(Reuters) - Gold prices crawled up early Thursday, supported by a softer dollar and weaker Asian equities.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold > edged up 0.2 percent to $1,144.36 an ounce by 0044 GMT. Gold has risen about 8 percent so far this year despite an 8 percent drop in November.
* U.S. gold futures
* The dollar index <.DXY>, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies, eased 0.2 percent at 103.13.
* The dollar sagged against the yen early on Thursday as U.S. yields dropped overnight to two-week lows, but the greenback managed to hold steady against the euro and pound. [USD/]
* Asian shares slipped on Thursday after Wall Street suffered a mild setback after weeks of gains. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan <.MIAPJ0000PUS> was off a slight 0.1 percent. [MKTS/GLOB]
* Contracts to buy previously owned U.S. homes fell in November to their lowest level in nearly a year, a sign rising interest rates could be weighing on the housing market, the National Association of Realtors said on Wednesday.
* Shanghai Gold Exchange, the world's biggest physical bullion exchange, said on Wednesday it will curb the amount of gold investors can trade at one time, a move analysts said would limit institutional investors' influence on prices.
(Reporting by Swati Verma in Bengaluru; Editing by Amrutha Gayathri)
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