SINGAPORE, April 21 (Reuters) - Gold held overnight losses on Thursday, while silver steadied below an 11-month top as the dollar firmed against the euro and equities inched higher.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold XAU= was little changed at $1,243.90 an ounce by 0046 GMT, after dropping 0.5 percent in the previous session.
* U.S. gold futures GCcv1 eased 0.6 percent to $1,246, catching up with moves in the spot market.
* The dollar rose 0.5 percent against a basket of major currencies on Wednesday as the euro slipped ahead of the European Central Bank meet on Thursday.
* The greenback hit a two-week high against the safe-haven yen. It also rallied more than 1 percent against the Swiss franc, another currency often viewed as a safe haven, to a more than three-week high. USD/
* Risk appetite also boosted global stocks which tracked oil prices higher. Oil prices jumped 4 percent on Wednesday as government data showed U.S. crude stocks rose slightly less than expected last week. O/R
* Spot silver XAG= steadied at $16.94 an ounce. It rose to an 11-month high of $17.23 on Wednesday, but gave up gains to close the session flat.
* Silver has outperformed other precious metals in recent days, helped by a break through chart resistance at its late October high on Tuesday and increasing optimism about China. Silver has more industrial use than the other precious metals.
* Bullion traders will be eyeing the ECB meeting later in the session for any impact on the dollar. The ECB is not expected to make any policy change at its rate-setting meeting on Thursday.
* The focus will also be on U.S. economic data that could affect the Federal Reserve's monetary policy.
* For the top stories on metals and other news, click TOP/MTL or GOL
MARKET NEWS
* The euro remained on the defensive early on Thursday, having made an about-face as investors adjusted positions in the lead up to a policy meeting by the European Central Bank.
DATA AHEAD (GMT)
0645 France Business climate Apr
1145 European Central Bank announces policy meeting outcome
1230 U.S. Weekly jobless claims
1230 U.S. National activity index Mar
1230 U.S. Philly Fed business index Apr
1300 U.S. Monthly home price index Feb
1400 U.S. Leading index Mar
1400 Euro zone Consumer confidence Apr
PRICES AT 0046 GMT Metal
Last
Change
Pct chg
Spot gold
1243.9
0.6
0.05 Spot silver
16.944
0.014
0.08 Spot platinum
1012.85
-2.5
-0.25 Spot palladium
589.75
-3.75
-0.63 Comex gold
1246
-8.4
-0.67 Comex silver
16.96
-0.175
-1.02
COMEX gold and silver contracts show the most active months