PRECIOUS-Gold slips as equities gain; investors eye Fed minutes

* FOMC minutes due at 1800 GMT
* Markets also awaiting Fed's Jackson Hole symposium
* SPDR Gold holdings up by about 17 tonnes so far in August

(Updates prices)
By Sumita Layek and Asha Sistla
Aug 21 (Reuters) - Gold edged lower on Wednesday as equities
gained and investors awaited minutes from the U.S. Federal
Reserve's July meeting for clues on future interest rate cuts.
Spot gold XAU= was down 0.2% at $1,504.00 per ounce at
1:45 p.m. EDT (1745 GMT).
U.S. gold futures GCcv1 settled at $1,515.70.
"(Market participants) are just being cautious ahead of the
FOMC minutes; they're just taking gold off," said Phillip
Streible, senior commodities strategist at RJO Futures.
"There seem to be spouts of optimism as far as the trade
deal and the economy go, and these glimmers of hope are driving
a rally in equities and people are jumping out of safety to take
on risk through equities."
President Donald Trump on Wednesday said the United States
is "doing great with China and other trade deals," while
pressuring the Fed to lower interest rates, saying its policies
were hampering U.S. growth and reducing the country's ability to
compete economically. Minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee's most recent
meeting in July - when the U.S. central bank cut interest rates
for the first time in a decade, by a quarter of a percentage
point - are due at 2 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT).
"If the FOMC doesn't give any indication that they are
considering cutting rates or doing any kind of quantitative
easing, then gold futures will most likely continue to break
down," Streible said
Lower interest rates decrease the opportunity cost of
holding nonyielding bullion and weigh on the dollar, making gold
cheaper for investors holding other currencies.
U.S. stocks rose broadly following upbeat retail earnings,
while U.S. Treasury yields rose as rising stock prices reflected
improving risk sentiment. MKTS/GLOB .N
"Still, the precious metals market bulls should not be too
disappointed in price action so far this week, as it can be
argued gold and silver are showing resilience in the face of
rallying global stock markets this week," Jim Wyckoff, senior
analyst with Kitco Metals, wrote in a note.
Bullion has risen more than $100 since the beginning of
August on concerns over the outlook for the global economy and
the prospect of more U.S. interest rate cuts.
The central bank's annual seminar in Jackson Hole, Wyoming,
later this week is also eagerly awaited, with the major focus on
a scheduled speech by Fed Chair Jerome Powell.
Indicative of sentiment, holdings of the world's largest
gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Trust GLD , have
increased by about 17 tonnes so far this month, and stood at
845.17 tonnes on Tuesday. GOL/ETF
Elsewhere, silver XAG= rose 0.1% to $17.14 per ounce,
while platinum XPT= edged 0.8% higher to $855.00.
Palladium XPD= was down 1.5% at $1,469.14 per ounce.