SINGAPORE, July 1 (Reuters) - Gold slipped on Thursday as investors waited for more clues to the state of the global economy after stock markets recorded their worst quarter since the final three months of 2008. FUNDAMENTALS * Spot gold fell 85 cents to $1,240.50 an ounce by 0042 GMT. Gold, which hit a record above $1,264 last week, rose more than 11 percent in the second quarter as safe-haven demand lifted the metal to its best quarterly performance since the fourth quarter of 2007. * U.S. gold futures for August delivery fell $4.2 an ounce to $1,241.7. * The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Trust said its holdings were unchanged at a record of 1,320.436 tonnes. [GOL/SPDR] MARKET NEWS * The euro held gains on Thursday, on relief that funding strains amongst euro zone banks were not as bad as previously thought, but risk sentiment remained dour after U.S. stocks took a late hit. [USD/] * Japan's Nikkei average fell 1 percent to hit a seven-month low on Thursday after U.S. stocks staggered to the end of a dismal second quarter as investors found little reason to take on risk after conflicting economic data. [.T] [.N] * World stocks closed out a dismal second quarter on Wednesday with a late-day sell-off after Moody's Investors Service Inc. said it may downgrade Spain's AAA credit rating and on persistent worries about global growth. [MKTS/GLOB] DATA EVENTS The following data is expected on Tuesday : - CHINA OFFICIAL PMI FOR JUNE (0100 GMT) - AUSTRALIA MAY BUILDING APPROVALS (0130 GMT) - AUSTRALIA MAY RETAIL SALES (0130 GMT) - GERMAN RETAIL SALES FOR MAY (0600 GMT) - FRENCH PPI FOR MAY (0645 GMT) - EURO ZONE MANUFACTURING PMI FOR JUNE (0758 GMT) - UK MANUFACTURING PMI FOR JUNE (0828 GMT) - CHALLENGER U.S. JOB CUTS FOR JUNE (1130 GMT) - WEEKLY U.S. JOBLESS CLAIMS (1230 GMT) - U.S. PENDING HOME SALES FOR MAY (1400 GMT) - U.S. CONSTRUCTION SPENDING FOR MAY (1400 GMT) - U.S. ISM FOR JUNE (1400 GMT) - U.S. AUTO SALES FOR JUNE (N/A) RELATED NEWS > Fed officials see soft recovery, more uncertainty [nN30215459] > Tankan shows Japan business mood best in 2 yrs [nTOE65T08P] > U.S. House passes landmark financial reform bill [nN30180143] > US group urges Senate to reject China forex bill [nN30222551] > Australia manufacturing grows at slower pace [nSGE65T08I] > US private sector sees small job gains in June [nN30395701] > China official PMI set to ease again in June [nTOE65T08I] > Banks borrow less than expected from ECB [nLDE65T0VB] > Euro zone inflation below forecast, seen subdued [nLDE65T0Y6] > German unemployment falls, seen bottoming soon [nLDE65T0JW] Precious metals prices at 0042 GMT Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg Turnover Spot Gold 1240.50 -0.85 -0.07 13.22 Spot Silver 18.57 0.02 +0.11 10.34 Spot Platinum 1514.00 -17.50 -1.14 3.20 Spot Palladium 440.00 -2.00 -0.45 8.51 TOCOM Gold 3537.00 -8.00 -0.23 8.53 16678 TOCOM Platinum 4335.00 -34.00 -0.78 -1.05 10448 TOCOM Silver 53.40 -0.10 -0.19 3.29 92 TOCOM Palladium 1263.00 -34.00 -2.62 8.41 236 Euro/Dollar 1.2233 Dollar/Yen 88.41 TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce. (Reporting by Lewa Pardomuan; Editing by)

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