Oct 25 (Reuters) - Gold rose to a fresh two-week high on
Friday, as weak U.S. economic data spurred expectations for
another interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve later this
month.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold XAU= hit its highest since Oct. 10 at
$1,504.35 and was slightly down at $1,501.67 per ounce, as of
0117 GMT. For the week, the metal has gained 0.8% so far. U.S.
gold futures GCcv1 were flat at $1,504.40 per ounce on Friday.
* New orders for key U.S.-made capital goods fell more than
expected in September and shipments also declined, a sign that
business investment remains soft amid the fallout from the
U.S.-China trade war but other data on Thursday showed the spat
has yet to have much effect on the overall jobs market.
* The U.S. Federal Reserve has cut interest rates twice this
year and investors currently see another reduction in borrowing
costs when policymakers meet next week as the economy struggles
with the headwinds from a long-drawn U.S.-China trade war and
slowing global growth.
* Federal fund futures imply that traders see a 90.4% chance
for a 25 basis point rate cut by the U.S. central bank in its
month-end monetary policy meeting. FEDWATCH
* The non-yielding bullion is often seen as a safer
investment during times of political and financial uncertainty.
* In Europe, Prime Minister Boris Johnson called on Thursday
for a general election on Dec. 12 to break Britain's Brexit
impasse, conceding for the first time he will not meet his "do
or die" deadline to leave the European Union next week.
* Asian shares inched up on Friday, tracking small gains in
the global markets as positive earnings helped to offset
economic growth concerns, while sterling weakened as the
prospect of a UK election added fresh uncertainty to Brexit
dramas. MKTS/GLOB
* China's net gold imports via Hong Kong fell 9% in
September from the previous month mainly due to softer demand
and possible measures by Beijing to prop up the
yuan. * Holdings of the largest gold-backed exchange-traded-fund
(ETF), New York's SPDR Gold Trust GLD , fell 0.13% on Wednesday
from Tuesday, while the largest silver-backed ETF, New York's
iShares Silver Trust SLV , remained unchanged during the same
period. GOL/ETF
* Platinum XPT= rose 0.2% to $925.83 per ounce, after
scaling a more than three-week high in the previous session.
DATA/EVENTS (GMT)
800 Germany Ifo Business Climate New Oct
0800 Germany Ifo Curr Conditions New Oct
0800 Germany Ifo Expectations New Oct
1400 US U Mich Sentiment Final Oct