* Gold dips on firmer dollar, platinum hits 4-week low
* Investors await clues on future of U.S. monetary policy
* Silver below $18
(Updates prices, adds quotes)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, July 7 (Reuters) - Gold slipped on Monday as the
dollar crept up against the euro, reducing the metal's appeal
as an alternative investment, while platinum dropped to its
lowest level in almost four weeks on fears of weakening demand.
Gold <XAU=> fell to $924.25/925.25 an ounce from
$932.00/933.00 an ounce in London on Friday. The U.S. markets
were closed for Independence Day holiday.
Trading was muted before U.S. players returned to the
market after the holiday. Dealers expected gold to trade
between $920 and $940, with movements in the dollar likely to
offer direction.
Gold was hit by selling from speculators in Asia, including
those in Japan, and there may be follow-through activity by
players in New York later in the day, said Louis Lok, a dealer
at Bank of China in Hong Kong.
"But I would expect gold to hold around $920," said Lok,
who pegged resistance at $925.
Spot platinum <XPT=> hit a low of $1,988.50 an ounce, its
lowest level since June 12, down from $1,999.00/2,019.00 in
London on fears a slowing U.S. economy could hit demand for the
metal used in auto catalysts to cleanse fumes from motor
exhausts.
"Perhaps the general economic outlook is weighing on demand
and there are talks of slowing growth in demand for auto sales
in the U.S.," said Adrian Koh, analyst at Philip Futures in
Singapore.
"Platinum seems technically weak at the moment and has
moved below the important $2,000 level. So, the next level I am
looking at is $1,950," he said.
Platinum has lost 13 percent in value since hitting a
record of $2,290 in March. The metal, also used in jewellery,
had rallied after a power crisis in main producer South Africa
disrupted mining and sparked fears of a supply deficit.
"I am still longer-term positive on platinum and palladium.
At the moment, they look a bit top-heavy and could move lower.
But in the longer term, the trend is still slowing moving
higher," said Koh.
Spot palladium <XPD=> rose to $451.00/459.00 an ounce from
$450.00/455.00 an ounce.
The dollar rose against the euro and the yen as investors
waited for clues about the future path of U.S. monetary policy
from top Federal Reserve officials including Chairman Ben
Bernanke this week. [].
Oil <CLc1> fell $1.57 to $143.72 a barrel, below an
all-time high of $145.85 hit on Thursday. []
Gold futures for August delivery <GCQ8> on the COMEX
division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell $7.5 an ounce
to $926.2.
Silver <XAG=> dropped to $17.84/17.90 an ounce from
$18.02/18.12 late in London -- well below an 11-week high of
$18.46 hit last week.
The most active Tokyo platinum contract for June 2009
delivery <0#JPL:> on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange lost 49 yen
per gram at 6,794 yen, reflecting weakness in cash market.
Precious metals prices at 0623 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 924.20 -8.10 -0.87 10.99
Spot Silver 17.85 -0.20 -1.11 20.85
Spot Platinum 1989.50 -8.00 -0.40 30.89
Spot Palladium 450.00 -1.50 -0.33 22.28
TOCOM Gold 3219.00 -16.00 -0.49 5.20
29697
TOCOM Platinum 6793.00 -50.00 -0.73 27.23
16377
TOCOM Silver 620.80 -9.70 -1.54 14.75
680
TOCOM Palladium 1580.00 -28.00 -1.74 16.95
1321
Euro/Dollar 1.5637
Dollar/Yen 107.31
TOCOM prices in yen per gram, except TOCOM silver which is
priced in yen per 10 grams. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by Ben Tan)
