Gold trades flat; jewellers look for bargains

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Gold futures traded steady on Tuesday in line with global markets, with traders looking for bargains as weddings and festivals neared.

* At 3:51 p.m., the actively traded gold for June delivery on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) was 10 rupees higher at 29,549 rupees per 10 grams.

* Global gold pared early losses, but the metal was under downward pressure after U.S. stocks gained ahead of an earnings season that is expected to show modest growth.

* "Buying is slow after prices jumped on Friday... if gold revisits 29,000, there could be activity looking at weddings," said Haresh Acharya, head of bullion desk, Parker Bullion.

* The wedding season will now begin in India, the world's biggest buyer of gold, and continue till early June. Festivals will also take place during this period.

* India has been trying to curb imports to put a lid on the record-high current account deficit. The federal government raised the import duty on gold, which it called a dead investment, by 50 percent to 6 percent in January.

* Finance Minister P. Chidambaram suggested last week the government was unlikely to raise the import tax on gold further to avoid gold smuggling.

* Silver for May delivery on the MCX was 0.17 percent higher at 51,286 rupees per kilogram.

(Reporting by Siddesh Mayenkar; Editing by Sunil Nair)