Gold edges back above $1,200/oz but yield surge caps gains

By Sethuraman N R

BENGALURU (Reuters) - Gold firmed on Thursday as recent weakness tempted some price-sensitive buyers back to the market, but gains were capped by a sharp rise in U.S. Treasury yields, which underpinned the dollar and weighed on stocks.

Spot gold was up 0.3 percent at $1,200.12 an ounce by 1133 GMT, having traded in a narrow range of $34 for more than a month. U.S. gold futures were 0.1 percent higher at $1,203.90 an ounce.

Gold has fallen more than 12 percent since hitting a peak in April, pressured largely by the stronger dollar, which has been boosted by a vibrant U.S. economy, rising interest rates and fears of a global trade war.

Appetite for the metal at lower prices helped gold shrug off a surge in U.S. Treasury yields to their highest since mid-2011, which pulled global bond yields higher on Thursday and supported the dollar near six-week highs. Stocks slipped.

"There is some balance with central banks buying gold quietly and individual investors and hedge funds trying to sell gold," Hussein Sayed, chief market strategist at FXTM.

"Gold is steady around $1,200 levels, which shows that the market is trying to put a floor on price," Sayed said, adding that higher U.S. Treasury bond yields were a negative.

Stronger Treasury yields typically weigh on precious metals, as investors seek assets that earn a return as opposed to gold which earns nothing and costs money to store and insure.

Also weighing on gold, Federal Reserve policymakers on Wednesday used public appearances to signal that gradual U.S. interest rate hikes are on the agenda. The Fed meets twice more this year in November and December to discuss monetary policy.

Higher interest rates also benefit the dollar, which makes assets priced in the U.S. unit more expensive for holders of other currencies.

Strength in the dollar has helped hold gold in a narrow range in recent weeks.

"In a shorter term, this sort of rangebound trend we have seen will continue unless we see a change in the dollar strength," said William Rhind, CEO GraniteShares.

Looking ahead, investors are awaiting U.S. non-farm payrolls numbers due on Friday, with a Reuters survey showing economists on average expect a rise of 185,000 in September after jumping 201,000 in August.

Indicative of the negative investor sentiment, holdings in SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, dropped 0.8 percent on Wednesday, having declined more than 4.5 million ounces since late April.

Among other metals, spot silver was up 0.8 percent at $14.70. Palladium was 0.1 percent higher at $1,056.72, while platinum rose 0.5 percent to $825.80.

(Reporting Nallur Sethuraman and Arpan Varghese in Bengaluru; Editing by Pratima Desai and Jan Harvey in London)