Gold flat as dollar inches up against yen

BENGALURU (Reuters) - Gold prices held steady on Tuesday after three days of falls, as the dollar rose to a near two-week high against the yen after strong U.S. economic data sparked expectations of more U.S. interest rate hikes.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold was nearly unchanged at $1,291.40 per ounce by 0112 GMT.

* U.S. gold futures for August delivery were down 0.2 percent at $1,295.40 per ounce.

* The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was up 0.1 percent at 94.063. The U.S. dollar rose to 109.99 yen, the highest since May 24. [USD/]

* U.S. Treasury yields rose on Monday with the 10-year yield hitting one-week highs as investors pared safe-haven holdings of lower-risk government debt due to fading fears about political turmoil in Italy and Spain.

* China's door to talks is open in principle, the country's Foreign Ministry said on Monday, a day after Beijing warned that any trade and business deals reached with Washington would be void if the United States implemented tariffs.

* The White House said on Monday its policy of tough sanctions on North Korea has not changed, days after U.S. President Donald Trump said he no longer wanted to use the phrase "maximum pressure" to describe the campaign to press North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons.

* Prime Minister Justin Trudeau this week plays host to a summit of the Group of Seven leading industrialized nations with six of the seven members outraged at the United States over a slew of recent moves by President Donald Trump.

* Canada's government vowed on Monday to do all it could to protect its steel and aluminum sectors from U.S. tariffs but sidestepped an industry call to strike back quickly, saying it needed time to study the issue.

* Investor morale in the euro zone deteriorated for the fifth month in a row in June to its lowest level since October 2016.

* Five illegal gold miners in the Indonesian province of North Sulawesi died after the mine they were working in collapsed and buried them during heavy rain on Sunday afternoon, Indonesia's Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) said.

DATA AHEAD (GMT)

0145 China Caixin services PMI May

0645 France Budget balance April

0750 France Markit services PMI May

0755 Germany Markit services PMI May

0800 Euro zone Markit services PMI final May

0900 Euro zone Retail sales April

1400 U.S. ISM non-manufacturing PMI May

(Reporting by Karen Rodrigues in Bengaluru; editing by Richard Pullin)