PRECIOUS-Gold slips off 1-month peak amid optimism on U.S.-China trade concerns

* Gold may test resistance at $1,307/oz- technicals
* SPDR Gold holdings sees best one-day gain in nearly 2
months
* Investors also eye U.S.-Iran developments- analyst

(Updates prices)
By Brijesh Patel
May 14 (Reuters) - Gold retreated slightly from a one-month
high on Tuesday as equity markets enjoyed some respite after the
United States and China adopted a more optimistic tone on their
trade dispute.
Spot gold XAU= was down 0.1% at $1,298.31 per ounce as of
1153 GMT, after hitting $1,303.26 in the session, its highest
since April 11.
U.S. gold futures GCcv1 were down 0.2% at $1,299.30 an
ounce.
"The most recent noise around the trade tensions has been
settling a little bit," said Julius Baer analyst Carsten Menke.
"We're hearing voices out of the U.S. that the talks are
going to continue and (also) see a little bit of recovery in
equities. So it's not all as negative as it had been in the past
few days and that's the reason gold is consolidating."
On Monday, the metal rose 1.1% to mark its biggest one-day
percentage rise since Feb. 19 after China announced it would
impose higher tariffs on a range of U.S. goods, which followed
Washington's decision last week to hike its own levies on $200
billion in Chinese imports. However, both nations have since put on a slightly more
optimistic stance, agreeing to keep negotiations going to end
the prolonged trade war that has rattled financial markets.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he thought recent
discussions in Beijing would be successful and that he was
optimistic about resolving the trade spat. The optimistic comments brought some comfort to the equity
markets, a day after their worst selloff this year. MKTS/GLOB
Besides trade worries, gold investors were also keeping tabs
on escalating tensions between the United States and Iran after
Saudi Arabia said on Monday that two of its oil tankers were
among those attacked off the coast of the United Arab Emirates.
"The Middle East escalation news brings us a step closer to
a significant U.S. military reprisal. Fears that China will
weaponise U.S. Treasuries in trade war retaliation is scaring
the daylights out of markets even if it is unlikely," said
Stephen Innes, head of trading and market strategy at SPI Asset
Management.
Rise in investor interest in bullion was also evident after
holdings of SPDR Gold Trust GLD , the world's largest
gold-backed exchange-traded fund, rose 0.44% on Monday, its
biggest one-day rise in nearly two months.
On the technical front, spot gold may test a resistance at
$1,307 per ounce, a break above which could lead to a gain to
$1,322, according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.
Among other precious metals, silver XAG= was up 0.2% at
$14.79 per ounce.
Platinum XPT= rose 1% to $861.70 an ounce, while palladium
XPD= climbed 0.9% to $1,333.35.