* Gold extends losses but may find support at $800
* Strong dollar, weaker oil depress bullion
* Platinum tracks weaker gold
(Recasts, adds Northam Platinum earnings, quotes)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, Aug 25 (Reuters) - Gold dropped more than 1
percent on Monday, losing some of its safe-haven appeal as the
U.S. dollar strengthened against other currencies, but a
steadier oil limited the falls.
Bullion could find support around $800 an ounce, with the
help of buying from jewellers ahead of the festive seasons
especially in main consumer, India. Dealers also reported tight
supply for gold bars in Singapore and Hong Kong.
Gold <XAU=> slipped to $821.90/822.90 an ounce from
$827.00/828.60 an ounce late in New York on Friday, but was off
nine-month lows of around $773 hit in mid-August.
Earlier on Monday, the metal dipped to $817.05, down 1.2
percent.
"Gold remains relatively resilient against oil's volatile
downward move.This may suggest that buying interest is
surfacing just above $800," said William Kwan, bullion director
at Gold Capital Management in Singapore.
Oil <CLc1> was steady above $115 a barrel, having fallen
5.4 percent on Friday, the biggest one-day drop in percentage
terms since Dec. 27, 2004, on easing supply concerns, but
tensions between the United States and Russia would lend
support. []
Demand for gold in India normally picks up ahead of Diwali,
the Hindu festival of lights in October, as people buy gold for
auspicious reasons. Also, many Hindu marriages are likely to be
held between September and November, said dealers.
"I guess the $800-psychological level support will come
into play again. I believe physical demand for gold is likely
to remain good and perhaps the shortage may support the market
a bit," said Adrian Koh, analyst at Phillip Futures in
Singapore.
"If we start moving below $810, we will probably move to
$800 very soon and perhaps gold could retest to the $770s
again," he said.
New York gold futures <GCZ8> lost $7.0 an ounce to $826.50.
The dollar hit a two-year high against sterling after data
last week showed Britain's economy was stalling, raising the
prospect for monetary easing by the Bank of England. []
Spot platinum <XPT=> dropped to $1,402.00/1,422.00 an ounce
from $1,425.50/1,445.50 an ounce late in New York but was off
an 11-month low around $1,296 hit last week.
"Near-term support for platinum should come in around the
$1,350-level, and if we do move below those levels, we could
see another bout of selling towards $1,250 to $1,300," said Koh
of Phillip Futures.
In industry news, South Africa's Northam Platinum <NHMJ.J>
posted a 12 percent rise in earnings for the year ending in
June, on high metal prices,despite weaker output. The miner
forecast a rise in output and prices for the current financial
year. []
Spot palladium <XPD=> was steady from late New York levels
at $285.50/293.50 an ounce. Silver <XAG=> fell to $13.31/13.36
an ounce from $13.33/13.41 an ounce late in New York.
The most active Tokyo gold contract for June 2009 delivery
<0#JAU:> on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange fell 17 yen per gram
lower at 2,920 yen.
Precious metals prices at 0729 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 821.80 -0.30 -0.04 -1.31
Spot Silver 13.31 -0.01 -0.08 -9.88
Spot Platinum 1406.00 -19.50 -1.37 -7.50
Spot Palladium 285.50 2.50 +0.88 -22.42
TOCOM Gold 2921.00 -16.00 -0.54 -4.54
32819
TOCOM Platinum 4949.00 -137.00 -2.69 -7.30
23631
TOCOM Silver 474.50 -7.80 -1.62 -12.29
1130
TOCOM Palladium 1039.00 2.00 +0.19 -23.09
525
Euro/Dollar 1.4747
Dollar/Yen 109.86
TOCOM prices in yen per gram, except TOCOM silver which is
priced in yen per 10 grams. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by Nick Trevethan)
