MUMBAI (Reuters) - India gold futures were flat on Friday as support from rising crude oil was offset by a strong rupee locally, with investors awaiting U.S. GDP data due later in the day for direction, analysts said.
The most-active August contract was 0.05 percent lower at 14,702 rupees per 10 grams at 11:40 a.m.
Oil extended gains well above $67 a barrel, after a 5.7 percent jump in the previous session on U.S. data and earnings which renewed hopes of an economic recovery and drove up equity and commodities markets. Gold is considered as a safe hedge against inflation.
The Indian rupee strengthened as a firm start in the sharemarket raised expectations for more capital inflows, and weakness in the dollar versus majors overseas also underpinned sentiment. A strong rupee makes the dollar quoted asset cheaper.
A Reuters poll of economists gave a median forecast of a 1.5 percent contraction in the U.S. economy in the second quarter.
Gold may be very range-bound and may hover between 14,500-14,900 rupees, said Vikas Vaid, assiatant vice-president with Asit C. Mehta Commodity Services.
Gold may trade in the range of 14,650-14,820 rupees, said Aditya Agarwal, a technical analyst with Way 2 Wealth Securities.
Open interest for August gold on MCX was at 5,658 lots, down from 5,825 a day earlier. Volume on Thursday was 17.89 kg.
