PRECIOUS-Gold slips as robust dollar dents appeal

* Spot gold may fall towards $1,446/oz - technicals
* Dollar hits more than two-year high
* Silver hits lowest since Aug 20 at $16.85/oz
* Holdings at SPDR Gold Trust fell 0.22% on Monday

(Updates prices)
By Eileen Soreng
Oct 1 (Reuters) - Gold prices fell to a near two-month low
on Tuesday, weighed down by a stronger dollar, while hopes of
progress in the U.S.-China trade talks lifted equity markets in
a further hit to bullion's appeal.
Trading was thin in Asian hours as traders in top consumer
China went for a long public holiday.
Spot gold XAU= was 0.8% lower at $1,459.91 per ounce, as
of 0750 GMT, after declining to its lowest since Aug. 6 at
$1,458.50 earlier in the session. U.S. gold futures GCcv1 were
0.4% lower at $1,467.20 per ounce.
The dollar's potential to gain further and some optimism
around a potential trade deal between Washington and Beijing
weighed on gold, said Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist
at CMC Markets.
"We also broke through the $1,480-$1,490 support level and
on a technical basis that in itself is enough to spur further
selling," he said.
The dollar index .DXY against a basket of six major
currencies climbed to a more than two-year high, as investors
waited for September U.S. manufacturing data to determine how
far policymakers will go to bolster growth. USD/
Asian shares ticked up as some investors clung to hopes that
the fourth quarter will bring progress in resolving the
U.S.-China trade war that has cast a shadow over the global
economy. MKTS/GLOB
"Gold is likely to stay volatile ahead of the October trade
talks," said Hareesh V, head of commodity research at Geojit
Financial Services.
Gold prices could head towards the $1,420 level in the near
term if any signs of easing in the Sino-U.S. tensions emerge and
the dollar continues to strengthen, Hareesh added.
Meanwhile, White House trade adviser Peter Navarro dismissed
reports that the Trump administration was considering delisting
Chinese companies from U.S. stock exchanges as "fake news."
China and the United States are due to resume high-level
trade talks next week in Washington. While the dispute over
trade and technology between the world's two largest economies
has intensified, some investors are sticking to hopes of a
compromise.
On the technical front, spot gold may break a support at
$1,462 per ounce and fall towards $1,446, according to Reuters
analyst Wang Tao. Indicative of investor sentiment, holdings at SPDR Gold
Trust GLD , the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded
fund, fell 0.22% to 920.83 tonnes on Monday. Among other precious metals, deficit-hit palladium XPD=
was down 0.2% at $1,671.40 per ounce, having scaled a record
peak of $1,700.71 on Monday.
Platinum XPT= rose 0.1% to $882.96 per ounce. Silver
XAG= was 0.2% lower at $16.96, after hitting its lowest since
Aug. 20 at $16.85 earlier in the session.