April 8 (Reuters) - Gold prices slipped on Thursday as
investors turned to riskier assets after the U.S. Federal
Reserve's latest meeting minutes indicated continued policy
support and cemented hopes of a quick economic turnaround.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold XAU= inched down 0.03% to $1,736.76 per ounce
at 0149 GMT. U.S. Gold futures GCv1 fell 0.3% to $1,736.50 per
ounce.
* Officials at the Federal Reserve are concerned about the
ongoing risks of the COVID-19 pandemic and are committed to
supporting the economy until its recovery is more stable,
according to minutes of the central bank's most recent policy
meeting released on Wednesday. * Asian equities were on track to mirror Wall Street's
cautious gains, weighing on the metal's safe-haven allure.
MKTS/GLOB
* The U.S. trade deficit surged to a record high in February
helped by massive fiscal stimulus that is expected to put the
country's economy on-track for the fastest growth in nearly four
decades. * U.S. President Joe Biden made a fiery appeal for U.S
companies to foot most of the bill for his $2 trillion-plus
infrastructure plan, but signalled an openness to negotiate over
exactly how much they would have to pay. * Limiting gold's losses, the U.S. dollar traded near more
than two-week troughs versus major peers on Thursday, tracking
Treasury yields lower. USD/ US/
* SPDR Gold Trust GLD , the world's largest gold-backed
exchange-traded fund, said its holdings fell 0.35 tonne to
1,028.69 tonnes on Wednesday from 1,029.04 tonnes on Tuesday.
GOL/ETF
* The National Bank of Hungary (NBH) said it had tripled the
country's gold reserves to 94.5 tonnes, its highest level in
decades. * Silver XAG= fell 0.3% to $25.03 and palladium XPD= was
down 0.2% to $2,617.71. Platinum XPT= rose 0.1% to $1,226.16.
DATA/EVENTS (GMT)
0600 Germany Industrial Orders MM Feb
0645 France Reserve Assets Total March
1230 US Initial Jobless Clm Weekly