MANILA, March 8 (Reuters) - Gold edged up to trade near a 13-month high on Tuesday, supported by hopes the U.S. Federal Reserve will not raise interest rates as soon as next week's meeting.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold XAU= was up 0.2 percent at $1,269.40 an ounce by 0036 GMT, not far from Friday's peak of $1,279.60, its highest since Feb. 3, 2015.
* U.S. gold for April delivery GCcv1 gained 0.5 percent to $1,269.90 an ounce.
* The dollar has been struggling to find traction despite a robust U.S. February employment report on Friday, its losses extending on Monday as a rally in oil prices rekindled demand for the euro and commodity-sensitive currencies. USD/
* That has benefitted gold along with fairly low market expectations that the Fed will lift rates at the March 15-16 policy meeting, analysts say. The Fed raised rates for the first time in nearly a decade in December.
* A pitched battle over the right path for U.S. interest rates is expected at next week's meeting, increasing pressure on Fed Chair Janet Yellen midway through her tenure.
* Fed Governor Lael Brainard, who has emerged as a leader of the Fed's dovish faction, argued for "patience" in raising interest rates. But Fed Vice Chair Stanley Fischer warned that inflation is showing signs of accelerating, words that policymakers often use when signaling a preference for raising rates. Holdings of SPDR Gold Trust GLD , the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, dropped slightly on Friday, but stayed near the highest since September 2014 at 25.5 million ounces. GOL/ETF
* BlackRock Inc's BLK.N iShares Gold Trust IAU.P may face penalties and other costs after the U.S.-listed fund sold $296 million in shares earlier this year without properly registering them. For the top stories on metals and other news, click TOP/MTL or GOL
MARKET NEWS
* Asian shares inched higher after global oil prices soared to three-month highs on growing hopes of more coordinated measures from oil-producing countries to stem tumbling prices. MKTS/GLOB O/R
DATA AHEAD (GMT)
China
Trade data
Feb
0700 Germany
Industrial output
Jan
1000 Euro zone
Revised GDP
Q4
1100 U.S.
NFIB business optimism
Feb