SINGAPORE, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Gold eased for a second
straight session on Monday as the dollar edged higher, but the
metal remained underpinned above $1,200 an ounce as caution in
financial markets prompted investors to channel money into
bullion.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold XAU= had fallen 0.3 percent to $1,223.70 an
ounce by 0035 GMT, after declining 0.3 percent on Friday.
* The metal jumped to its highest in a year earlier this
month on turmoil in the stock markets and concerns over the
global economy, but posted small losses last week on profit
taking and as equities consolidated.
* Bullion was hurt early on Monday by the strength in the
dollar, which rose against a basket of major currencies as
sterling slid on growing concerns that Britain would quit the
European Union. USD/
* Gold, however, remains one of the best performing asset of
the year with gains of 15 percent as global uncertainties
linger.
* Asian share markets got off to a cautious start on Monday
as investors await a rush of February industry surveys to take
the pulse of the global economy. MKTS/GLOB
* A busy week for data culminates with a Group of 20 meeting
that offer leaders a chance to soothe market concerns with talk
of coordination, even if it produces nothing concrete.
* Data on Friday showed that rising rents and healthcare
costs lifted underlying U.S. consumer price inflation in January
by the most in nearly 4-1/2 years, providing support for the
view that the Federal Reserve could gradually raise interest
rates this year as forecast.
* Investor optimism in gold was evident in flows.
* SPDR Gold Trust GLD , the world's largest gold-backed
exchange-traded fund, said its holdings rose 2.71 percent to
732.96 tonnes on Friday, the biggest single day inflow since
August 2011.
* Hedge funds and money managers hiked their bullish bet in
COMEX gold futures and options to a near four-month high in the
week to Feb. 16, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data
showed on Friday.
* Equity funds posted their longest run of outflows since
2008 in the last week, edging closer to "capitulation" levels as
risk-off redemptions accelerated, Bank of America Merrill Lynch (N:BAC)
said on Friday, adding that investors shovelled $3.2 billion
into gold, the biggest two-week gold inflow since May 2010.
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TOP/MTL or GOL
DATA AHEAD (GMT)
0830 Germany Markit manufacturing flash PMI Feb
0900 Euro zone Markit manufacturing flash PMI Feb
1330 U.S. National activity index Jan
1445 U.S. Markit manufacturing flash PMI Feb
PRICES AT 0035 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg
Spot gold 1223.7 -4.11 -0.33
Spot silver 15.313 -0.017 -0.11
Spot platinum 931.99 -6.71 -0.71
Spot palladium 499.1 0.1 0.02
Comex gold 1224.8 -6 -0.49
Comex silver 15.33 -0.043 -0.28
COMEX gold and silver contracts show the
most active months