SINGAPORE, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Gold prices held steady
on Friday, on course for a fifth straight week of gains, as
investors await a key U.S. labour market report after upbeat
jobless claims data in the previous session helped send spot
gold to a two-month high.	
    	
    FUNDAMENTALS	
    * Spot gold was little changed at $1,758.14 an ounce
by 0042 GMT, on course for a 1-percent gain from a week earlier.
It hit a two-month high of $1,760.96 on Thursday.	
    * U.S. gold edged up 0.1 percent to $1,761.60,
headed for a 1.5-percent weekly rise.	
    * Spot palladium hit a 4-1/2-month high of $713.50,
before easing to $710.05.	
    * The U.S. non-farm payrolls data, due at 1330 GMT, is
expected to show that U.S. employment growth probably slowed in
January as messengers hired during the busy holiday shopping
season were laid off, but the improving labor market trend
should remain intact. 	
    * Data showed that new claims for unemployment benefits in
the United States fell more than expected last week, pointing to
further healing in the nation's battered jobs market.
 	
    * Talks between Greece and its international lenders dragged
on, with euro zone finance ministers aiming to agree on a second
financing package on Monday.  	
    * SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed
exchange-traded fund, said its holdings rose nearly half a
percent to 1,277.135 tonnes by Feb 2 -- their highest since
Dec.20. 	
    * For the top stories on metals and other news, click
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    MARKET NEWS	
    * Investors largely took a wait-and-see approach on Thursday
as U.S. stocks ended little changed ahead of Friday's key
employment report, but tech shares rose after strong earnings
from chipmaker Qualcomm. 	
    * Major global currencies marked time early in Asia on
Friday, as investors retreated to the sidelines ahead of a U.S.
jobs report that could reinforce the recent improvement in risk
sentiment, or unravel it. 	
    	
    DATA/EVENTS	
 0858  EZ    Markit Services PMI          Jan                  
 1330  U.S.  Non-farm payrolls            Dec                 
 1500  U.S.  Factory orders               Dec     
 2030  U.S.  CFTC commitment of traders data Weekly                                                      
                                                                                                                             
        	
    PRICES	
    Precious metals prices 0042 GMT
  Metal             Last    Change  Pct chg  YTD pct chg    Volume
  Spot Gold        1758.14   -1.25   -0.07     12.43
  Spot Silver        34.22   -0.05   -0.15     23.58
  Spot Platinum    1627.99    0.49   +0.03     16.87
  Spot Palladium    710.05    4.80   +0.68      8.82
  COMEX GOLD APR2  1761.60    2.30   +0.13     12.43         1637
  COMEX SILVER MAR2  34.29    0.12   +0.34     22.84          285
  Euro/Dollar       1.3134
  Dollar/Yen         76.17
  COMEX gold and silver contracts show the most active months

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