Gold holds near two-month high as equities retreat

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Gold held steady near its highest level in two months on Wednesday, supported by a drop in equities and high oil prices, while silver edged back from a 3-month peak.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Gold was little changed at $1,318.04 an ounce by 0000 GMT after rising to $1,325.90 on Tuesday, its strongest since April 15.

* U.S. gold was at $1,318.80 an ounce, down $2.50.

* Silver, which often tracks gold, dipped to $20.86 an ounce. It had rallied to $21.14 an ounce on Tuesday, its highest since March 18.

* Singapore is set to announce the launch of a gold futures contract on Wednesday, two sources familiar with the matter said, joining a race in Asia to provide a viable alternative to the metal's global benchmark which is under regulatory scrutiny.

* The world's three biggest platinum firms signed a wage deal with South Africa's AMCU union on Tuesday but said that fallout from a five-month strike made job cuts and restructuring inevitable, setting the scene for more labour turmoil.

MARKET NEWS

* U.S. stocks ended lower on Tuesday as worries about Iraq drove profit-taking, after encouraging economic data earlier drove shares to another record high, while sterling tumbled on doubts whether the Bank of England would allow an interest rate hike soon. [MKTS/GLOB]

* The U.S. dollar edged higher on Tuesday after stronger-than-expected U.S. housing and consumer confidence data increased expectations of a more hawkish tone from the Federal Reserve.

* Brent crude held above $114 a barrel on Tuesday, supported by continued fighting in Iraq, supply disruptions in Libya and expectations of a decline in U.S. crude inventories, while U.S. crude prices dipped slightly.

(Reporting by Lewa Pardomuan; Editing by Richard Pullin)