Gold rebounded, trimming the worst weekly loss since September, as positive economic data from the U.S. eased demand for the dollar as a haven. Silver, platinum and palladium advanced. Immediate-delivery gold rose for the first day in five, gaining as much as 0.7 percent to $1,580.77 an ounce and trading at $1,579.98 at 8:54 a.m. in Singapore. This week, the metal has lost 7.7 percent, the biggest slump since Sept. 23. February- delivery gold gained 0.3 percent to $1,581.70 on the Comex. The fewest U.S. workers in three years filed claims for jobless benefits last week, according to data issued yesterday, indicating that the world’s largest economy may be strengthening heading into 2012. The dollar fell as much as 0.6 percent yesterday, also weakening as European funding stress eased. “Gold looks to have had a little bounce after the dollar pulled back,� David Lennox, a resource analyst at Fat Prophets in Sydney, said by phone today. “Bullion’s dramatic decline earlier this week means it should now be at a pretty solid base and will have more upside potential.� Gold reached a record $1,921.15 on Sept. 6 as investors sought to diversify away from equities and some currencies amid concerns that economic growth may slow and the euro zone may fragment. Since then, it’s lost 18 percent, nearing the 20 percent drop seen by some investors as defining a bear market. Holdings in exchange-traded products backed by bullion dropped from a record yesterday, losing 0.6 percent to 2,347.51 metric tons, according to Bloomberg data. That was the biggest one-day decline since Aug. 24. Spot silver rose 1 percent to $29.445 an ounce, extending yesterday’s 0.9 percent advance. Spot platinum climbed 0.2 percent to $1,410 an ounce, rising for the first day in five. Palladium gained as much as 0.7 percent to $623.50 an ounce. To contact the reporter on this story: Jason Scott in Melbourne at jscott14@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: James Poole at jpoole4@bloomberg.net

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