* Platinum <XPT=> tops $1,600/oz to highest since August 2008
* SPDR Gold holdings steady at 1,119.541 tonnes
By Miho Yoshikawa
TOKYO, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Gold prices were mostly flat around
$1,150 per ounce on Tuesday after touching a five-week high in
the previous session as traders continued to watch the currency
market for direction.
The price of the precious metal touched a five-week high of
$1.161.50 on Monday after worse-than-expected U.S. jobs data sent
the dollar lower.
Data on Friday showed U.S. employers cut 85,000 jobs in
December, disappointing investors who were expecting a quicker
turnaround for the world's largest economy.
Spot gold <XAU=> was at $1,153.45 per ounce at 0610 GMT,
compared to New York's notional close of $1,151.10.
U.S. gold futures for February delivery <GCG0> were at
$1,154.00, up 0.2 percent from Monday's close of $1,151.40 on the
COMEX division of the NYMEX.
"The market's focus was on a U.S. rate hike taking place
sooner rather than later but that view receded, causing the
dollar to fall, which was positive for gold," said Shuji Sugata,
a manager at Mitsubishi Corp Futures Ltd.
He said gold prices would likely continue to take their cue
from the currency market.
"I think the view of an imminent rate hike has receded, and
this suggests that gold's bottom price may be quite solid,"
Sugata added.
Higher U.S. interest rates boost the dollar and put pressure
on gold, which is often used as a dollar alternative.
The dollar initially rose on Tuesday after an official at
China's sovereign wealth fund said the U.S. currency had little
room to fall further. However, it later trimmed those gains after
the official said his comments reflected only his personal view.
[] []
The euro inched down to $1.4488 <EUR=>, off an earlier trough
of $1.4452. On Monday it hit its highest level in more than three
weeks at $1.4557. []
The official, Peng Junming, also said the fund must not rush
to buy gold because prices are high now.
The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR
Gold Trust <GLD>, said its holdings stood at 1,119.541 tonnes as
of Jan. 11, unchanged from the previous business day. []
Platinum <XPT=>, which has important industrial applications
in auto catalysts used to clear car exhaust fumes, had benefited
from views that the economy was on a solid recovery path.
It also benefited from Friday's launch of the first
U.S.-based exchange-traded funds backed by metals, which provides
a new investment vehicle. [] []
On Tuesday spot platinum rose 1 percent to a high of $1,608
per ounce, the highest since August 2008.
PRICES
Precious metals prices at 0620 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg Turnover
Spot Gold 1153.60 2.50 +0.22 5.28
Spot Silver 18.64 0.09 +0.49 10.75
Spot Platinum 1609.00 17.50 +1.10 9.68
Spot Palladium 434.25 3.25 +0.75 7.09
TOCOM Gold 3434.00 51.00 +1.51 5.37 73920
TOCOM Platinum 4754.00 129.00 +2.79 8.51 31977
TOCOM Silver 55.80 1.00 +1.82 7.93 843
TOCOM Palladium 1286.00 11.00 +0.86 10.39 824
Euro/Dollar 1.4501
Dollar/Yen 92.18
TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Additional reporting by Risa Maeda)
