SINGAPORE: Gold edged up on Wednesday as the euro steadied against the US dollar, while platinum extended gains to its highest in three weeks on expectations that demand could exceed supply this year due to falling output in South Africa. Concerns about a potential US fiscal crisis could lift gold's safe-haven appeal, but worries about the impact on global demand from delays in aid for debt-burdened Greece will keep prices in check. Gold had risen $3.25 to $1,728.14 an ounce by 0658 GMT but was still below a 3-week peak around $1,738 struck on Friday. Bullion hit a record of about $1,920 in 2011, when investors turned to the metal as a safe haven as Europe's debt crisis gathered steam. "The next important factor for the market is going to be Obama's address. The market wants a sense of how the US is going to proceed in terms of the fiscal cliff," said Nick Trevethan, senior metals strategist at ANZ in Singapore. President Barack Obama is scheduled to hold a news conference on Wednesday when he will be questioned about negotiations on the "fiscal cliff" - a convergence of urgent tax and spending issues that could plunge the economy into another recession, if mishandled. US gold futures for December added $3.80 an ounce to $1,728.60. PLATINUM DEFICIT EXPECTED Platinum climbed to $1,597.50, its strongest since Oct. 23, and was at $1,590.30 an ounce by 0658 GMT. Sister metal palladium marked its strongest since Oct. 18 at $647.22. Supply outages in South Africa are set to push the platinum market into deficit this year as shipments from the world's main producer of the metal fall by the equivalent of more than a month's demand, refiner Johnson Matthey said on Tuesday. "That assessment is in line with our own modelling in which we expect a deficit of around 1.95 million ounces this year, most of which will need to be met by increased scrap supply given the winding down of Russian stockpile sales," said ANZ's Trevethan. The bulk of the world's platinum is used by automakers in autocatalyst systems that scrub exhaust fumes of dangerous and environmentally damaging chemicals. In other markets, shares inched up and the euro steadied on Wednesday, but investors were still worried about the United States' looming "fiscal cliff" and the euro zone's intractable crisis. A weaker dollar makes commodities priced in the greenback more appealing to holders of other currencies. The physical market lacked activity, with premiums unchanged in Tokyo at 25 cents below the spot price in London to on par. "There's limited selling by the general public, while on the other hand, sale volumes are also small," said a dealer in Tokyo, adding that investors could be waiting for gold prices to slip back to $1,700 before returning to the market. Participants in an annual gathering of the London Bullion Metal Association on Tuesday expected gold to reach $1,843 an ounce by the time of the next conference in September 2013, and forecast silver to reach $38.40.

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