Gold up more than 8% in three weeks

LONDON: Gold eased back on Friday but stayed on course for a third weekly gain, as wariness over the US Federal Reserve's message at next week's monetary policy meeting pushed the dollar down.
The dollar slipped broadly against a basket of major currencies .DXY, keeping a floor under bullion, after a Wall Street Journal report suggested the central bank will not be raising rates any time soon.
Bullion has gained more than 8 percent in three weeks after the Federal Reserve assured financial markets it would only start phasing out its stimulus when it was sure the US economy was strong enough to stand on its own.
Spot gold fell half a percent to $1,326.60 per ounce by 1433 GMT as buyers cashed in on the day's $1,340 peak, around $160 up from the three-year low hit on June 28. Comex gold futures for August delivery GCv1 were down 0.2 percent at $1,326.20.
While gold has adopted a slightly less bearish tone in the wake of extraordinary losses this year, analysts remain sceptical on the extent of current gains.
"Sentiment has not changed — the Fed will tighten. The Fed will be there first, before the ECB and the BoJ and that's the important thing. The opportunity cost of holding gold will rise," VTB analyst Andrey Kryuchenkov said.
Bullion has lost a fifth of its value this year as investors feared recovery in the United States might prompt the Fed to scale back its $85 billion monthly bond purchases. Outflows from gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have also weighed.
Holdings of SPDR Gold Trust GLD, the world's largest gold ETF, fell 0.3 percent to 927.36 tonnes on Thursday, the lowest in four years.
"The fundamentals for buying gold are still there ñ loose monetary policy, concerns over the Middle East and Europe, and (economic) data from the US and China not being as positive as expected," said Danny Laidler, head of ETF Securities' Australia and New Zealand business, adding that outflows from the firm's gold-backed ETF had slowed.
Physical demand in China has been key to supporting gold prices this year amid the exit from ETFs.
Data from the Shanghai Gold Exchange shows that physical deliveries have totalled 1,198.4 tons so far this year. The exchange delivered 1,140 tons in all of 2012.
China's gold demand could hit a record 1,000 tons this year, the World Gold Council said on Thursday, which means it would overtake India as the world's biggest bullion consumer.
India is seeing a slowdown in demand as the government tightens rules to curb gold imports and tame a record trade deficit. Premiums in India jumped to $20 an ounce over London spot prices on Thursday due to short supplies.
In other metals, silver lost 1.1 percent to $19.97 per ounce, platinum was down 1.5 percent at $1,425.24 while palladium shed 1.6 percent to $725.22.