SINGAPORE, March 31 (Reuters) - Gold ticked higher on Wednesday after the euro steadied against the dollar but the metal remains prone to selling pressure on macro-economic worries, traders said. FUNDAMENTALS * Spot gold was at $1,104.40 an ounce by 0024 GMT, up $1.90 an ounce from New York's notional close on Tuesday. Bullion has been in a $60 trading range in the past six weeks, indicating indecision among investors. * U.S. gold futures for June delivery barely moved at $1,105.0 ounce after falling on Tuesday due to month-end position squaring and contract rollover. * The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Trust , said its holdings stood at 1,129.823 tonnes as of March 30, unchanged from the previous business day. [GOL/SPDR] MARKET NEWS * The U.S. dollar held on to broad gains on Wednesday while the euro looked increasingly vulnerable as a bout of short-covering appeared to run its course and fiscal worries resurfaced. [USD/] * The euro steadied above $1.34, inching up to $1.3422 from $1.3412 late in New York on Tuesday when it posted a bearish outside trading day against the U.S. dollar. * U.S. crude futures stood a tad higher on Wednesday, heading for a third day of gains, after industry data showed a much smaller-than-expected increase in U.S. crude stockpiles last week. [O/R] * Japan's Nikkei stock average edged up 0.2 percent and hit a fresh 18-month high, buoyed in the wake of data showing signs of stabilisation in the U.S. economy, with consumer confidence rebounding. [.T] DATA EVENTS * The following data is expected on Wednesday - U.S. Mortgage index weekly 1100 GMT - U.S. ADP national employment March 1215 GMT - U.S. USDA monthly global crop planting estimates, quarterly grain stocks 1230 GMT - U.S. ISM New York March 1230 GMT - U.S. Chicago PMI March 1345 GMT - U.S. Factory orders Feb 1400 GMT - U.S. EIA weekly crude, dist, gasoline stocks 1430 GMT RELATED NEWS > US consumer confidence rebounds, home prices rise [nN30150986] > G20 sounds warning note over new bank rules [nLDE62T1X2] > US Jan home prices rise, close to annual gain-S&P [nN30140474] > Greek debt underperforms on supply jitters [nLDE62T0X2] > Fed's Evans worried about US unemployment [nTOE62T076] > OPEC undecided on action if oil breaks $70-$80 [nN30208773] > Airlines climbing out of recession - IATA [nLDE62T0N1] > UK consumer morale slips unexpectedly in March-GFK [nL2635039] > UK pulls out of recession faster than thought [nLDE62T0R2] Precious metals prices at 0024 GMT Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg Turnover Spot Gold 1104.40 1.90 +0.17 0.79 Spot Silver 17.28 0.03 +0.17 2.67 Spot Platinum 1616.50 0.00 +0.00 10.19 Spot Palladium 470.00 3.50 +0.75 15.91 TOCOM Gold 3311.00 -9.00 -0.27 1.60 13638 TOCOM Platinum 4813.00 -4.00 -0.08 9.86 5447 TOCOM Silver 52.10 -0.20 -0.38 0.77 110 TOCOM Palladium 1394.00 0.00 +0.00 19.66 95 Euro/Dollar 1.3422 Dollar/Yen 92.89 TOCOM prices in yen per gram. Spot prices in $ per ounce. (Reporting by Lewa Pardomuan; Editing by Ed Lane)

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