PRECIOUS-Gold on track for weekly fall as investors overlook vaccine doubts

(Updates prices)
* Asian shares stall near record highs
* Gold down 3.3% in the week
* Silver set for third straight weekly fall, down 3.8%
* Interactive graphic tracking global spread of coronavirus:
https://tmsnrt.rs/3mvcUoa

By Nakul Iyer
Nov 27 (Reuters) - Gold eased on Friday en route to a third
straight weekly drop as investors weighed doubts over a leading
COVID-19 vaccine candidate against optimism that vaccines will
arrive sooner than expected.
Spot gold XAU= fell 0.1% to $1,808.90 per ounce by 0751
GMT, down 3.3% on the week. U.S. gold futures GCv1 rose 0.1%
to $1,806.80.
Asian shares stalled near record highs as AstraZeneca faced
tricky questions about the success rate of its vaccine that
could hinder speedy U.S. and EU regulatory approvals.
MKTS/GLOB
"For the markets, I don't think that changes the perception
that there's going to be a vaccine sooner than previously
expected," said IG Markets analyst Kyle Rodda.
Investors are starting to buy into the narrative that the
economic recovery is going to gather steam in 2021 and that's
driving them to liquidate gold holdings, Rodda added.
Offering some respite to gold, the dollar weakened on
improving risk appetite from COVID-19 vaccine optimism and hopes
for a smoother transition to a Biden administration. USD/
Gold is trapped in a range of $1,800-$1,820 an ounce, with
risks tilted to the downside by a steepening yield curve and the
weight of accumulated positioning in gold exchange-traded funds,
futures and physical holdings, said Jeffrey Halley, a senior
market analyst at OANDA.
But analysts said gold's longer-term trajectory remained
positive, with bullion still up about 19% this year given its
lure as a hedge against likely inflation and currency debasement
spurred by unprecedented stimulus measures globally. Gold could reach new highs in 2021 as the U.S. Federal
Reserve will likely cap rate rises in the longer end of the
yield curve and the dollar will weaken materially, OANDA's
Halley added.
Lower interest rates reduce the opportunity cost of holding
gold.
Silver XAG= fell 0.9% to $23.23 an ounce. Platinum XPT=
fell 0.8% to $954.53 and palladium XPD= gained 0.3% to
$2,390.06.