* Dip to under $1,100 to spark bargain hunting
* iShares Silver Trust <SLV> hits record
* SPDR Gold Trust <GLD> holdings steady
By Miho Yoshikawa
TOKYO, Nov 13 (Reuters) - Gold steadied above $1,100 an
ounce on Friday after retreating from a record high the
previous day, hit by a recovery in the dollar.
Bullion has gained more than 5 percent as it marked a new
record high for six out of the eight sessions through Thursday,
touching an all-time peak of $1,122.85 on the view the dollar
would remain weak.
"Gold retreated from the record high of $1,122.85 hit early
yesterday as the dollar recovered after lower-than-expected
U.S. weekly jobless claims enhanced hopes for the recovery of
the world's largest economy," Investec Bank (Australia) Ltd
said in a report on Friday.
Spot gold <XAU=> was at $1,105.90 per ounce at 0314 GMT, up
0.2 percent from New York's notional close of $1,103.60.
Kazuhiko Saito, chief analyst at Fujitomi Co Ltd, said a
decline in the oil price also encouraged profit taking.
Gold often moves in line with crude, both because it can be
used as a hedge against oil-led inflation and as rising crude
prices often increase interest in commodities as an asset
class.
A decline was likely to be short-lived, however. "I think
we'll see bargain hunting once gold prices fall below $1,100,"
said Saito. He said there was still a lot of excess money
trying to find a home that was flowing into commodities markets
rather than into investments.
U.S. crude futures <CLc1> remained below $77 per barrel on
Friday, after tumbling nearly 3 percent the previous day as
growing U.S. crude inventories stirred demand concerns. []
Many analysts believe gold's strength is intact as the
dollar is widely expected to remain under pressure.
U.S. gold futures for December delivery <GCZ9> were mostly
unchanged at $1,106.5 per ounce. It rose to a record high of
$1,123.4 on Thursday.
There was a revival in interest in silver with holdings in
the world's largest silver-backed exchange-traded fund hitting
a record high.
The iShares Silver Trust <SLV> rose 183.37 tonnes, or 2.1
percent, from the previous day to an all-time high of 8,923.52
tonnes as of Nov. 12. []
The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR
Gold Trust <GLD>, on the other hand, said its holdings stood at
1,114.443 tonnes as of Nov. 12, unchanged from the previous
day. []
South Africa, previously the world's top producer and now
number three, said gold output fell 9.3 percent in volume terms
in September compared to a year earlier. []
The U.S. dollar clung to gains in Asia on Friday after
another sporadic bout of profit taking in riskier trades that
has characterised the currency's eight-month bear trend. []
PRICES
Precious metals prices at 0311 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 1105.80 2.20 +0.20 25.64
Spot Silver 17.27 0.06 +0.35 52.56
Spot Platinum 1353.50 3.00 +0.22 45.23
Spot Palladium 347.00 0.05 +0.01 88.08
TOCOM Gold 3217.00 -30.00 -0.92 25.03
44913
TOCOM Platinum 3936.00 -50.00 -1.25 48.42
7768
TOCOM Silver 502.40 -8.50 -1.66 57.34
293
TOCOM Palladium 1006.00 -6.00 -0.59 82.91
284
Euro/Dollar 1.4869
Dollar/Yen 90.15
TOCOM prices in yen per gram, except TOCOM silver which is
priced in yen per 10 grams. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
TOCOM prices in yen per gram, except TOCOM silver which is
priced in yen per 10 grams. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by Michael Urquhart)
