PRECIOUS-Gold firms in holiday-thinned trade, spotlight on Fed and Trump policies

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US jobless claims data due at 1330 GMT

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Bullion has risen by 27% so far in 2024

(Updates with EMEA morning trade)

By Anushree Mukherjee and Anjana Anil

Dec 26 (Reuters) - Gold prices rose on Thursday in holiday-thinned trade, while markets await clues on the Federal Reserve's 2025 rate plan and tariff policies from the incoming Trump administration.

Spot gold rose 0.5% to $2,627.62 per ounce, as of 0953 GMT. U.S. gold futures added 0.3% to $2,642.30.

Markets in the euro zone are closed on Thursday for the Boxing Day public holiday.

Next year is going to be a very volatile period for bullion, the first-half will be positive with heightened geopolitical tensions while the second half could see some profit-booking, said Ajay Kedia, director at Kedia Commodities, Mumbai.

Gold is considered a safe investment option during economic and geopolitical turmoil and tends to thrive in a low interest rate environment. The yellow metal has gained 27% so far this year.

After aggressively cutting rates in September and November this year, the Fed persisted with cuts in December but hinted at fewer reductions in 2025.

Traders are awaiting the U.S. jobless claims data due at 1330 GMT. Economists polled by Reuters forecast 224,000 claims for the week ended Dec. 21, up from 220,000 for the week ended Dec. 14 reported last week.

If the jobless claims data comes higher, it will pressure the U.S. dollar and the gold market will start trading with a slightly positive bias, Kedia added.

U.S. investors are also gearing up for numerous market-impacting changes in 2025 - from tariffs and deregulation to tax policy - as Donald Trump returns to the White House in January.

Spot silver gained 0.1% to $29.64 per ounce, platinum fell 0.9% to $935.04 and palladium shed 1.7% to $937.33. (Reporting by Anushree Mukherjee and Anjana Anil in Bengaluru, Editing by Alexandra Hudson)