LONDON, Aug 22: Gold prices slipped on Friday as the dollar recovered some losses against the euro, but firm demand from investors in physical bullion supported the market.

Gold edged down to $828.00/829.00 an ounce in European trade by 1006 GMT from $832.40/833.40 an ounce late in New York. New York gold futures for December delivery slipped $3.70 an ounce to $835.30.

Traders paused in their profit taking on the US currency ahead of a speech from Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke later in the session.

Oil prices also slipped after surging nearly 5 per cent on Thursday, its biggest per centage gain in more than two months, as tensions between Russia and the US escalated. Crude slid below $121 a barrel on Friday.

However, analysts were positive for the outlook for gold.

A longer period of consolidation in the $800-$840 (range) would help gold establish a much stronger base, offering the physical base more time to adjust to higher prices, said TheBullionDesk.com analyst James Moore.

The precious metal surged on Thursday to a one-week high of $839.00 as dollar weakness fuelled interest in commodities as an asset class, and as demand for physical gold soared.

Although it is currently on the back foot, gold is up around $60 an ounce from the nine-month low of $773 it reached last Friday, as investors in coins and bars piled back into the market.

European traders also reported that producers were struggling to keep up with demand for some finished products.

Spot platinume eased to $1,440.00/1,460.00 an ounce from $1,449.50/1,469.50 an ounce late in New York, having hit a 1-week high of $1,472.50 an ounce earlier on Friday.

Its sister metal palladium inched up to $287.50/295.50 an ounce from $286.00/294.00 an ounce.

Both the platinum group metals are recovering after suffering a major sell-off in the wake of a spate of bad financial reports from carmakers, who consume around half of the world’s platinum each year.

Analysts feared lower demand from carmakers could weigh on prices later in the year. Both metals however are benefiting from renewed buying interest as prices reach lower level.—Reuters