PRECIOUS-Gold eases as dollar firms; caution sets in ahead of trade talks

* U.S. Fed minutes due on Wednesday
* Trade talks scheduled in Washington on Oct. 10-11
* German industrial orders fall more than expected in August

(Updates prices)
By Sumita Layek
Oct 7 (Reuters) - Gold prices eased on Monday as the dollar
firmed after a report said China was reluctant to agree to a
broad trade deal with Washington, but bullion held a tight range
as investors took a wait-and-see approach ahead of U.S.-China
talks this week.
Spot gold XAU= was down 0.3 % at $1,499.79 per ounce at
1129 GMT. Prices firmed 0.5% last week on concerns of slowing
global growth.
U.S. gold futures GCcv1 slipped 0.5% to $1,505.30 per
ounce.
The United States and China are set to meet for trade
negotiations in Washington on Oct. 10-11, although latest news
reports suggest Beijing may be looking to restrict the scope of
any deal. "Gold seems to have run out of steam here, we just need a
trigger for the market to move. The fact that the dollar is a
tad higher is the reason gold is a bit softer," said Saxo Bank
commodity strategist Ole Hansen.
"Gold is holding on to what it knows best and right now it
knows the $1,500 level quite well. It's going to be a little bit
of a wait-and-see week, with the U.S. Federal Reserve minutes
and the trade talks due this week."
The Fed Open Market Committee's minutes from its September
meeting are due on Wednesday.
The dollar .DXY edged up against rivals after four
straight days of losses last week, with China's offshore yuan
and the euro both pressured. USD/
A higher U.S. currency makes dollar-denominated gold more
expensive for holders of other currencies, which could subdue
demand.
However, limiting gold's downside, European shares dipped as
a fall in German industrial orders underscored concerns about a
looming recession in Europe's largest economy. .EU
Meanwhile, data out of the United States on Friday showed
jobs growth slowed in September and wage growth stalled, even as
unemployment dropped to a 50-year low. But that did little to change market expectations that the
Federal Reserve will likely cut interest rates at its next
policy review on Oct. 29-30 to support the economy.
"Gold continues to get appraised against the U.S. bond
yields and what the Federal Reserve is going to do next," said
AxiTrader market strategist Stephen Innes in a note.
"So, while price action seems supportive enough to suggest a
long bias remains intact, ... market participants likely need
further evidence from the Fed Board that they are shifting to an
easing bias to push prices significantly higher."
Elsewhere, platinum XPT= was down 0.1% to $877.18, silver
XAG= dipped 0.6% to $17.45 and palladium XPD= fell 0.3% to
$1,660.29.