* Gold to fall to $1,352.30/oz-technicals []
* Coming Up: U.S. CPI mm, SA Dec; 1330 GMT
(Updates prices)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Bullion rebounded on Friday
as the euro lost strength despite better-than-forecast debt
auctions by Spain and Italy, while purchases from jewellers
and investors, which sent premiums for gold bars to two-year
highs, offered additional support.
Silver also bounced after falling more than 3
percent in the previous session, while platinum and
palladium held near their multi-year highs on the
prospect of more demand from investors and the industrial
sector.
Spot gold rose $2.25 to $1,375.00 an ounce by 0701
GMT after trading in a choppy $23 range on Thursday. Bullion
struck a lifetime high around $1,430 an ounce in December on
fears the euro debt crisis would spread.
"We've seen strong physical buying in Asia. It's still
going on," said Dick Poon, manager of precious metals at
Heraeus in Hong Kong. "I think gold is consolidating right
now. I am still bullish on gold and silver."
U.S. gold futures for February fell $10.1 to
$1,376.9 an ounce to track weakness in U.S. crude oil futures,
but the decline was ignored by players in the cash market.
Gold bars were offered at premiums of $3 an ounce to spot
London prices in Hong Kong, and at $1.5 in Singapore.
Wang Tao, a Reuters market analyst for commodities and
energy technicals, said gold is expected to fall to $1,352.30
per ounce.
For a 24-hour gold technical outlook:
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/WT/20111401091322.jpg
The euro paused on Friday but was still on track to post
its best weekly performance against the dollar in 20 months,
while Asian equity markets struggled to extend recent gains,
with Japan's Nikkei retreating from an 8-month peak.
Brent crude steadied above $98 on Friday after earlier
this week approaching triple-digit figures for the first time
in more than two years, outpacing U.S. benchmark prices, which
were dragged down by an increase in the country's jobless
claims.
Physical dealers noted purchases from jewellers in China
ahead of the Lunar New Year in February, where most Chinese
return home for the holidays and demand for jewellery
increases. Despite the demand from China and also top consumer
India, gold was struggling to revisit the $1,400 level.
"I think some sort of liquidation on the ETF has a bit of
an impact on gold. But bargain hunting supports prices despite
some disappointment that prices can't break through $1,400,"
said a dealer in Hong Kong.
The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR
Gold Trust , said its holdings fell to 1,265.093 tonnes
by Jan. 13 from 1,271.467 tonnes on Jan. 11.
Metals consultancy GFMS Ltd said on Thursday gold could
rally to record highs above $1,600 an ounce late this year or
early 2012 as safe-haven concerns fuel investment demand.
[]
The official sector, which includes central banks and
monetary authorities, swung into net purchases last year for
the first time since 1988, as increased buying in emerging
markets more than offset gold sales by European central banks,
GFMS said in its closely watched Gold Survey 2010 Update.
Precious metals prices 0701 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg Turnover
Spot Gold 1375.00 2.25 +0.16 -3.13
Spot Silver 28.84 0.17 +0.59 -6.55
Spot Platinum 1811.24 11.25 +0.63 2.47
Spot Palladium 804.72 0.97 +0.12 0.65
TOCOM Gold 3670.00 -45.00 -1.21 -1.58 52070
TOCOM Platinum 4895.00 47.00 +0.97 4.24 19540
TOCOM Silver 77.00 -2.50 -3.14 -4.94 1908
TOCOM Palladium 2162.00 -16.00 -0.73 3.10 932
Euro/Dollar 1.3363
Dollar/Yen 82.58
TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by Michael Urquhart)
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