Array

TOKYO, June 15 (Reuters) Gold edged up on Thursday from late New York levels on technical buying after heavy losses this week, but the metal was still vulnerable to liquidation as investors remained keen to shift out from commodities.

Dollar-denominated gold gathered some support as Tokyo Commodity Exchange gold futures managed to hold above their limit low following sharp losses the previous day.

But sentiment for gold stayed bearish due to a strong dollar, concerns over interest rate rises and uncertainty over the outlook of the global equities market.

''It's too early to say whether gold had bottomed out. We are now seeing some technical correction after sharp falls in the last several days,'' said Takashi Ogura, manager at Kanetsu Asset Management Co. Ltd.

''The fall was especially fast after falling below $600 and now we are waiting to see how far the price would recover.'' At 0306 GMT, spot gold was at $563.90/564.60 per ounce, up from $558.20/558.90 in New York on Wednesday. It dropped as far as $553.75 in early Asian trade.

Investors were cautious about selling spot gold heavily below $550 after seeing it rebound sharply from a three-month low of $543 in Asia the previous day.

Gold was also expected to find support at the 200-day moving average of around $546.

Gold's sharp fall of 26 percent to $543 on Wednesday from its 26-year peak of $730 an ounce hit a month ago made market players cautious and kept them on edge.

TOCOM gold futures fell more than 2 percent on Thursday, but they were supported by bargain-hunting on dips, preventing them from dropping by the daily 90-yen limit, traders said.

Key most distant April TOCOM gold futures closed the morning session at 2,090 yen a gram, down 52 yen or 2.4 percent from Wednesday. It was trading in a range of 2,079 to 2,112 yen. They fell by the daily limit on Wednesday.

The market was watching the dollar and the stock market to determine trend for gold and other precious metals.

Gold rebounded as the dollar backed off slightly from it recent highs against the euro and the yen on Wednesday. Gold has an inverse correction to the dollar as many investors view it as an alternative investment to the currency.

''We've seen big corrections in December and February but both times gold recovered strongly,'' Ogura said.

''But the current mood is different from those times as now investors are more bearish about the outlook.'' Silver rose to $9.72/9.82 an ounce, compared with $9.59/9.69 in New York.

Platinum dropped to $1,120/1,127 an ounce, down from $1,137/1,145 in New York.

Sister metal palladium was quoted at $282/290 an ounce, down from $285/293 in New York.

REUTERS CS RS1150