SINGAPORE, Mar 8 (Reuters) Gold gained on Thursday on renewed interest from bargain hunters, with investors likely to seek clues to direction from the equities and currency markets in coming days.
A firmer yen also spurred purchases of cash gold from Japanese retail investors, while gains in base metals offered additional support, said dealers.
Spot gold rose to 2.50/653.25 an ounce, from 0.25/650.75 late in New York on Wednesday, when it had gained more than on the back of rising crude oil.
''People are probably still a little cautious about what the future might hold given how volatile every market has been over the past couple of weeks,'' said David Moore, commodity strategist at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia in Sydney.
''I think gold is probably going to remain in the sort of range that we've seen recently in next couple of days. In other words, on the low side it's probably around 0 an ounce.'' ''On the high side, it's possibly up to 5 an ounce or a little bit higher,'' he said.
Gold hit a 9-month high of 9 last Monday before a surging yen and tumbling global stocks forced risk-averse investors to sell gold to cover their losses, sending the price to a six-week low of 2.30 on March 6.
''The recent decline from the highs has put gold in an oversold position and any type of stability in the global market place can spur fresh buying in the precious metal,'' said Pradeep Unni, an analyst at Vision Commodities Services DMC in Dubai.
Benchmark gold futures <0JAU:> for February delivery on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange rose 38 yen per gram to 2,471 yen, reflecting gains in New York's COMEX market.
Global stock markets, as measured by MSCI's world index <.MSCIWD>, remain down almost 5 percent from levels on Feb. 26, just before a sell-off triggered by steep losses for Chinese stocks and jitters about the health of the U.S. economy The dollar slipped to 115.80 yen, hovering near Monday's low of 115.16 yen -- its weakest since early December.
The euro was little changed at.3174 .
Dealers await jobs data on Friday for any signs of weakness that could stoke expectations of an interest rate cut and prompt further dollar selling.
''I see some buying from the Japanese because the yen is stronger, so it's cheaper for them to buy gold but I think the physical side is a bit sluggish at this current level,'' said a dealer in Hong Kong, referring to demand from jewellers.
''The base metal market is pretty firm and it offers help. I think 3 will be a good support in the next couple of days,'' he said.
Shanghai copper futures <0SCF:> rose 2 percent on Thursday after strong gains in London metals in the previous session and confidence returned to world markets.
Silver edged up to .06/13.11 an ounce from .98/13.03 late in New York.
Platinum rose to ,192/1,197 an ounce from ,182/1,186 an ounce. Palladium rose to 6/351 an ounce from 5/348.
REUTERS CS DS1146
A firmer yen also spurred purchases of cash gold from Japanese retail investors, while gains in base metals offered additional support, said dealers.
Spot gold
''People are probably still a little cautious about what the future might hold given how volatile every market has been over the past couple of weeks,'' said David Moore, commodity strategist at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia in Sydney.
''I think gold is probably going to remain in the sort of range that we've seen recently in next couple of days. In other words, on the low side it's probably around 0 an ounce.'' ''On the high side, it's possibly up to 5 an ounce or a little bit higher,'' he said.
Gold hit a 9-month high of 9 last Monday before a surging yen and tumbling global stocks forced risk-averse investors to sell gold to cover their losses, sending the price to a six-week low of 2.30 on March 6.
''The recent decline from the highs has put gold in an oversold position and any type of stability in the global market place can spur fresh buying in the precious metal,'' said Pradeep Unni, an analyst at Vision Commodities Services DMC in Dubai.
Benchmark gold futures <0JAU:> for February delivery on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange rose 38 yen per gram to 2,471 yen, reflecting gains in New York's COMEX market.
Global stock markets, as measured by MSCI's world index <.MSCIWD>, remain down almost 5 percent from levels on Feb. 26, just before a sell-off triggered by steep losses for Chinese stocks and jitters about the health of the U.S. economy The dollar slipped to 115.80 yen
The euro was little changed at
Dealers await jobs data on Friday for any signs of weakness that could stoke expectations of an interest rate cut and prompt further dollar selling.
''I see some buying from the Japanese because the yen is stronger, so it's cheaper for them to buy gold but I think the physical side is a bit sluggish at this current level,'' said a dealer in Hong Kong, referring to demand from jewellers.
''The base metal market is pretty firm and it offers help. I think 3 will be a good support in the next couple of days,'' he said.
Shanghai copper futures <0SCF:> rose 2 percent on Thursday after strong gains in London metals in the previous session and confidence returned to world markets.
Silver
Platinum
REUTERS CS DS1146
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