By Arpan Mukherjee Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES WELLINGTON (Dow Jones)--Gold was under pressure amid thin trading in the Asian session Thursday, with investors still worried over persistent uncertainty around the euro-zone's sovereign debt problems. Traders said the yellow metal will likely remain trapped in a band ahead of the year-end, adding that downbeat news from Europe could still pose significant downside risks. At 0525 GMT, spot gold was at $1,607.80 a troy ounce, down $7.20 from its previous close. Hong Kong-based Wing Fung Precious Metals Director Peter Fung said there has been some selling pressure in gold and physical demand weak. "Below $1,600/oz, there could be good physical buying," Fung said, adding that most investors have closed positions ahead of the year-end holidays. He expects gold to trade between $1,600/oz and $1,650/oz until the end of the year. Gold rallied overnight to $1,641.75/oz, the highest in almost a week, following news that the European Central Bank had decided to provide EUR489 billion in low-interest loans. But with 523 financial institutions opting for the loans, compared with 100 in a similar previous move, there are deeper concerns about the region's debt crisis. "I think this is just a stop-gap measure...there could be many more steps before this 2-year old crisis is resolved," Phillip Futures Investment Analyst Ong Yi Ling said. Though gold has posted considerable losses over the past few weeks, its nominal price remains elevated relative to history, suggesting that it continues to benefit from investor fears about a potential European credit crisis, National Australia Bank Economist Alexandra Knight said in a note. "Overall, we expect the price of gold to continue to be influenced by volatility in financial markets in the near term, and while the price may trend lower, it should remain elevated relative to history," Knight noted. In silver, bullion refiner MKS Finance said in a note that "pressure feels heavier on the grey metal as it struggles to back above $30/oz." At 0525 GMT, spot silver was at $29.07/oz, down 25 cents, while both platinum and palladium were down $8 at $1,417/oz, and $624/oz, respectively. Standard Bank analyst Marc Ground said in a note that the latest Swiss customs data on platinum group of metals indicate weak industrial demand. "We continue to look at platinum and palladium from a cost-push perspective rather than demand-pull perspective. We believe that platinum and palladium [prices], from a cost-of-production perspective, are too low." -By Arpan Mukherjee, Dow Jones Newswires; 64-4-471-5990; arpan.mukherjee@dowjones.com

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