* SDPR Gold Trust holdings ease 0.608 tonnes
* Coming up: U.S. consumer price index at 1230 GMT
* For technicals on gold, click []
By Chikako Mogi
TOKYO, July 16 (Reuters) - Gold prices held above $1,200 an
ounce on Friday but trading was subdued as investors looked for
catalysts to break out of recent narrow ranges.
Gold has been stuck in a $100 range between $1,165 and $1,265
since the start of May, with the band narrowing further to $30,
between $1,190 and $1,220, over the past two weeks.
The market has drawn support from euro zone sovereign debt
problems, concerns about the U.S. and global economy and
investors' generally cautious stance towards risk-taking, all of
which highlighted bullion's appeal as a hedge against risks and
an alternative currency.
One factor to watch in the near term was the trend in the
holdings of gold-backed exchange-traded funds, said Ronald Leung,
director of Lee Cheong Gold Dealers in Hong Kong.
"A decline in the holdings is putting pressure on gold," he
said. "The market also sees prices as too expensive," as they are
just a few dollars below a key resistance point of $1,220, he
said.
The 25-day moving average, which has served as a firm
resistance, stood around $1,222 on Friday.
Spot gold <XAU=> was $1,208.80 per ounce as of 0253 GMT,
compared to the late New York level of $1,207.75.
At current levels, gold was set for a weekly fall of 0.2
percent. Gold rallied to an all-time high of $1,264.90 an ounce
on June 21.
U.S. gold futures for August delivery <GCQ0> were at
$1,209.30 per ounce, little changed from $1,208.30 on the COMEX.
The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, the
SPDR Gold Trust <GLD.P>, said holdings eased to 1,314.211 tonnes
as of Thursday, down 0.608 tonnes from the previous business day.
[]
Spot gold signalled a neutral direction but with a downside
bias.
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With summer holidays approaching, trading is expected to thin
further later this month, traders said.
Japanese financial markets will be closed on Monday for a
national holiday.
Leung said firm support was seen at $1,185-$1,190.
"Investors don't know what to do after selling gold because
they can't really put the money into other markets. So they are
still holding certain amounts of gold in their portfolios," he
said.
Japan's Nikkei average <> slipped more than 1 percent to
fall below a support line on Friday, hit by profit-taking amid
souring near-term technicals and concern about the pace of U.S.
economic recovery, along with a stronger yen. []
The dollar index <.DXY> was near 2-1/2-month lows as
investors continued to cut long positions in the greenback and
shifted towards the euro. []
Precious metals prices at 0301 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg Turnover
Spot Gold 1208.70 0.95 0.08 10.31
Spot Silver 18.29 0.03 0.16 8.67
Spot Platinum 1518.75 -3.40 -0.22 3.53
Spot Palladium 461.75 -0.53 -0.11 13.87
TOCOM Gold 3401 -37.00 -1.08 4.36 31443
TOCOM Platinum 4289 -57.00 -1.31 -2.10 9663
TOCOM Silver 52 -0.50 -0.95 0.39 190
TOCOM Palladium 1308 -17.00 -1.28 12.27 126
Euro/Dollar 1.2913
Dollar/Yen 87.1700
TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
