* Focus on whether FOMC could halt dollar's rally
* SPDR Gold holdings unchanged since Jan 19 []
By Risa Maeda
TOKYO, Jan 27 (Reuters) - Gold held steady near $1,100 an
ounce on Wednesday, supported by consistent retail demand from
Asia and views that a U.S. rate decision could halt the dollar's
recent gains and add to the precious metal's allure.
The market is carefully watching for any influence on the
dollar that could affect gold from the Federal Reserve's interest
rate decision expected around 1915 GMT. President Barrack Obama's
State of the Union speech is also due on Wednesday.
China's credit tightening steps and Obama's plans to limit
banks' risk taking have dampened confidence about an economic
recovery in the past few weeks, helping investors shift back to
the dollar from risker assets, including commodities.
"The most critical for gold is how the dollar will react
after the U.S. rate decision," said Tatsufumi Okoshi, a senior
economist at Nomura Securities Co.
"If a rally in the dollar halts versus the euro, that could
lift gold to around $1,180 in the near term. A top-heavy dollar
would suggest markets are assured of prolonged near-zero interest
rate policy in the U.S.," he said.
Spot gold <XAU=> was up 0.3 percent at $1,100.30 per ounce as
of 0307 GMT, compared to New York's notional close of $1,097.25.
On Friday spot gold hit a low of $1,081.90, its lowest since
Dec. 23. Silver, platinum and palladium hit multi-week lows on
Tuesday.
U.S. gold futures for February delivery <GCG0> inched up to
$1,100.40 per ounce, compared to $1,098.30 at the close on the
COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) ends a two-day
meeting on Wednesday, and policymakers are expected to keep
interest rates near zero and indicate whether they will stick to
plans to wind down an emergency asset purchase programme by
March. []
The meeting assumes significance as it takes place against
the backdrop of a furious Senate debate over Chairman Ben
Bernanke's reconfirmation. [].
Bernanke's current term expires on Sunday.
Among other precious metals, spot platinum <XPT=> was
$1,527.50 per ounce, down from $1,532.50 at New York's notional
close but off a three-week low of $1,497.00 hit on Tuesday.
Palladium <XPD=> was up 0.4 percent at $426.75 per ounce and
silver <XAG=> rose 0.8 percent to $16.85 per ounce.
The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR
Gold Trust <GLD>, said its holdings stood at 1,111.922 tonnes as
of Jan. 26, unchanged since Jan. 19. []
Precious metals prices at 0308 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg Turnover
Spot Gold 1100.25 -20.75 -1.85 0.42
Spot Silver 17.61 0.06 +0.34 4.63
Spot Platinum 1517.00 -4.00 -0.26 3.41
Spot Palladium 426.75 1.75 +0.41 5.24
TOCOM Gold 3341.00 178.00 +5.63 2.52 49125
TOCOM Platinum 4372.00 7.00 +0.16 -0.21 17717
TOCOM Silver 49.10 -0.20 -0.41 -5.03 405
TOCOM Palladium 1211.00 -28.00 -2.26 3.95 552
Euro/Dollar 1.4078
Dollar/Yen 89.46
TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by Michael Watson)
