PRECIOUS-Gold down 1% and set for worst week in six months as dollar climbs

(Updates prices)
* Gold down nearly 1.5% over the week
* Palladium set for eighth straight weekly gain
* Platinum poised for worst week in two months

By Brijesh Patel
Sept 27 (Reuters) - Gold slipped by 1% to a one-week low on
Friday and was heading for its worst week in six-months as
investors sought safety in the U.S. dollar, lifting the currency
to multi-week highs.
A stronger dollar makes gold costlier for holders of other
currencies.
Spot gold XAU= was down 0.7% at $1,495.02 an ounce by 1256
GMT after touching its lowest since Sept. 19 at $1,490.20. The
metal has retreated by nearly 1.5% over the week.
U.S. gold futures GCv1 dipped 0.8% to $1,502.70 an ounce.
"The main reason gold is down is because the U.S. dollar is
strengthening to its highest level against the euro in more than
two years," said Commerzbank analyst Eugen Weinberg.
"However, we have seen massive exchange-traded fund inflows
into gold in the past few days. This shows people are buying on
dips and we may see further buying with prices now below $1,500
because the outlook for gold is still bullish."
The dollar index .DXY against a basket of rivals climbed
to a three-week peak as heightened risks from political tensions
in the United States strengthened its safe-haven appeal. USD/
A whistleblower report released on Thursday said that U.S.
President Donald Trump abused his position in attempting to
solicit Ukraine's interference in the 2020 U.S. election and
that the White House tried to "lock down" evidence of his
conduct. On the trade front, meanwhile, China's top diplomat said the
country is willing to buy more U.S. products and that trade
talks with the United States would yield results. This came after Trump praised Chinese purchases and said
that a trade deal could come sooner than people thought.
These positive signals on trade lifted European shares,
offseting worries over economic growth and rising political
risks. MKTS/GLOB
"Barring a major shock ... world recession fears that have
central banks running around in circles to ease monetary policy
provide more than enough reason to expect gold prices to resume
their stunning rally of 2019," FXTM analysts said in a note.
Bullion has risen more than 17% this year, mainly driven by
trade tensions and increasingly dovish monetary policy from
central banks.
Among other precious metals, silver XAG= fell 1.4% to
$17.55 an ounce.
Platinum XPT= eased 0.4% to $926.07 and was on track for
its worst week in nearly two months.
Palladium XPD= lost 0.3% to $1,663.12 an ounce but the
auto-catalyst metal was still set for an eighth consecutive
weekly gain.