PRECIOUS-Gold eases as dollar holds near multi-month high
* Silver matches its lowest since Jan. 21, 2016
* GRAPHIC-Gold/silver ratio:
* SPDR Gold Trust holdings fell on Tuesday (Updates prices)By Sumita LayekNov 14 (Reuters) - Gold prices fell on Wednesday as thedollar held near a multi-month high buoyed by interest frominvestors seeking cover from sliding stocks and by prospects forhigher U.S. interest rates.Spot gold was down 0.1 percent at $1,201.08 per ounceat 1251 GMT. Prices had slipped to their lowest since Oct. 11 at$1,195.90 in the previous session.U.S. gold futures were flat at $1,201.4 per ounce."The continuing dollar strength is weighing on gold. Whatpeople are doing is selling everything to buy the dollar andthat includes gold," said Alasdair Macleod, head of research atGoldMoney.com.The dollar index , a gauge of its value versus majorcurrencies, was firm near a 16-month high, after retracingslightly earlier in the session as investors took profits
prompted by gains in the euro and sterling on growing confidenceabout a draft Brexit deal.The British cabinet will meet at 1400 GMT to consider thewithdrawal agreement. Meanwhile, stocks fell on worries about a slowdown in globaleconomic growth. Gold, usually considered a safe investment during times ofpolitical or economic uncertainty, has fallen about 12 percentfrom a peak in April as investors flocked to the dollar instead,with U.S.-China trade friction unfolding against a background ofhigher U.S. interest rates.Market participants will also be keeping an eye on FederalReserve Chairman Jerome Powell's appearance in the FederalReserve Bank of Dallas Global Perspective Speaker Series at 2300GMT for clues on the U.S. monetary policy outlook.The dollar has benefited over the last week fromexpectations of further U.S. rate hikes."Gold is likely to be range bound for the reminder of theyear ... a sustained rally doesn't appear to be the emphasis,"said Capital Economics analyst Ross Strachan.Spot gold may bounce to $1,211 per ounce, as it has found asupport around $1,195, said Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao. Meanwhile, holdings of the world's largest gold-backedexchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Trust , fell 0.11 percentto 761.16 tonnes on Tuesday. The holdings, however, remainednear their highest level in more than two months. Among other precious metals, silver was unchanged at$13.98 per ounce, having matched its lowest since Jan. 21, 2016,at $13.85."Silver tends to be a more volatile mover than gold, so whengold gets down, silver gets down even faster," GoldMoney.com'sMacleod said.Palladium fell 0.1 percent to $1,109.20 per ounce,while platinum was down 0.8 percent at $828.50 an ounce. (Reporting by Sumita Layek and Arpan Varghese in Bengaluru;editing by Mark Potter and Jason Neely)
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