Gold steadies after volatile trade; near four-month high

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Gold was becalmed on Thursday after a roller coaster trade in the previous session, with dealers expecting physical demand to resurface after prices dropped from their strongest level since October last year.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold was little changed at $1,330.00 an ounce by 0031 GMT. On Wednesday, it hit a four-month high at $1,345.35 before falling almost 1 percent on a dollar rally and surging U.S. home sales -- its biggest one-day loss in nearly a month.

* U.S. gold was at $1,330.10 an ounce, up $2.10.

* Sales of new U.S. single-family homes surged to a 5-1/2-year high in January, but the bounce was likely to be short-lived amid signs of a broader weakness in the housing market.

* Holdings of the largest gold-backed exchange-traded-fund (ETF), New York's SPDR Gold Trust GLD increased 0.26 percent on Tuesday from Monday.

* A new burst of investment in commodities after a hellish 2013 is expected to fizzle out in coming months, with investors alert to the fickle nature of rallies across basic resources such as gold and agriculture.

MARKET NEWS

* Asian shares got off to a shaky start on Thursday as emerging markets were rattled by escalating tensions in Ukraine, sending investors scurrying to the safety of the dollar and U.S. Treasuries.

* U.S. crude oil dipped early on Thursday after rising the previous day when the contract was supported by a surprisingly small build in crude inventories.

(Reporting by Lewa Pardomuan; Editing by Michael Perry)