PRECIOUS-Gold prices climb 1% as dollar pulls back from 2-year high

* U.S. home sales, manufacturing stumble
* Dollar eases off 2-year peak
* U.S. 10-year Treasury yields hit lowest since Dec 2017
* Platinum slumps to 3-month low

(Adds comments, updates prices)
By K. Sathya Narayanan
May 23 (Reuters) - Gold prices jumped 1% on Thursday as the
U.S. dollar pulled back from a two-year peak scaled earlier in
the session, and global equities and U.S. Treasury yields slid
on escalating U.S.-China trade tensions.
Spot gold XAU= climbed 0.9% to $1,284.78 per ounce by 2:58
pm EDT (1858 GMT), after rising as much as 1.1% to a one-week
peak of 1,287.23.
U.S. gold futures for June GCcv1 settled up 0.9% at
1,285.40.
"We have seen a sharp reversal in the dollar and that has
helped buoy gold prices," said Suki Cooper, precious metals
analyst at Standard Chartered Bank.
The dollar index .DXY , which earlier touched its highest
level since May 2017 at 98.371, turned negative after data
showed manufacturing activity hit its lowest level in almost a
decade in May. USD/ The dollar was last down 0.2% against key rivals, making
gold cheaper for holders of other currencies.
Sales of new U.S. single-family homes also fell from a near
11-1/2-year high in April. Slowing growth supports the U.S.
central bank's recent decision to suspend its three-year
campaign to hike interest rates. "After the U.S. Federal Reserve said it would remain patient
the market has taken this as a positive cue and has started to
price in the greater probability of a rate cut," Cooper added.
Lower interest rates tend to lift gold as it reduces the
opportunity cost of holding the non-yielding bullion.
Fed officials at their last meeting agreed that their
patient approach to setting monetary policy could remain in
place "for some time," Fed minutes showed on Wednesday.
"Yields are (also) a bit lower and equity markets are down
(supporting gold)," said ABN AMRO analyst Georgette Boele.
U.S. 10-year Treasury yields US10YT=RR dropped to the
lowest since December 2017 as equities around the world took a
nosedive on concerns about the U.S.-China trade spat.
US/ MKTS/GLOB
China said the United States needs to correct its "wrong
actions" for trade talks to continue after it blacklisted
Chinese technology company Huawei Technologies Co Ltd HWT.UL .
"The political uncertainties are helping gold, especially
Brexit. Investors are seeing turmoil everywhere and that is
waking up the asset allocators to gold as another haven besides
dollar," said George Gero, managing director at RBC Wealth
Management. "It's interesting to see gold living with dollar near 98."
Among other precious metals, silver XAG= gaining 1.1% to
$14.60 per ounce, and palladium XPD= edged 0.3% lower to
$1,310.01.
Platinum XPT= fell 0.6% to $794.00 an ounce, having
touched its lowest since Feb. 15 at $791 earlier in the session.