PRECIOUS-Gold steadies ahead of ECB decision; firm dollar dents appeal

* SPDR Gold holdings down 0.11% on Wednesday
* Spot gold remains neutral in $1,412-$1,427 range - techs
* Platinum tops 2-1/2-month peak; palladium hits 1-week high

(Recasts first paragraph, updates prices)
By Brijesh Patel
July 25 (Reuters) - Gold held steady on Thursday ahead of
European Central Bank's (ECB) policy meeting later in the day,
while a stronger dollar pressured the safe-haven metal.
Spot gold XAU= was flat at $1,425.80 per ounce, as of 0724
GMT.
U.S. gold futures GCv1 were up 0.1% at $1,425.60 an ounce.
"Gold prices have been range-bound. Some money managers are
starting to shut some positions to prepare for the Federal
Reserve meeting, and also the ECB decision coming out today,"
said Benjamin Lu, an analyst at Phillip Futures.
"People like to take in some profits because nobody knows
what is going to happen. Some might capitalise on volatility to
push prices slightly lower and buy back after the dip. Overall,
on the long-term we are still bullish on gold," Lu added.
Weighing down gold prices, the U.S. dollar .DXY was
hovering near a two-month high hit in the previous session. A
stronger dollar makes gold costlier for holders of other
currencies. USD/
Investor focus shifted to the ECB meeting due later in the
day and a widely-expected interest rate-cut from the U.S. Fed
next week, which are expected to dictate the tempo for
currencies and bond yields in coming months.
Lower U.S. interest rates put pressure on the dollar and
bond yields, increasing the appeal of non-yielding bullion.
Further boosting hopes of lower interest rates, a series of
purchasing manager index (PMI) readings in the United States and
Europe on Wednesday came in weaker than expected.
Gold prices have climbed more than 12% or $150, since
touching a 2019 low of $1,265.85 in early May, driven by a
dovish outlook from major central banks, signs the U.S. economy
is losing steam and an escalation in Middle East tensions.
"The gold rally will be vulnerable to the rhetoric of
central banks, as their actions have for the most part been
priced into the asset," Alfonso Esparza, a senior market analyst
at OANDA, said in a note.
Meanwhile, holdings of SPDR Gold Trust GLD , the world's
largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, dropped 0.11% to
822.25 tonnes on Wednesday from Tuesday. GOL/ETF
Spot gold remains neutral in a narrow range of $1,412-$1,427
per ounce, according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.
Silver XAG= fell 0.3% to $16.54 per ounce, after hitting
over a one-year high of $16.64 in the previous session.
Platinum XPT= rose 0.5% to $879.71 an ounce, its highest
since May 7 and palladium XPD= edged 0.1% higher to $1,542,
after touching a one-week high earlier in the session.