
Precious metals prices at 0653 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 856.90 -2.70 -0.31 2.91
Spot Silver 15.19 -0.06 -0.39 2.84
Spot Platinum 1529.00 -21.00 -1.35 0.59
Spot Palladium 364.00 -1.00 -0.27 -1.09
TOCOM Gold 3028.00 -27.00 -0.88 -1.05
77125
TOCOM Platinum 5235.00 -71.00 -1.34 -1.95
45292
TOCOM Silver 536.20 -6.80 -1.25 -0.89
919
TOCOM Palladium 1302.00 -35.00 -2.62 -3.63
1163
Euro/Dollar 1.4714
Dollar/Yen 108.95
TOCOM prices in yen per gram, except for silver which is in
yen per 10 grams, spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Reporting by Chikafumi Hodo; Editing by Valerie Lee)
