* Friday's US jobs data awaited to gauge economic outlook
* Gold also looking to U.S. stocks for incentives
* SPDR Gold holdings unchanged at 1,111.922 tonnes
By Miho Yoshikawa
TOKYO, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Gold prices held steady near $1,105
an ounce on Tuesday as investors refrained from betting heavily
in either direction ahead of a key U.S. jobs report due later
this week.
Bullion jumped more than 2 percent the previous day after
data showed the U.S. manufacturing sector grew in January at a
faster rate than expected, suggesting an improving outlook for
the economy and inflationary pressures ahead. []
"People are thinking of inflation, and this has created a
situation that makes it difficult to sell gold," which is
traditionally used as a hedge against inflation, said Kazuhiko
Saito, chief analyst at Tokyo's Fujitomi Co Ltd.
Spot gold <XAU=> was little changed at $1,105.45 an ounce at
0238 GMT, from New York's notional close of $1,105.30.
Investors are now turning their attention to the U.S.
employment data, due on Friday, for further clues on the health
of the economy, Saito said.
Economists polled by Reuters are looking for a slim gain in
U.S. payrolls in January, though it is not expected to be enough
to put a dent in the 10 percent unemployment rate.
[]
"People are expecting strong figures from the employment
data, but it could turn out to be a case of selling on the news,"
Saito said.
He added that gold was also looking to the New York stock
market for direction, because it provides a reflection of the
economic outlook.
U.S. stocks rose on Monday as the better-than-expected data
on the manufacturing sector and earnings from Exxon Mobil revived
bullish sentiment after stocks closed out their worst month in
almost a year. []
U.S. gold futures for April delivery <GCJ0> rose 0.1 percent
to $1,106.60 an ounce on the COMEX division of NYMEX.
A solid economic recovery would also help boost precious
metals platinum and palladium, which rose on Monday after the
manufacturing data, due to their industrial applications as auto
catalysts.
Platinum <XPT=> was flat at $1,548.50.
Palladium <XPD=> was at $431.25 per ounce compared with
$428.50 in New York.
The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR
Gold Trust <GLD>, said its holdings stood at 1,111.922 tonnes as
of Feb. 1, unchanged from the previous business day. []
The world's largest silver-backed exchange-traded fund, the
iShares Silver Trust <SLV>, said its silver holdings stood at
9,355.98 tonnes as of Feb. 1, down 0.3 percent from the previous
business day. []
PRICES
Precious metals prices at 0237 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg Turnover
Spot Gold 1105.10 -0.20 -0.02 0.86
Spot Silver 16.67 0.03 +0.18 -0.95
Spot Platinum 1549.00 0.50 +0.03 5.59
Spot Palladium 431.25 2.75 +0.64 6.35
TOCOM Gold 3239.00 99.00 +3.15 -0.61 57035
TOCOM Platinum 4519.00 145.00 +3.32 3.15 11528
TOCOM Silver 49.30 1.80 +3.79 -4.64 418
TOCOM Palladium 1256.00 54.00 +4.49 7.81 367
Euro/Dollar 1.3911
Dollar/Yen 90.82
TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Reporting by Miho Yoshikawa; Editing by Chris Gallagher)
