Gold little changed above $1,300 as Fed policy meet awaited

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Gold was little changed above $1,300 an ounce on Tuesday, supported by geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and Ukraine, with investors waiting for cues from U.S. jobs data and a Federal Reserve policy meeting this week.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold was flat at $1,304.11 an ounce by 0023 GMT, after slipping 0.3 percent in the previous session. U.S. gold was up $1 at $1,304.30.

* Gold, seen as a safe-haven asset, has benefited from tensions between the West and Russia. U.S. and European leaders agreed on Monday to impose wider sanctions on Russia's financial, defence and energy sectors.

* The new sanctions are aimed at increasing the pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin after a Malaysian airliner was shot down over territory held by pro-Moscow rebels in eastern Ukraine.

* Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned on Monday of a protracted war in Gaza, dashing any hopes of a swift end to the three-week conflict as Palestinian fighters launched an audacious cross-border raid.

* The Federal Reserve will make a statement on Wednesday at the end of its two-day policy meeting, with markets watching for clues as to when the U.S. central bank will begin increasing interest rates.

* Key economic data, including U.S. non-farm payrolls and gross domestic product figures, also comes out this week.

MARKET NEWS

* World stock markets were little changed on Monday while the U.S. dollar traded mostly flat against a basket of major currencies ahead of key U.S. economic reports and events this week.

(Reporting by A. Ananthalakshmi; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)