FIN: PRECIOUS-Gold flat as stimulus buying fades, euro zone eyed
* Cenbank stimulus gains priced in, technical selling weighs
* Gold to hit record average price in 2012 - Reuters poll
* Palladium suffers as China's monthly auto sales weaken
(Updates throughout; changes byline, previous LONDON)
By Frank Tang
NEW YORK, Oct 10 (Reuters) - Gold traded flat on Wednesday,
as renewed fears about a worsening euro zone debt crisis along
with wider concern about the global economy dampened the metal's
allure as a traditional inflation hedge.
Analysts said that some investors could take profits after
gold had climbed for four consecutive months prior to October.
The failure of recent rallies to break above $1,800 an ounce
also triggered technical pressure.
The metal reached an 11-month high on Friday on hopes that
the Federal Reserve, European Central Bank and other major
central banks would continue pumping money into the global
economy to stimulate growth, which has boosted gold's
inflation-hedge appeal.
"Additional monetary policy easing in the United States and
other countries is no longer fresh news, and so we do not
anticipate further significant buying of gold based on monetary
policy accommodation alone," said James Steel, HSBC's metal
analyst.
Spot gold was down 0.1 percent at $1,762.70 an ounce
by 11:10 a.m. EDT (1510 GMT). Bullion was still within reach to
a 11-month high of $1,795.69, which marked the loftiest price
since November.
U.S. COMEX gold futures for December delivery were 40
cents lower at $1,764.60, with trading volume on track to finish
sharply below average, preliminary Reuters data showed.
Silver, however, climbed 0.6 percent to $34.05 an
ounce, boosted by better industrial-demand outlook as crude oil
and base metals recovered after their recent losses.
Bullion tracked U.S. equities lower, after the International
Monetary Fund on Wednesday urged European policymakers to deepen
the financial and fiscal ties within the euro area to restore
sagging confidence in the global financial system.
Purchases of exchange-traded products (ETPs) reflected
investors' positive outlook for bullion in the long term.
Bullion backed ETPs rose to a record high on Oct 9.
GOLD'S OUTLOOK BRIGHT
A Reuters poll of 27 analysts released Wednesday showed they
remained bullish on bullion in the long term. Analysts
unanimously forecast a record high average price of $1,690.00 an
ounce in 2012, up a touch from an estimate of $1,685.00 at the
end of the second quarter and $1,765 suggested in January.
Analysts expect the metal to book a thirteenth successive
year of gains in 2013, reaching an average price of $1,853.75.
Among platinum group metals that are mostly used as auto
catalytic converters, platinum fell on signs that industrial
unrest in South Africa, home to the largest platinum reserves,
was abating.
Spot platinum was down 0.3 percent on the day at
$1,674.75 per ounce, while palladium was down 0.2 percent
at $651.47 an ounce.
Palladium also fell after data from China showed a
decline in vehicle sales in September versus the year earlier
period, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM)
said on Wednesday.
Prices at 11:10 a.m. EDT (1510 GMT)
LAST NET PCT YTD
CHG CHG CHG
US gold 1764.60 -0.40 0.0% 12.6%
US silver 34.100 0.115 0.3% 22.2%
US platinum 1673.50 -18.10 -1.1% 19.6%
US palladium 653.80 -4.40 -0.7% -0.4%
