PRECIOUS-Gold dips on profit-taking, but holds above $1,500 on growth woes

* 10-yr Treasury yields drop under 2-yr yield first time in
12 yrs
* SPDR Gold holdings jumped 0.9% on Wednesday
* U.S. retail sales data expected at 1230 GMT

(Recasts, adds comment, details and updates prices)
By Brijesh Patel
Aug 15 (Reuters) - Gold prices edged lower on Thursday as
investors locked in profits, after the bullion gained nearly 1%
in the previous session on safe-haven buying amid concerns that
an historic drop in long-term U.S. bond yields could portend a
global recession.
Spot gold XAU= was down 0.2% at $1,512.45 per ounce, as of
0732 GMT. U.S. gold futures GCcv1 slipped 0.3% to $1,523.
"We are seeing flight to safety, market confidence is a bit
shaky. We have been seeing that the economy is showing signs of
weakness and it is starting to slow in the second half of this
year, which is supportive for gold," said Benjamin Lu, analyst,
Phillip Futures.
"On the flip side, gold's bull run is going on for sometime,
we are afraid in the short-term there might be some pullback,
corrections and people locking in profits, which might create
volatility in coming days."
The U.S. yield curve was inverted for a second straight
trading session on Thursday. The yield curve inversion, which
has historically signalled a looming recession, triggered an
extensive flight to safety. US/
Fears of a global recession gripped financial markets around
the world as stocks slumped to more than two-month lows on
Thursday, tracking a Wall Street slide. MKTS/GLOB
"We have continued safe-haven buying with stock markets
looking pretty wobbly ahead of U.S. retail sales data," OANDA
analyst Jeffrey Halley said.
"The U.S. is the last man standing among Europe and China.
We could see an outsized reaction overnight if data comes in
ugly, which should help gold again."
Economic data from China and Germany suggested a faltering
global economy, hit by the worsening U.S.-China trade war,
Brexit and geopolitical tensions. Gold, which pays no interest of its own, is often used as a
hedge against political and financial risks.
Markets are anticipating U.S. retail sales data due later in
the day, which could serve as an indicator of the strength of
the world's largest economy.
On the trade front, senior U.S. officials said on Wednesday
that China has made no trade concessions after the United States
delayed tariffs on some Chinese imports, the latest sign that
the trade saga is going nowhere. Investors are focused on the Federal Reserve's annual
symposium next week. Traders see a 66.3% chance of a 25
basis-point rate cut by the Fed this September. FEDWATCH
Lower U.S. interest rates put pressure on the dollar and
bond yields, increasing the appeal of non-yielding bullion.
Holdings of SPDR Gold Trust GLD , the world's largest
gold-backed exchange-traded fund, rose 0.9% to 844.29 tonnes on
Wednesday. GOL/ETF
Among other precious metals, silver XAG= dipped 0.4% to
$17.15 per ounce.
Platinum XPT= gained 0.1% to $841.50 an ounce and
palladium XPD= climbed 0.6% to $1,432.64.