* Physical buying spur rebound in gold prices
* For the technical on gold, click []
* Coming Up; U.S. ICSC chain stores yy, weekly: 1145 GMT
(Updates prices, adds quotes)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, July 20 (Reuters) - Gold regained strength on
Tuesday as jewellery makers resurfaced after the price dropped
to its weakest in nearly two months, while investors looked to
movements in other markets for further cues.
A drop in Japanese shares also spurred buying from
speculators, who are keeping an eye on U.S. corporate earnings
and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's comments on the
economy on Wednesday. Other precious metals were also firmer.
Spot gold <XAU=> added $2.80 to $1,183.15 an ounce by 0258
GMT after falling as low as $1,177.15 on Monday, its lowest
since late May.
For a 24-hour spot gold technical outlook, see:
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/WT/20102007092952.jpg
"We've seen buying on the lower end, which helps push up
the market a bit. There's a mixture of purchases from jewellers
and other physical buyers," said a dealer in Hong Kong.
"Technically, the market is still a bit bearish but I think
we are looking for a rebound after prices dropped below $1,195.
Investors are looking for fresh news because the euro zone has
stabilised a bit," he added.
U.S. gold futures for August delivery <GCQ0> was steady at
$1,182.3.
Cash gold and U.S. futures struck record highs in late June
on worries the debt crisis in Europe would spread and the U.S.
economy was slowing.
Japan's Nikkei average fell 1.7 percent on Tuesday as tech
shares were hit by disappointment over U.S. corporate results.
On Monday, the Wall Street had gained as investors hoped
results from key companies Texas Instruments <TXN.N> and IBM
<IBM.N> would echo Intel's positive results last week.
However, TI and IBM shares fell after the bell on
disappointing revenue. [] []
Ong Yi Ling, investment analyst at Phillip Futures in Hong
Kong, noted that most companies had been reporting earnings for
the upside, which should continue to reduce the safe-haven
demand for gold.
"And of course, we have the bank stress test at the end of
this week, so I think that would also be something that people
would definitely monitor," she added.
Europe is assessing how 91 banks across 20 countries would
cope with another economic downturn in an effort to restore
confidence after Greece's sovereign debt crisis hit markets and
sparked fears the euro zone could unravel.
The Committee of European Banking Supervisors (CEBS), which
is overseeing the stress tests, said results would be released
on an aggregated and bank-by-bank basis from 1600 GMT on
Friday. []
The euro was steady on Tuesday, hovering within striking
distance of two-month highs against the U.S. dollar which was
under pressure as investors continued to cut long positions on
more disappointing U.S. economic data. []
U.S. home-builder sentiment fell more-than-expected in July
to the lowest level in more than a year after a popular
home-buyer tax credit expired in April, the National
Association of Home Builders said on Monday. []
The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, the
SPDR Gold Trust <GLD.P>, said holdings were unchanged at
1,314.211 tonnes. The holdings hit a record 1,320.436 tonnes in
late June. []
Precious metals prices at 0258 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg
Turnover
Spot Gold 1183.15 2.80 +0.24 7.98
Spot Silver 17.62 0.11 +0.63 4.69
Spot Platinum 1511.00 2.00 +0.13 3.00
Spot Palladium 444.00 2.55 +0.58 9.49
TOCOM Gold 3319.00 -77.00 -2.27 1.84
45709
TOCOM Platinum 4262.00 -32.00 -0.75 -2.72
13771
TOCOM Silver 49.90 -2.00 -3.85 -3.48
315
TOCOM Palladium 1255.00 -46.00 -3.54 7.73
226
Euro/Dollar 1.2961
Dollar/Yen 86.99
TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce.
(Editing by Himani Sarkar)
