(Updates prices)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, June 4 (Reuters) - Gold extended losses on
Wednesday as the U.S. dollar held gains against other
currencies and oil prices dipped, reducing the metal's appeal
as an alternative investment and a hedge against inflation.
Spot gold <XAU=> fell to $880.60/881.80 an ounce from
$882.90/884.10 an ounce late in New York on Tuesday, when it
dropped almost 1 percent.
Demand from jewellery makers resurfaced at lower levels,
but gold has lost more than 14 percent in value since spiking
to an all time high of $1,030.80 an ounce in mid-March. Other
precious metals tracked gold's weakness.
"It's still on a one-month gradual uptrend, so I am looking
at the $870-$875 support as a key indicator for gold's
direction. A movement below this could see prices heading back
to the $845-$850 region," said Adrian Koh, analyst at Philip
Futures in Singapore.
"Upside, I will be looking at $900-$905 to provide some
resistance," he said.
The dollar held onto gains against the euro and major
currencies after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke issued
an explicit warning about the inflationary threat from a weak
U.S. currency. []
Oil fell below $124 a barrel on Wednesday, extending losses
triggered by a rallying dollar as traders awaited U.S. data
expected to show rising oil stocks. [].
"I would say gold is still in a range of $850 to $900 for
the time being, and we are all waiting for Friday's U.S.
nonfarm payrolls data," said a dealer in Hong Kong.
"Jewellery makers are covering shorts but it's not great
because the market has not stabilised yet," he said.
The August gold contract <GCQ8> on the COMEX division of
the New York Mercantile Exchange fell $2.2 an ounce to $883.3
an ounce.
Platinum <XPT=> fell to $1,982.00/1,998 an ounce from
$1,992.50/2,012.50 late in New York.
The benchmark April 2009 platinum contract on the Tokyo
Commodity Exchange <0#JAU:> ended the morning session 95 yen
per gram lower at 6,580 yen to reflect weakness in the spot
market.
"For platinum, nearby support should be around
$1,940-$1,950, resistance around $2,070," said Koh of Philip
Futures.
Palladium <XPD=> was at $429/434 an ounce, barely changed
from $429/437 late in New York.
Silver <XAG=> eased to $16.70/16.77 an ounce from
$16.77/16.84 late in New York.
Precious metals prices at 0308 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 880.65 0.25 +0.03 5.76
Spot Silver 16.71 -0.04 -0.24 13.13
Spot Platinum 1987.00 -8.00 -0.40 30.72
Spot Palladium 429.00 0.00 +0.00 16.58
TOCOM Gold 2999.00 -24.00 -0.79 -1.99
10523
TOCOM Platinum 6580.00 -95.00 -1.42 23.24
8237
TOCOM Silver 572.00 -2.10 -0.37 5.73
219
TOCOM Palladium 1484.00 -11.00 -0.74 9.84
208
Euro/Dollar 1.5457
Dollar/Yen 105.11
TOCOM prices in yen per gram, except TOCOM silver which is
priced in yen per 10 grams. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Additional reporting by Miho Yoshikawa in Tokyo; Editing by
Michael Urquhart)
