Gold retreats as dollar, yields advance

GOLD - JAKARTA. Gold fell on Friday pressured by a stronger dollar and an uptick in U.S. bond yields, while investors strapped in for further guidance on tapering of economic support from the Federal Reserve's meeting next week.

Spot gold fell 0.8% to $1,785.20 per ounce by 1230 GMT.

U.S. gold futures shed 0.9% to $1,786.70.

The dollar index rose 0.3%, making bullion more expensive for holders of other currencies.

"On one hand, gold should profit from high inflation expectations, but it's being kept in check due to the prospect of interest rate hikes from either in the near, or in the more distant future," Commerzbank analyst Daniel Briesemann said.

The Fed is expected to announce when it will start tapering, following a meeting on Nov. 2-3.

While gold is considered an inflation hedge, reduced stimulus and interest rate hikes tend to push government bond yields and the dollar up, denting non-yielding gold's appeal.

But with inflation "showing no signs of abating, investors see precious metals at current prices as attractive assets," said Vincent Tie, sales manager at Singapore dealer Silver Bullion.

"Silver, in particular, is seen as one of the cheapest metals in the market given that it is still far from hitting a new high in prices."

Overall worries about rising prices kept both gold and silver on track for monthly gains, of about 2% and 7% respectively.

Spot silver fell 1.4% to $23.76 per ounce, platinum slipped 0.7% to $1,012.37, and palladium was down 1.9% at $1,951.92.