* Dollar under pressure as risk appetite improves
* Crude rallies above $72 per barrel; euro stronger
* Inflation-hedge appeal supports gold above $940
By Nick Vinocur
LONDON, June 30 (Reuters) - Gold rose above $940 per ounce
on Tuesday, helped by a weaker dollar as warming investor
attitudes towards riskier assets pushed global equities higher
and raised the price of oil by more than $1 per barrel.
Crude <CLc1> rose above $72 a barrel after rising 2 percent
in high-volume Asian trade, brightening the appeal of gold as a
potential hedge against oil-induced inflation. []
Stocks also gained, with half-year investment plays partly
to thank for the cross-asset rally, while data showing a better
than expected improvement in European economic sentiment helped
to support the euro <EUR=> against the dollar. []
Spot gold <XAU=> was at $940.50 per ounce at 1035 GMT, up
from $937.05 quoted late in New York trade. The price earlier
hit a high of $944.70 and has found support around $940.
Analysts said the precious metal was finding support from a
weaker dollar but could face resistance in the short term if the
trend of improving risk appetite kept markets buoyant.
"If we see improving macro data -- especially U.S. non-farm
payrolls -- obviously you will have equities rallying, and when
equities rally there is little point in holding gold," said
Andrey Kryuchenkov, an analyst at VTB Securities.
"You will have to see significant dollar pullback and
full-blown inflation to get the thrust we need to retest above
$1,000 -- and we are still in a deflationary phase," he added.
DOLLAR PRESSURED
The dollar is also facing potential pressure after recent
comments from China calling for the diversification of their
foreign currency reserves.
"The general trend is for a weaker dollar, (but) obviously
it's in no-one's interest to have a mass exodus (from the
currency) overnight," said Simon Weeks, Director, precious metal
sales at Scotia Mocatta. "That's going to keep gold steady."
U.S. gold futures for August delivery <GCQ9> rose to $941.30
per ounce, up slightly percent from the previous settlement on
the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Gold was on track to lose almost 4 percent this month, but
was poised for a gain of about 7 percent for the first half of
the year.
On the investment front, the world's largest gold-backed
exchange-traded fund, the SPDR Gold Trust, said its holdings
remained at 1,125.74 tonnes as of June 29, unchanged since June
25. The holdings were down 0.7 percent from a record high marked
in early June. []
Other precious metals were also stronger, with spot silver
<XAG=> rising to $14.03 against $13.84 quoted late in New York,
platinum gaining to $1,193.50 against $1,182.00 previously, and
palladium <XPD=> moving up to $249.00 from $247.00.
(Reporting by Nick Vinocur, additional reporting by Risa
Maeda; Editing by William Hardy)
