Gold little changed, heads for third straight weekly fall

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Gold prices were little changed on Friday but headed for a third straight weekly decline due to a stronger dollar, while Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell indicated that there was no urgency to implement rate cuts.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold was flat at $2,566.69 per ounce, as of 0014 GMT, after hitting a two-month low in the previous session. U.S. gold futures fell 0.1% at $2,571.60.

* The U.S. dollar continued its relentless march higher this week, fuelled by higher yields and Donald Trump's election victory in the United States. Stronger greenback makes bullion more costlier for other currency holders.

* Ongoing economic growth, a solid job market and inflation that remains above its 2% target mean the Fed does not need to rush to lower interest rates, Chair Powell said on Thursday.

* Higher rates dull the appeal of holding non-yielding bullion.

* Data showed U.S. producer prices picked up in October, another sign that progress towards lower inflation was stalling. While, the number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits fell last week, suggesting that the labor market continued to chug along and that the abrupt slowdown in job growth in October was an aberration.

* Investors will also keep an eye on U.S. retail sales data due at 1330 GMT.

* Spot silver fell 0.2% to $30.39, platinum lost 0.3% to $936.74 and palladium rose 0.2% at $942.75. All three metals headed for weekly fall.

DATA/EVENTS (GMT)

0200 China Urban Investment (YTD) YY Oct

0200 China Retail Sales YY Oct

0200 China Unemp Rate Urban Area Oct

0430 Japan Tertiary Ind Act NSA Sept

0700 UK GDP Est 3M/3M Sept

0700 UK GDP Estimate MM Sept

0700 UK GDP Estimate YY Sept

0700 UK Services MM Sept

0700 UK Services YY Sept