* Gold edges up, SDPR holdings hit record
* For the technical outlook for gold; click on
[]
* Coming Up: U.S. Initial jobless claims weekly; 1230 GMT
(Updates prices, adds quotes)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, May 27 (Reuters) - Gold gained half a percent on
Thursday on surprise demand figures from India, worries about
Europe's debt woes and as holdings in the world's largest
bullion-backed exchange-traded fund rose to another record.
A jump in India's gold demand in the first quarter
suggested the world's largest consumer started to get used to
the high prices. Jewellery demand rose to 147.5 tonnes from
37.7 tonnes in the first quarter of 2009, when a rise in prices
curbed buying globally. [] []
Spot gold <XAU=> was at $1,216.15 an ounce by 0550 GMT, up
$6.25 from New York's notional close on Wednesday. Gold hit a
record high of $1,248.95 in mid-May as investors ditched the
euro on fears that euro zone austerity measures could hurt,
rather than help, a recovery.
Bullion dropped to a two-week low last week as investors
sold the metal to cover losses in equities but analysts said
the subsequent recovery showed that sentiment was still
bullish.
For a graphic showing the gold technical outlook, see:
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/WT_20102705090254.jpg
"The safe haven interest in gold is pretty strong," said
David Moore, commodity strategist at Commonwealth Bank of
Australia in Sydney.
"In terms of selling gold to cover losses in other markets,
I don't think there will be a significant constraints on the
gold price. Jewellery gold demand was actually pretty strong in
the March quarter, relatively speaking, particularly in India."
The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, the
SPDR Gold Trust <GLD>, said its holdings totalled 1,267.626
tonnes as of May 26, from 1,267.322 tonnes a day earlier,
setting a fresh record high. []
U.S. gold futures for June delivery <GCM0> added $2.9 to
$1,216.3 an ounce.
"I think there's a mixture of activity today. We've seen
profit taking but there's also some buying," said a dealer in
Hong Kong. "For the time being, everyone is cautiously bullish.
People are still talking about the euro."
The euro hit a day highs after an official said China was
committed to its goal of diversifying its foreign exchange
reserves, effectively denying a report the country would avoid
euro zone debt. []
But the currency was still under pressure from nagging
worries about the debt woes of Greece and other nations. []
<.DXY>
Japan's Nikkei average came off a six-month low to edge up
0.4 percent on Thursday, with a weakening in the yen against
the euro helping to counter persistent worry about Europe's
debt crisis. []
Precious metals prices at 0550 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 1216.15 6.25 +0.52 10.99
Spot Silver 18.19 0.18 +1.00 8.08
Spot Platinum 1541.50 23.00 +1.51 5.08
Spot Palladium 444.20 7.70 +1.76 9.54
TOCOM Gold 3537.00 28.00 +0.80 8.53
44677
TOCOM Platinum 4497.00 89.00 +2.02 2.65
18646
TOCOM Silver 53.40 0.60 +1.14 3.29
596
TOCOM Palladium 1295.00 0.00 +0.00 11.16
598
Euro/Dollar 1.2266
Dollar/Yen 90.18
TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by Ed Lane)
