Gold steady over $1,300 as conflicts spur safe-haven bids

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Gold stabilised near $1,310 an ounce on Tuesday as escalating tensions over conflicts in Ukraine and the Gaza strip dented global risk appetite and burnished the metal's safe-haven appeal.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold > was little changed at $1,311.16 an ounce by 0009 GMT, after ending flat in the previous session.

* The United States, alarmed by escalating civilian bloodshed in an Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip, took a direct role in efforts to secure a ceasefire on Monday, as the Palestinian death toll jumped to more than 500.

* Despite growing calls for a halt to two weeks of fighting, violence raged on. Israel pounded the coastal strip, killing 28 members of a family in one strike, 11 people in an attack on a high-rise building and four in the shelling of a hospital, medics said. [ID:nL6N0PW0PV]

 

* Meanwhile in Ukraine, tensions continued to run high even as the remains of some of the nearly 300 victims of the Malaysia Airlines plane downed over Ukraine were making their way to the Netherlands on Tuesday. [ID:nL2N0PW23C]

* Western governments have threatened Russia with stiffer penalties for what they say is its backing of pro-Russian militia who, their evidence suggests, shot the plane down, killing 298 people.

* Investors sold some positions in bullion after the metal snapped a six-week winning streak last week. SPDR Gold Trust , the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings fell 1.8 tonnes to 803.34 tonnes on Monday. [GOL/ETF]

* Markets are also eyeing upcoming data from the United States, to gauge the strength of the economy and its impact on the Federal Reserve's monetary policy.

* World number-one platinum producer Anglo American Platinum is to sell a swathe of its most labour-intensive South African mines after a five-month strike shattered its hopes of ever making them profitable. [ID:nL6N0PW17G]

* For the top stories on metals and other news, click [TOP/MTL] or [GOL/]

MARKET NEWS

* Major global stock markets fell and bond prices rallied on Monday as worries over conflicts in the Gaza Strip and Ukraine raised uncertainty for investors. [MKTS/GLOB]

DATA/EVENTS (GMT)

1230 U.S. CPI mm Jun >

1230 U.S. CPI yy Jun >

1300 U.S. Monthly home price mm May >

1300 U.S. Monthly home price yy May >

1400 U.S. Existing home sales Jun >

PRICES AT 0009 GMT

Metal Last Change Pct chg

Spot gold 1311.16 -0.43 -0.03

Spot silver 20.88 -0.01 -0.05

Spot platinum 1481.25 -0.35 -0.02

Spot palladium 871.5 -2.5 -0.29

Comex gold 1311.9 -2 -0.15

Comex silver 20.955 -0.057 -0.27

Euro 1.3522

DXY 80.571

COMEX gold and silver contracts show the

most active months

(Reporting by A. Ananthalakshmi; Editing by Richard Pullin)