SINGAPORE, April 23 (Reuters) - Gold hovered near $1,640 an
ounce on Monday after data showed stabilising factory activities
in China, while investors focused on a U.S. Federal Reserve
policy meeting later in the week to gauge the health of the
world's largest economy.	
    Gold fell 1 percent last week, in tandem with equities and
other commodities, as resurfaced fear about Spain's debt crisis
raised concerns about global economic growth and dented risk
appetite.	
    China's factories stabilised in April as output ticked
higher, new business rose from multi-month lows and export
orders perked up, the HSBC Flash Purchasing Managers Index said,
in line with expectations. 	
    "Gold doesn't seem to be trading on anything other than
externally derived sentiment," said Nick Trevethan, senior
commodity strategist at ANZ in Singapore.	
    "There is still pressure for gold prices. The market has
been trying to push the support level at $1,630-$1,640, although
the push is rather half-hearted right now."	
    The Fed's attitude towards monetary easing has been a key
factor behind the fluctuation of gold prices in recent months.
If the Fed drops any hint on more monetary easing at the meeting
Tuesday and Wednesday, gold prices will jump quickly.	
    Spot gold was little changed at $1,642.04 an ounce by
0311 GMT. Prices have moved in a range of $3 in early Asian
hours. U.S. gold traded nearly flat at $1,643.20.	
    	
    Investors remain concerned about Europe's fiscal health.	
    Spanish and Italian bond yields were still near dangerously
high levels, while the prospect of a Socialist candidate winning
the French presidential election added to worries whether the
powerful Franco-German ally that has helped set tones in the
region's battle against its debt problems will remain intact.
   	
    Over the weekend the International Monetary Fund managed to
more than double its lending power in a bid to protect the world
economy from the euro zone debt crisis, which is now in its
third year.   	
        	
    TRADE INTEREST SLUGGISH	
    Gold has moved in a range between $1,630 and $1,660 since
the beginning of last week, and trading volumes were light in
absence of conviction from investors.	
    Money managers raised their net long positions in U.S. gold
futures and options in the week ended April 17 to 112,275
contracts, from 109,511 contracts a week earlier - its lowest in
more than three years. 	
    While the net length in gold had fallen more than 40 percent
from this year's peak hit in early March, the total open
interest edged lower from a week earlier to 640,791 contracts,
down 13 percent from March and near a two-year low hit earlier
in the month. 	
    Gold traders in India, the world's top gold consumer, stayed
away from gold purchases despite the upcoming Akshaya Tritiya
festival on Tuesday, traditionally a key gold-buying day, as the
weakness in rupee made imported bullion more expensive.	
    	
    Precious metals prices 0311 GMT
  Metal             Last    Change  Pct chg  YTD pct chg    Volume
  Spot Gold        1642.04    0.17   +0.01      5.00
  Spot Silver        31.59   -0.07   -0.22     14.08
  Spot Platinum    1572.69   -0.86   -0.05     12.90
  Spot Palladium    673.45    2.05   +0.31      3.21
  COMEX GOLD JUN2  1643.20    0.40   +0.02      4.88         4792
  COMEX SILVER MAY2  31.58   -0.07   -0.22     13.13         3525
  Euro/Dollar       1.3188
  Dollar/Yen         81.28

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