PRECIOUS-Gold gains as COVID-19 cases fuel stimulus expectations

(Updates prices)
* Germany, Netherlands and London impose pandemic
restrictions
* President-elect Joe Biden wins Electoral College vote
* Dollar hovers near a two-and-a-half-year low
* Interactive graphic tracking global spread of coronavirus:
open
* https://tmsnrt.rs/3aIRuz7 in an external browser

By Asha Sistla
Dec 15 (Reuters) - Gold gained 1% on Tuesday, driven by
market expectations of additional monetary and fiscal stimulus
as climbing COVID-19 cases prompted fresh global restrictions
with focus also turning to the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy
meeting.
Spot gold XAU= was up 0.9% to $1,844.10 per ounce by 1255
GMT, while U.S. gold futures GCv1 rose 0.9% to $1,848.70.
"It is pretty dire in Europe, Asia, South Korea, Japan and
the U.S., driving some stimulus expectations and giving (gold) a
bit of push," Saxo Bank analyst Ole Hansen said.
Investors look forward to policy meetings of the U.S. Fed
starting on Tuesday and the Bank of England on Thursday.
"It is pre-FOMC positioning but we're seeing liquidity start
to dry up and that means any changes in the flow of news and
data can have an oversized impact as the market winds down ahead
of Christmas and New Year."
Surging coronavirus cases prompted lockdowns in the
Netherlands, Germany, London and New York, underlining the
economic impact of the pandemic. U.S. dollar held close to multi-year lows as investor hopes
of a U.S. fiscal stimulus got a boost as President-elect Joe
Biden won the Electoral College vote and U.S. lawmakers were
positive about clinching a fiscal stimulus deal. USD/
"Without a new aid package, the recovery of the U.S. economy
is likely to falter. Market participants expect greater clarity
regarding future bond purchases (from the Fed)," Commerzbank
analyst Daniel Briesemann said in a note.
Silver XAG= jumped 1.8% to $24.25 an ounce, platinum
XPT= rose 1.4% to $1,021.18 and palladium XPD= gained 1.7%
to $2,330.22.