PRECIOUS-Gold firms after 3-day fall, FOMC eyed; ETF dips

TOKYO, Aug 12 (Reuters) - Gold prices rose on Wednesday after
falling for three straight sessions on the firmness of the
dollar, with investors focusing on the U.S. Federal Reserve's
policy statement due later in the day.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold XAU= rose 0.3 percent to $947.25 an ounce as of
0011 GMT, compared with New York's notional close of $944.55.

* Spot gold touched an August low of $941.50 on Tuesday. A
stronger dollar makes commodities priced in the currency more
expensive for non-U.S. investors.

* U.S. gold futures for December delivery GCZ9 gained 0.2
percent to $949.60 an ounce. The contract rose 70 cents to
$947.60 on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange
on Tuesday.

* The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, the
SPDR Gold Trust (GLD), said its holdings fell 3.06 tonnes to
1,065.49 tonnes on Aug. 11. [GOL/SPDR]

MARKET NEWS

* The dollar was steady on the euro at $1.4148 on Wednesday,
compared with $1.4149 late in New York. There is mounting
speculation the U.S. Federal Reserve might grow more optimistic
about a recovery after a better-than-expected jobs report for
July late last week. [USD/]

* After a two-day policy meeting which ends later in the day,
the U.S. central bank is expected to leave benchmark interest
rates near zero and let a programme to buy Treasury securities
expire as economic gloom begins to lift. [ID:nFEDAHEAD]

* Japan's Nikkei share average .N225 was down 0.8 percent.
[.T]

* U.S. stocks fell on Tuesday after a prominent banking
analyst warned the sector's fundamentals have yet to improve, and
an unexpectedly large drop in wholesale inventories raised
worries about an economic recovery. [.N]

DATA EVENTS

* The following data is expected on Wednesday: ECON

- Australia consumer confidence for August (0100 GMT)

- Australia wage price index for Q2 (0130 GMT)

- Japan revised industrial output for June (0430 GMT)

- Bank of Japan's August monthly economic report (0500 GMT)

- UK labour market statistics for June and July (0830 GMT)

- Bank of England quarterly inflation report (0930 GMT)

- Euro zone industrial production for June (0900 GMT)

- FOMC issues policy statement after two-day meeting (around
1815 GMT)

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PRICES

Precious metals prices at 0018 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct chg Day ago pct MA 30 RSI
Spot gold $946.95 $2.40 +0.25% +5.57% $860.10 48
Spot silver $14.33 $0.06 +0.42% +19.62% $11.29 58
Spot plat $1243.00 $6.00 +0.49% -0.04% $1185.65 56
COMEX gold $947.70 $1.60 +0.17% +0.24% $940.88 47
TOCOM gold 2,933 -29 -0.98% -2.00% 2,871 53
TOCOM plat 3,834 -58 -1.49% -1.92% 3,613 58
Currencies
Euro/dlr $1.415 $0.000 -0.01% +0.04%
Dlr/yen 95.98 0.04 +0.04% -1.16%
(Reporting by Risa Maeda; Editing by Chris Gallagher)