RTRS:PRECIOUS-Gold eases after rally, holds near 6-wk top
* Gold faces resistance zone of $1,762-$1,773
* Coming Up: U.S non-farm payrolls Oct; 1230 GMT
(Updates prices, activity in physical market)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, Nov 4 (Reuters) - Gold ticked lower on Friday
after rising more than 1 percent in the previous session, but
prices held near their highest in six weeks due to the
uncertainty surrounding the euro zone debt crisis and the
prospect of a Greek exit from the euro.
Greece's abrupt call for a referendum, just days after a
deal was struck to save the debt-stricken country from
defaulting, ignited panic in global financial markets.
But intense European pressure has forced Greece to seek
political consensus on a new bailout plan instead of holding a
referendum after EU leaders raised the prospect of a Greek exit
from the euro to preserve the single currency.
Gold fell $4.26 an ounce to $1,758.39 an ounce by
0753 GMT, but headed for its second week of gains. Gold jumped
to as high as $1,767.40 on Thursday, its strongest since Sept.
22 -- still below a record around $1,920 hit in September.
"It's not all plain sailing in the Aegean," said Nicholas
Trevethan, a senior metals strategist at ANZ Bank in Singapore.
"Direction will depend on the no-confidence vote in Athens.
If Papandreou keeps his mandate, that may well trigger another
round of buying, not only in gold but in other commodities as
well."
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou bowed to cabinet
rebels and agreed to step down and make way for a negotiated
coalition government if his Socialists back him in a confidence
vote on Friday, government sources told Reuters.
In the physical market, jewellers were on the sidelines as
prices stayed near Thursday's highs, but speculators could be
tempted to cash on gold's recent gains. Some dealers expected to
see the arrival of scrap from Indonesia ahead of a religious
holiday on Monday.
"Buying interest has died but we expect some scraps to come
out," said a dealer in Singapore. "I guess prices are still
attractive to sell such as for the Indonesians."
U.S. gold GCcv1 was down 0.28 percent at
$1,760.20 an ounce.
"Whether Greece will break free from the euro zone, we don't
know. I think gold is really supported by the euro zone
(crisis)," said Ronald Leung, director of Lee Cheong Gold
Dealers in Hong Kong.
"I think sentiment is more or less still bullish because of
the Greek problem and the banking sector is also not good.
People are still packing their money into safe-haven assets,"
said Leung, who pegged resistance at $1,800.
Gold jumped to a record in September on worries the debt
crisis in Europe would spread, although gains had been trimmed
by recent a sell-off in equities, which forced investors to cash
in on bullion to cover losses.
The Nikkei rose nearly 2 percent on Friday, as Greece
appeared ready to abandon a proposed referendum that threatened
a plan to contain Europe's debt crisis, but the benchmark still
logged a weekly loss in a week plagued by concerns about Europe.
Investors also turned their attention to the U.S. non-farm
payrolls data later in the day, which could offer clues as to
the whether the U.S. Federal Reserve might launch more stimulus
measures to boost a sagging economy.
Economists expect the U.S. Labor Department to report an
October nonfarm payrolls gain of 95,000, according to a Reuters
poll.
The euro slipped to $1.3798 from late U.S. levels,
after having topped out at $1.3855 on Thursday, near its 55-day
moving average and a 38.2 percent retracement of its steep fall
from its Oct. 27 peak around $1.4250.
In the energy market, Brent crude held steady above $110 on
Friday, after rising more than a $1 in the previous session as
Greece backed away from a referendum and a rate cut by the
European Central Bank raised hopes for an easing of the region's
debt crisis.
