PRECIOUS-Gold hits over six-year peak on risk-off sentiment

* Silver touches over 1-1/2 year high
* SPDR Gold holdings up 0.9% on Monday
* Gold must hold above $1,500/oz to continue bullish
wave-analyst
* Spot gold may test resistance at $1,524/oz-techs

(Updates prices)
By Harshith Aranya
Aug 13 (Reuters) - Gold prices scaled their highest in more
than six years on Tuesday, as concerns around protests in Hong
Kong and an Argentine currency crash amid fears of global
economic slowdown, prompted investors to move away from riskier
assets.
Spot gold XAU= rose 0.7% to $1,521.98 per ounce as of 0715
GMT, its highest since April 2013.
U.S. gold futures GCcv1 rose 1% to $1,533 an ounce.
"It is a pretty straight forward case of risk aversion.
Crisis in Argentina and political deterioration in Hong Kong;
underlying all of this, global growth is slowing," said Ilya
Spivak, senior currency strategist with DailyFx.
"Central banks can only do so much because a lot of them are
at near record low interest rates. There is not a lot of
ammunition to deploy as counter measures to the slowdown in
global growth."
Protesters managed to shut down Hong Kong's airport, the
world's busiest cargo airport, on Monday. The protests, which
started as opposition to an extradition bill to mainland China,
have expanded into wider calls for democracy. On the other side of the globe, fears of a possible return
to interventionist policies gripped the Argentine market after
market-friendly President Mauricio Macri lost by a much
bigger-than-expected margin in presidential primaries.
These uncertainties alongside fears of a drawn out Sino-U.S.
trade war rattled financial markets, spurring investors to
safe-haven assets. MKTS/GLOB
Bullion, along with the Japanese yen and U.S. Treasuries, is
seen as a relatively safe investment in times of political and
financial uncertainty. The yen stood near a seven-month high
against the dollar. USD/
Investors are focused on the Federal Reserve's annual
symposium next week. Traders see a 74% chance of a 25
basis-point rate cut by the Fed this September. FEDWATCH
Lower interest rates decrease the opportunity cost of
holding non-yielding bullion and weigh on the dollar, making
gold cheaper for investors holding other currencies.
"Heightened geopolitical risks from Hong Kong protests
along with global growth concerns remain largely supportive
towards safe haven flows," brokerage Phillip Futures said in a
note.
"Gold prices must hold above $1,500 for an extension of the
bullish wave in the current term."
Reflecting increased investor interest in gold, holdings of
SPDR Gold Trust GLD , the world's largest gold-backed
exchange-traded fund, jumped 0.9% to 847.77 tonnes on Monday
from Friday. GOL/ETF
Spot gold may test a resistance at $1,524 per ounce, a
break above which could lead to a gain to $1,546, said Reuters
technical analyst Wang Tao. Among other precious metals, silver XAG= climbed 1.8% to
$17.36 per ounce. During the session, it hit its highest since
January 2018 at $17.42.
Platinum XPT= rose 1.3% to $863.83 and palladium XPD=
gained 0.7% to $1,437.98 an ounce.

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