Gold eases from 3-1/2 month highs

By Lewa Pardomuan

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Gold slipped on Wednesday and came off 3-1/2-month highs hit in the previous session as investors reaped profits and physical buying subsided.

But worries about global economic growth still underpin gold's safe-haven appeal and technical charts indicate the metal is set to rise.

Gold eased 0.1 percent to $1,319.40 an ounce by 0312 GMT. It touched $1,332.10 an ounce on Tuesday, the strongest since October 31, before shedding some of the gains. Bullion has risen around 9 percent so far this year.

"After breaking $1,300, gold has to consolidate before we can charge higher again," said Ronald Leung, chief dealer at Lee Cheong Gold Dealers in Hong Kong.

"Buying is not that aggressive on the physical side. Approaching $1,320, we saw small lots of buying but also encountered some selling," Leung said.

But gold's technical picture has improved after it breached the tough barrier of $1,300, said Leung. "It's slightly bullish from here. Whether it can break $1,350, we have to see," he added.

Premiums for gold bars in Hong Kong were steady at $1.30 to $1.70 an ounce over the spot London prices

Holdings of the largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund(ETF), New York's SPDR Gold Trust, fell 0.63 percent on Friday from Thursday, and the largest silver-backed ETF, New York's iShares Silver Trust, decreased 0.59 percent during the same period.

Net gold demand fell 15 percent in 2013 as huge outflows from physically backed investment funds outweighed record consumer demand but that disinvestment is tailing off this year, the World Gold Council said on Tuesday.

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Gold investors may scrutinise minutes of the U.S. Federal Reserve's January policy meeting when it decided to trim its asset buying by another $10 billion. The minutes are due at 1900

GMT.

Hedge funds and money managers had raised their bets in gold futures and options to a three-month high on signs the Fed will not rush to cut its stimulus, Commodity Futures Trading Commission data showed on Friday.

U.S. gold futures, which often influence movements in cash gold, slipped 0.38 percent to $1,319.40 an ounce.

"Outlook wise, we continue to remain fairly constructive on gold over the short-term, although we have to suspect that the bulk of the price climb is likely behind us," Edward Meir, an analyst at INTL FCStone, said in a report.

In other markets, Asian shares were in hesitant mood on Wednesday as investors keep a wary eye on interest rates in China, though the euro left the dollar in its dust after more soft U.S. economic data.

Precious metals prices 0312 GMT

Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg Volume

Spot Gold 1319.40 -1.59 -0.12 9.50

Spot Silver 21.75 -0.13 -0.59 12.06

Spot Platinum 1417.74 -2.01 -0.14 3.67

Spot Palladium 735.08 1.58 +0.22 3.10

COMEX GOLD APR4 1319.40 -5.00 -0.38 9.79 9731

COMEX SILVER MAR4 21.77 -0.13 +0.00 12.36 5131

Euro/Dollar 1.3761

Dollar/Yen 102.19

COMEX gold and silver contracts show the most active months

(Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)