RTRS:PRECIOUS-Gold heads for 3rd week of gain, Tokyo premiums slip
* Gold to revisit low of $1,307.46 -technicals
* Coming Up: U.S. Existing home sales; 1500 GMT
(Updates prices)
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE, Feb 21 (Reuters) - Gold edged down on Friday,
pressured by a firmer dollar, but was still on track for a third
week of gains as investors eyed a patchy recovery in the global
economy.
Gold has risen more than 9 percent so far this year as
concerns over economic growth have boosted its safe haven
appeal, although prices are still well below the all-time high
of around $1,920 an ounce touched in 2011.
Cash gold eased $3.65 an ounce to $1,318.86 by 0706
GMT, down from a 3-1/2 month high at $1,332.10 hit on Tuesday.
Dealers saw purchases in the physical market this week, but
many jewellers could be waiting for a correction. Premiums for
gold bars were steady in Hong Kong and Singapore, but fell in
Tokyo because of gains in Tokyo gold futures.
"I think $1,330 is pretty much toppish for a while. There's
not much incentive at the moment, except for the dollar
movements," said Yuichi Ikemizu, branch manager for Standard
Bank in Tokyo, who expects gold to trade in a range of $1,300 to
$1,335.
"I think (the price) is a little bit too high for Asians to
buy gold because we've been below $1,300 for a long time and
people bought a lot."
U.S. gold rose $2.30 an ounce to $1,319.20.
Trading was cautious after minutes of the Fed's latest
policy meeting showed several policymakers wanted to keep
cutting monetary stimulus, which could dent gold's appeal as a
hedge against inflation.
A survey showing brisk U.S. manufacturing activity gave
Asian stock markets a lift on Friday and bolstered the dollar,
although underlying concerns about China's economic growth could
keep investors from rushing to buy emerging market assets.
The U.S. dollar index against a basket of currencies rose to
80.30 from a eight-week low of 79.927 hit on Wednesday.
In the physical market, premiums for gold bars in Tokyo
slipped to zero from 30 cents an ounce to the spot London prices
last week. Premiums in Singapore were little changed at $1.20 to
$1.50; Hong Kong premiums were at $1.30 to $1.70.
"The gold price in Japanese yen is basically going up, so at
this moment, we are seeing a bit of selling from the general
public," said a dealer in Tokyo, referring to retail investors.
The most active December gold contract on the Tokyo
Commodity Exchange rose 43 yen a gram to 4,346 yen,
within sight of a five-month high of 4,366 yen hit on Tuesday.
Holdings of the largest gold-backed exchange-traded-fund
(ETF), New York's SPDR Gold Trust GLD dropped 0.7 percent on
Wednesday from Tuesday, and the largest silver-backed
exchange-traded-fund (ETF), New York's iShares Silver Trust SLV
was unaltered during the same period.
