Gold and Silver Snips

NEW YORK, Sept 22 (Reuters) - U.S. gold futures rose toward
$1,020 an ounce on Tuesday, gaining 1 percent as a sharp
deterioration of the dollar's value triggered investment buying
in gold as a currency hedge.

 For the latest detailed report, click on [GOL/].

 GOLD

 * December gold GCZ9 settled up $10.60, or 1.1 percent,
at $1,015.50 an ounce on the COMEX division of New York
Mercantile Exchange.

 * Ranged from $1,004.20 to $1,021.50.

 * Gold boosted by a tumbling dollar. Deteriorating
sentiment toward the U.S. currency pushed FX dealers to sell it
ahead of a Federal Reserve meeting and Group of 20 summit this
week. U.S. dollar index .DXY fell almost 1 percent against a
basket of major currencies. [USD/]

 * Gold's rally primarily was driven by its inverse
relationship with the U.S. dollar - Frank Holmes, chief
executive officer and chief investment officer of U.S. Global
Investors, a commodities-focused fund manager.

 * Gold could still go higher in deflationary economy
because of currency devaluation as a result of deficit spending
and a strong resolve to keep interest rates negative - Holmes.

 * Gold, which is priced in the U.S. currency, usually goes
up with a falling greenback. Gold is also seen as an
alternative to holding dollar-denominated assets and other
major currencies.

 * Gold's status as an investment continues to rise. The
world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, the SPDR Gold
Trust GLD, said its holdings stood at 1,101.735 tonnes as of
Sept. 21, up from 1,086.479 tonnes the previous day.

 * Lack of gold jewelry demand, however, could limit further
gains - traders.

 * India's gold imports in 2009 may fall to their lowest
level since trade was liberalized 12 years ago as high prices
have put off buyers in the world's biggest market for the metal
- top Indian importer. [ID:nBOM512227]

 * Worries about imminent shorter-term traders also dragged
prices lower, as trade data showed that speculators held a
record net long position in U.S. gold futures.

 * U.S. crude futures rebounded above $71 per barrel on
improved sentiment for demand and a weaker dollar. [O/R]

 * Gold-to-oil ratio at 14.21, down from the previous
session's 14.41.

 * COMEX estimated final volume at 96,316 lots.

 * Spot gold XAU= at $1,013.25 at 2:32 p.m. EDT (1832 GMT)
versus $1,002.55, which was the previous session's late New
York quote.

 * London afternoon gold fix XAUFIX= was at $1,014 an
ounce.

 SILVER

 * December silver SIZ9 finished up 23.5 cents, or 1.4
percent, at $17.115 an ounce, up with gold.

 * Range from $16.830 to $17.345.

 * COMEX estimated final volume at 21,997 lots.

 * Spot silver XAG= was at $17.07 versus its previous
finish of 16.80 an ounce.

 * London silver fix XAGFIX= at $17.24 an ounce.

 PLATINUM

 * October platinum PLV9 ended up $17, or 1.3 percent, at
$1,339.20 an ounce on the back of stronger global equities
markets.

 * Spot platinum XPT= was at $1,329 compared with its
previous finish of $1,315.50.

 PALLADIUM

 * December palladium PAZ9 closed up $3.25, or 1.1
percent, at $302.40 an ounce.

 * Spot palladium XPD= was at $300 against its previous
close of $294.50.

                     Close  Change   Pct     2008    YTD

                                     Chg   Close   % Chg
US gold      GCZ9    1015.50    10.6   1.1   884.3    14.8
US silver    SIZ9     17.115   0.235   1.4  11.295    51.5
US platinum  PLV9    1339.20   17.00   1.3  941.50    42.2
US palladium PAZ9     302.40    3.25   1.1  188.70    60.3
Prices at 2:32 p.m. EDT (1832 GMT)
Gold         XAU=    1013.35   10.80   1.1  878.20    15.4
Silver       XAG=      17.07    0.27   1.6   11.30    51.1
Platinum     XPT=    1329.00   13.50   1.0  924.50    43.8
Palladium    XPD=     300.00   5.500   1.9  184.50    62.6
Gold Fix     XAUFIX= 1014.00   -1.75  -0.2  836.50    21.2
Silver Fix   XAGFIX=   17.24   56.00   3.4   14.76    16.8
Platinum Fix XPTFIX= 1330.00    3.00   0.2    1529   -13.0
Palladium FixXPDFIX=  302.00    4.00   1.3   365.0   -17.3
(Reporting by Frank Tang; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)