Gold steady ahead of Christmas, US data eyed

SINGAPORE, Dec 22 (Reuters) Gold was steady on Friday but trading slowed to a trickle ahead of Christmas, and the metal would be confined to a familar $610 to $650 range until the end of the year, said dealers.

-- Spot gold was at $618.70/619.70 an ounce, versus $618.20/619.20 late in New York on Thursday, when it dropped more than $3 after falling crude oil triggered liquidation.

-- Benchmark gold futures on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange fell 7 yen per gram to 2,381 yen per gram to track declines in New York's COMEX market.

-- The euro was firmer at $1.3186 . Dealers await a fresh dose of U.S. economic data on Friday, with the triple whammy of personal consumption, durable goods orders, and consumer sentiment reports.

-- Silver edged up to $12.39/12.46 an ounce from $12.35/12.42 an ounce in New York.

-- Platinum rose to $1,119/1,124 an ounce from $1,117/1,122 an ounce.

-- Palladium fell to $323/328 an ounce from $326/329 an ounce late in New York.

REUTERS PKS RN0624