PRECIOUS-Gold edges up on weaker dollar and U.S. yields

* Benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yields fall below 1.6%
* Dollar drops to near seven-week low
* Spot gold may slide into $1,744-$1,758/oz range -
technicals

(Recasts, adds comment, updates prices)
By Sethuraman N R
April 20 (Reuters) - Gold prices inched higher on Tuesday,
hovering below a seven-week peak hit in the previous session,
bolstered by a pullback in U.S. Treasury yields and a weaker
dollar.
Spot gold XAU= was up 0.1% to $1,770.40 per ounce at 1215
GMT, after hitting $1,789.77 on Monday, its highest since Feb.
25. U.S. gold futures GCv1 climbed 0.1% to $1,772.70 per
ounce.
"The fact that the bond market has seemed to stabilise a
little bit" is helping gold, said StoneX analyst Rhona
O'Connell.
Benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yields US10YT=RR fell
below 1.6%, reducing the opportunity cost of holding
non-yielding bullion. US/
A weaker dollar provided further support to gold. The
dollar index .DXY hit a nearly seven-week low against its
rivals, making gold less expensive for holders of other
currencies. USD/
Gold can still move higher as "there is too much liquidity
in the market and it is going to stay that way for quite some
time, even though we have got the green shoots of recovery
looking quite strong in certain regions," O'Connell added.
Bullion, also considered a hedge against inflation, has
shed over 6% so far this year as higher bond yields have dulled
the appeal of the non-yielding commodity. Bullion rose 25%
last year.
On a technical note, gold's failure to break resistance at
$1,785 may drive it back to a range of $1,744 to $1,758 per
ounce, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said. TECH/C
Global shares edged further back from record highs on
Tuesday as lofty sovereign bond yields and rising global
COVID-19 cases made investors question high equity
valuations. MKTS/GLOB
Silver XAG= gained 0.2% to $25.85 per ounce, palladium
XPD= dropped 2.1% to $2,753.50 and platinum XPT= fell 1.7%,
to $1,185.55.

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