SINGAPORE, Nov 3 (Reuters) - Gold languished near a
four-week low on Tuesday as investors bet the Federal Reserve
would hike U.S. rates this year, triggering fund outflows.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold XAU= was little changed at $1,133.65 an ounce
by 0016 GMT, not far from a four-week low of $1,132.35 reached
in the previous session. The metal slid for a fourth consecutive
session on Monday.
* Gold is seeing a sell-off as investors position themselves
for a possible U.S. rate hike this year. Last week, the Fed
firmly put a December rate rise in play, hurting earlier
expectations that the increase could be pushed to next year on
global growth concerns.
* As a non-interest-paying asset, gold demand could take a
hit from higher rates, while the dollar would also be boosted.
* U.S. economic data on Monday was supportive of a rate hike
this year. Manufacturing activity in October hit a 2-1/2-year
low, but a rise in new orders offered hope the United States
might have seen its worst. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N12X114
* Other data showed construction spending rose in September
to the highest in 7-1/2 years, indicating the economy remained
on firmer ground despite signs of consumer spending cooling.
* The rate hike expectations have kept interest in gold
muted as seen in investor flows.
* Holdings in SPDR Gold Trust GLD , the top gold-backed
exchange-traded fund, fell 0.43 percent to 689.28 tonnes on
Monday, the lowest in three weeks.
* Speculators have trimmed bullish bets on gold from an
8-1/2-month high. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N12U2BW
* Technical selling and soft physical demand could also hurt
gold prices.
* CME Group Inc's CME.O online trading platform CME Direct
reopened four hours after it was shut on Monday due to a
technical issue, the latest glitch to hit the world's largest
futures market operator and roil commodity trading. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N12X15J
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MARKET NEWS
* U.S. stocks climbed on Monday after mixed U.S. economic
data and slightly stronger-than-expected German factory activity
helped European stocks, even as weak Chinese data pushed down
Asian markets and crude oil prices. MKTS/GLOB
DATA AHEAD (GMT)
1445 U.S. ISM-New York index Oct
1500 U.S. Factory orders Sep
PRICES AT 0016 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg
Spot gold 1133.65 0.3 0.03
Spot silver 15.39 0 0
Spot platinum 971 -1.5 -0.15
Spot palladium 649 1.5 0.23
Comex gold 1133.6 -2.3 -0.2
Comex silver 15.4 -0.008 -0.05
COMEX gold and silver contracts show the
most active months