* Dollar eases off two-week peak
* Palladium slips from record highs
* BoE slows bond-buying, raises growth outlook
(Adds comment, details and updates prices)
By Sethuraman N R
May 6 (Reuters) - Gold rose for a second straight session on
Thursday after the dollar retreated, as investors awaited U.S.
economic data to gauge the Federal Reserve's strategy on
monetary support going forward.
Spot gold XAU= gained 0.5% at $1,794.80 per ounce by 1227
GMT. U.S. gold futures GCv1 rose 0.7% to $1,795.90.
"Market is pricing in a 'more distant' probability of a Fed
rate hike after clarifications on Treasury Secretary Janet
Yellen's remarks," said Quantitative Commodity Research Analyst
Peter Fertig.
Yellen said on Tuesday she saw no inflation problem brewing,
downplaying earlier comments that rate increases may be needed
to stop the economy overheating. "That has been supportive for gold, with yields on long-term
government bonds declining again and the dollar weakening,"
Fertig added.
Focus now shifts to Friday's U.S. monthly jobs report, which
is expected to show non-farm payrolls increased by 978,000 last
month. Gold also largely held its course after the Bank of England
said it would slow the pace of its bond-buying as it sharply
increased its forecast for Britain's economic growth this year.
However, the central bank stressed it was not tightening
monetary policy. On the technical front, a clear break above the $1,800 level
would open space for further recoveries in gold, Carlo Alberto
De Casa, chief analyst at ActivTrades said in a note.
Benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury yields US10YT=RR were
subdued below 1.6%, reducing the opportunity cost of holding
non-interest bearing gold. US/
The dollar index .DXY fell 0.3%, moving further away from
a near two-week high hit on Wednesday. USD/
Meanwhile, palladium XPD= fell 1.2% to $2,938.46, after
scaling an all-time high of $3,017.18 on Tuesday due to a supply
shortage.
Silver XAG= was up about 1% at $26.79 per ounce, while
platinum XPT= dipped 1.3% to $1,240.65.
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