* Gold falls below $1,180; dlr up after US jobs data
* Employers cut far smaller than expected 11,000 jobs in Nov
* Main New York gold, silver ETF holdings rise
(Recasts, adds comment, updates prices)
By Jan Harvey and Veronica Brown
LONDON, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Gold slid below $1,180 a troy
ounce on Friday as the dollar rose on a stronger than expected
U.S. employment report that raised sentiment on growth and
dented gold as a currency hedge.
Spot gold <XAU=> fell 2.6 percent to $1,174.70 a troy ounce
and was bid at $1,178.50 an ounce at 1601 GMT compared with
$1,207.10 late in New York on Thursday.
U.S. gold futures for February delivery <GCG0> on the COMEX
division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell more than $40
to $1,177 an ounce.
U.S. employers cut a far fewer-than-expected 11,000 jobs in
November, the smallest decline since the start of the recession
in December 2007, strongly suggesting the deterioration in the
labor market was in its final stages. []
That boosted the dollar against the euro and yen. []
"Gold has been hit quite badly after the dollar strengthened
on the non-farm payrolls data ... counter to what you would
normally expect," said Dan Smith, analyst at Standard Chartered.
Spot prices struck a record high at $1,226.10 an ounce on
Thursday amid expectations for persistent weakness in the dollar
and rising inflation in 2010.
"The euro has fallen back below $1.50 ... it has undercut
the need for the currency hedgers to purchase gold," said James
Steel, metals analyst at HSBC in New York.
DOLLAR FIGHTS BACK
The dollar rose 1.1 percent against a basket of currencies
<.DXY>, while the euro was last bid at $1.4892 <EUR=>, with some
economists suggesting U.S. interest rates may be able to rise
sooner than expected.
"The data point to a transition in the economy from a deep
recession to a modest recovery," said William Sullivan, chief
economist, JVB Financial Group in Florida.
"This will encourage the Fed to be more vocal about an exit
strategy from their highly accommodative posture."
On the investment front, demand for gold remained firm, with
the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, the SPDR
Gold Trust <GLD>, saying its holdings rose 0.276 tonnes to
1,131.490 tonnes on Thursday. []
Elsewhere, metals consultancy GFMS said China will overtake
India as the world's largest gold consumer in 2009, with total
demand forecast at 432 tonnes. Indian demand has been pressured
this year by rising prices. []
Among other precious metals, silver <XAG=> was bid at $18.49
an ounce against $18.80 late on Thursday in New York. The
world's largest silver ETF, the iShares Silver Trust <SLV>, said
its holdings rose 113.05 tonnes to a record 9,514.35 tonnes on
Thursday. []
Platinum <XPT=> fell almost 3 percent to $1,445.50 an ounce
against $1,480.50, while palladium <XPD=> was at $373.50 against
$380.50.
ETF Securities, which operates exchange-traded products that
issue securities backed by physical metal, said holdings of its
platinum and palladium ETPs rose to record levels on Thursday,
up 0.3 percent and 0.7 percent respectively.
(Additional reporting by Pratima Desai and Frank Tang; Editing
by Nigel Hunt)
((jan.harvey@thomsonreuters.com; +44 207 542 7744; Reuters
Messaging: jan.harvey.reuters.com@reuters.net))
