* Gold pares early gains as dollar firms
* Physical buying from India may offer support
* Nikkei up over 4 percent, oil extends gains
(Updates prices)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Gold slipped on Friday after
posting its largest daily percentage gain in more than a week
the previous day, as the U.S. dollar turned higher against the
euro and spurred selling.
But firmer oil and equities could offer support around the
three-week low of around $700 an ounce struck on Thursday. Also
aiding prices, dealers said they expected steady physical
buying from India, the world's main gold consumer, during the
wedding season which lasts until early next year.
Gold <XAU=> was trading at $729.00 an ounce, down $5.75
from New York's notional close. Gold fell to $700.25 on
Thursday before bouncing to a high of $736.75 on gains in
equities.
"We can continue to expect volatility for some time to
come. I think the U.S. dollar very much is the driver still,"
said Darren Heathcote of Investec Australia in Sydney.
The euro slipped to $2.773 <EUR=> after rising in New York
as strong performance on Wall Street helped ease extreme risk
aversion. []
Japan's Nikkei average <> rose 4.3 percent on Friday
after U.S. shares rallied the previous day on bargain-hunting.
[]
Gold, which hit an intraday high of $736 on Friday, has
laboured to sustain the uptrend since hitting a two-month high
of $931 in early October. It fell to an 11-month of $860.80
three weeks ago, partly due to losses in equities that forced
investors to cash in to cover losses.
"Despite gold's latest weakness and the possibility of
further breakdown, I believe we arenearing a turning point in
the tenor and direction of the market," said Jeffrey Nichols,
head of American Precious Metals Advisors.
"Before long, gold will begin a new and sustainable upward
march.Until then, with the yellow metal in the $700 to $730
range, and certainly at lower price levels, price-sensitive
demand from key Asian and Middle Eastern markets should
stabilise the market."
Demand for gold jewellery has picked up in India despite a
weakening rupee during the wedding season, when parents give
gold to their daughters for financial security. []
Despite buying from India, gold remained at the mercy of
the dollar's movements, said dealers.
"As we've seen $700 level already, there's nothing to say
we will get there again at this point. It's just really that
the dollar will be the deciding factor," said Heathcote of
Investec Australia.
Oil <CLc1> was steady around $58 a barrel, having jumped
almost 4 percent in previous session due to a rebound in equity
markets. []
Platinum <XPT=> was trading at $838.00 ounce, up $16.50
from New York's notional close on Thursday.
New York gold futures <GCZ8> rose $23.9 an ounce to
$728.9.
Precious metals prices at 0221 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 729.00 -5.75 -0.78 -12.45
Spot Silver 9.32 -0.06 -0.64 -36.90
Spot Platinum 838.00 16.50 +2.01 -44.87
Spot Palladium 216.00 6.00 +2.86 -41.30
TOCOM Gold 2273.00 60.00 +2.71 -25.72
22017
TOCOM Platinum 2641.00 63.00 +2.44 -50.53
7507
TOCOM Silver 292.60 5.30 +1.84 -45.91
221
TOCOM Palladium 694.00 42.00 +6.44 -48.63
227
Euro/Dollar 1.2750
Dollar/Yen 96.92
TOCOM prices in yen per gram, except TOCOM silver which is
priced in yen per 10 grams. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by)
