Gold near 4-mth lows on worries over US stimulus outlook

Singapore (Nov 21)   Gold was trading near four-month lows on Thursday after dropping the most in seven weeks in the previous session, hurt by fears the U.S. Federal Reserve could start trimming its commodity-friendly stimulus in the next few months.
       
 FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold had edged up 0.3 percent to $1,246.39 an ounce by 0019 GMT, after falling 2.5 percent in the previous session when it hit a four-month low of $1,240.69. Silver also inched higher after declines in the previous session.

* U.S. gold fell 1 percent on Thursday, tracking spot gold's losses.

* Minutes of the Fed's Oct. 29-30 policy meeting showed that officials felt they could decide to start scaling back the U.S. central bank's $85 billion in monthly asset purchases at one of its next few meetings provided this was warranted by economic growth.

* SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings fell 2.70 tonnes to 860.31 tonnes on Wednesday.

* China, set to pass India this year as the world's top gold consumer, has imported nearly a fifth more bullion than data from its traditional conduit Hong Kong shows as it brings in the metal via other routes.

* Output from the world's gold mines is set to hit record highs this year, disappointing bulls who are impatiently waiting for production cuts following this year's 24 percent plunge in prices.

* The Swiss government is urging voters to reject a popular initiative to ban the Swiss National Bank from selling any of its gold reserves, a step the cabinet said would hinder the bank's ability to shape monetary policy.