Gold flat ahead of U.S. jobs data

By Sethuraman N R

(Reuters) - Gold prices held in a narrow range on Friday ahead of U.S. jobs data later in the day, with traders looking for any implications for the outlook for U.S. monetary policy over the rest of the year.

Spot gold was little changed at $1,348.66 per ounce by 0758 GMT.

U.S. gold futures were up 0.3 percent at $1,351.60 per ounce.

Traders are looking to the U.S. government's jobs report on Friday. Nonfarm payrolls probably rose by 180,000 jobs in January after increasing 148,000 in December, according to a Reuters survey of economists. The unemployment rate is forecast to be unchanged at a 17-year low of 4.1 percent.

Stronger-than-expected jobs data, lower unemployment and higher wages would signal strength in the economy, and could in turn strengthen the dollar and pressure gold, analysts say.

"All eyes on the non farm payrolls numbers tonight, a figure outside the consensus forecast could rattle the markets where volatility has already crept in over the last week or so," MKS PAMP Group trader Tim Brown said.

The U.S. Federal Reserve held interest rates unchanged on Wednesday but raised its inflation outlook and flagged "further gradual" rate increases.

"The rate hikes seem to be doing little to dampen the relative resilience on display in gold," said INTL FCStone analyst Edward Meir.

Spot gold is expected to rise to $1,357 per ounce, as it has broken above resistance at $1,347, according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.

The dollar nursed losses against a basket of currencies on Friday and was on track for a weekly fall as investors focused on renewed economic strength in the eurozone.

"Funds have been buying gold, while short interest remains low ... The gold chart continues to look bullish with prices well placed to break out of a multi-year base," ScotiaMocatta analysts said in a note.

Silver fell 0.1 percent to $17.22 an ounce.

Platinum dropped 0.1 percent to $1,005, while palladium rose 0.4 percent at $1,040.99.

Palladium fell to its lowest since Dec. 18 at $1,013.72 on Thursday and is on track to its worst weekly fall since the week-ending Sept. 8, 2017. Prices are down 4.6 percent this week. It touched a record high at $1,138 on Jan. 15.

(Reporting by Nallur Sethuraman in Bengaluru; Editing by Joseph Radford and Amrutha Gayathri)