NEW YORK: Spot gold edged up Tuesday as the market consolidated gains a day after hitting a 2012 high and ahead of the all-important September US nonfarm payrolls data due later this week.
Platinum group metals also climbed as the largest US automaker General Motors Co posted a small gain in September US sales and total US auto sales notched a 12 percent increase.
The bullion market took a breather after the metal rose to its highest this year on Monday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke renewed the central bank's pledge made in September to keep monetary stimulus in place even after the economic rebound appears to gain traction.
US gold futures volume was on track to finish below average as the world's top two bullion consumers China and India were absent from trading because of national holidays.
"Although these holidays may mute activity slightly this week, the new quarter and Friday's employment report will be enough for CTAs (commodity trading advisors) and hedge funds to adjust gold positions this week," Carlos Perez-Santalla of brokerage PVM Futures, said in an email to clients.
Spot gold was up 0.2 percent at $1,777.97 an ounce by 12:54 p.m. EDT (1654 GMT). Monday's session high was $1,791.20, its highest since mid-November last year.
US COMEX gold futures were down $2.80 at $1,780.50 an ounce, with open interest eased but hovered near a one-year high as of Monday.
MARKET CAUTION
A high concentration of call options near the current market price of the SPDR Gold Trust suggests some bullion investors are uncertain about gold's outlook ahead of Friday's option expiry and the payrolls report.
Investment demand for gold, as measured by inflows of metal into the world's major gold exchange-traded funds, continued to grow, following an addition of nearly 130,000 ounces of gold into bullion funds including the SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold ETF.
Silver eased 0.3 percent to $34.52 an ounce. Platinum rose 0.9 percent to $1,658.74 an ounce, while palladium gained 1.1 percent to $637 an ounce.
Platinum group metals was supported by the positive US auto sales report as well as supply worries after a series of strikes in South Africa's platinum belt, where most of the world's supply comes from.
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