Sept 30 (Reuters) - Gold prices rose further to hit a
fresh high on Tuesday and were poised for their best month in 14
years, as fears of a potential U.S. government shutdown and
growing expectations of further U.S. interest rate cuts boosted
demand for the safe-haven metal.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold was up 0.2% at $3,842.76 per ounce, as of
0123 GMT. Bullion has risen 11.4% so far in September, on track
for its best month since August 2011.
* U.S. gold futures for December delivery gained
0.4% to $3,872.
* U.S. President Donald Trump and his Democratic opponents
appeared to make little progress at a White House meeting aimed
at heading off a government shutdown that could disrupt a wide
range of services as soon as Wednesday.
* Recent economic data has lifted expectations for further
Federal Reserve rate cuts this year, with traders pricing in a
roughly 89% chance of a 25-basis-point reduction at the next Fed
meeting, according to CME Group's FedWatch tool.
* St. Louis Federal Reserve President Alberto Musalem said
he was open to further rate cuts but the Fed must be cautious
and keep rates high enough to continue to lean against
inflation.
* Gold, often used as a safe store of value during times of
political and financial uncertainty, thrives in a low interest
rate environment.
* Investors now await U.S. data on job openings, private
payrolls, the ISM manufacturing PMI and Friday's non-farm
payrolls report for further clues on the economy's health.
* The U.S. Labor Department confirmed on Monday that its
statistics agency would suspend economic data releases,
including the closely-watched monthly employment report for
September, in the event of a partial government shutdown.
* SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed
exchange-traded fund, said its holdings rose 0.60% to 1,011.73
metric tons on Monday from 1,005.72 tons on Friday.
* Elsewhere, spot silver was steady at $46.95 per
ounce, platinum eased 0.2% to $1,597.58 and palladium
fell 0.8% to $1,259.02.
DATA/EVENTS (GMT)
0130 China NBS Manufacturing PMI Sep
0145 China RatingDog Manufacturing PMI Final Sep
0145 China RatingDog Services PMI Sep
0600 UK GDP QQ, YY Q2
0645 France CPI (EU Norm) Prelim MM, YY Sep
0645 France CPI Prelim MM, YY NSA Sep
0645 France Producer Prices YY Aug
0755 Germany Unemployment Chg SA Sep
0755 Germany Unemployment Rate SA Sep
1200 Germany CPI Prelim YY Sep
1200 Germany HICP Prelim YY Sep
1400 US Consumer Confidence Sep
(Reporting by Brijesh Patel in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu
Sahu)
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