PRECIOUS-Gold extends falls on firm dollar, easing Fed rate-cut bets

Nov 18 (Reuters) - Gold fell for a fourth straight session on Tuesday, weighed down by a firm dollar and diminished prospects of a U.S. interest rate cut next month.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold was down 0.1% at $4,038.43 per ounce, as of 0104 GMT. U.S. gold futures for December delivery fell 0.9% to $4,037.50 per ounce.

* The dollar held steady against its rivals after a sharp rise in the previous session. A stronger dollar makes gold more expensive for other currency holders.

* Last week, lawmakers reached an agreement to end what had become the longest-ever U.S. government shutdown, during which an absence of official economic data helped dampen expectations for another rate cut from the Federal Reserve in December.

* Traders are currently pricing in a 43% probability of a quarter-point Fed rate cut next month, down from 50% in last week.

* Fed Vice Chair Philip Jefferson said on Monday the U.S. central bank needed to "proceed slowly" with further rate cuts, denting expectations for a decrease next month.

* Non-yielding gold tends to do well in a low-interest-rate environment and during times of economic uncertainties.

* Focus this week will be on U.S. data releases, including the September nonfarm payrolls report on Thursday, for clues on the health of the world's largest economy.

* SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings fell 0.25% to 1,041.43 metric tons on Monday from 1,044.00 tons on Friday.

* Central banks likely bought large amounts of gold in November in a multi-year trend to diversify reserves to hedge geopolitical and financial risks, Goldman Sachs said on Monday.

* Elsewhere, spot silver eased 0.3% to $50.05 per ounce, platinum was steady at $1,534.70, and palladium fell 0.6% to $1,385.23. (Reporting by Brijesh Patel in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)