PRECIOUS-Gold dips on strong equities; trade jitters, U.S. unrest limit losses

* SPDR Gold Trust holdings rose on Monday to a fresh 7-year
high
* Trump vows to use U.S. military to halt protests in
America
* For an interactive graphic tracking the global coronavirus
spread, open https://tmsnrt.rs/3aIRuz7 in an external browser

(Updates prices)
By K. Sathya Narayanan
June 2 (Reuters) - Gold eased on Tuesday, weighed down by
gains in stock markets, but concerns over civil unrest in U.S.
cities and growing tensions between Washington and Beijing
limited the decline.
Spot gold XAU= was down 0.1% at $1,738.24 per ounce by
1152 GMT, having gained as much as 1% on Monday to hit its
highest since May 21. U.S. gold futures GCv1 were steady at
$1,750.90.
"The U.S.-China tensions support (gold) because of the
safe-haven demand but there are also concerns about a second
wave of the coronavirus," Bank of China International analyst
Xiao Fu said, adding investors were also worried about unrest in
U.S. cities and whether it would come under control.
"Gold is now range bound ... The equity market rally has
been capping further gains in gold," Fu added.
World stocks climbed towards three-month highs as the global
coronavirus recovery effort won out over the trade tensions and
the unrest in the United States. MKTS/GLOB
Concerns about deteriorating Sino-U.S. relations increased
after reports of an order from China's government to halt U.S.
soybean purchases. Bullion, which is widely viewed as a safe-haven investment
during times of political and financial uncertainty, got further
support after U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to use the
military to halt the violent protests in U.S. cities.
Meanwhile, in a sign that the worst of the economic downturn
from the coronavirus pandemic might be over, U.S. manufacturing
activity edged up from an 11-year low, and China's factory
activity unexpectedly returned to growth in May. Reflecting investor sentiment, holdings in the world's
largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Trust GLD ,
rose 0.5% to 1,128.40 tonnes on Monday, the highest in seven
years. GOL/ETF
Elsewhere, palladium XPD= climbed 0.4% to $1,968.73 per
ounce, while platinum XPT= dipped 0.3% to $844.91. Silver
XAG= was 0.3% lower at $18.21.