Gold, little changed in Asia, may decline as the dollar strengthens and equities rebound, reducing demand for the precious metal as an alternative investment.

Bullion, which typically moves inversely to the U.S. currency, is down 4.7 percent this month as the Dollar Index, a six-currency gauge of the greenback’s value, climbed 1.5 percent. Gold for immediate delivery traded at $933.90 an ounce at 10:05 a.m. in Singapore.
“Gold is still consolidating as investors are again starting to take an interest in other investments such as equities and bonds,” Dick Poon, manager of the precious metals trading desk at Heraeus Ltd., said from Hong Kong. “It will continue to trade in the $925 to $945 range in the near term.”
The regional benchmark MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained for a second day after the International Monetary Fund said it would lift its world growth forecasts and George Soros said the worst of the global financial crisis was over.
Twelve of 22 traders, investors and analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News, or 55 percent, said bullion would drop this week, the second consecutive negative call. Eight people forecast higher prices and two were neutral.
Assets held by the SPDR Gold Trust, the biggest exchange- traded fund backed by bullion, have remained unchanged at 1,132.15 metric tons since June 5, according to figures on the company’s Web site. That is the longest period without an increase or decline since Oct. 27 to Nov. 11.
Among other precious metals for immediate delivery, silver slid 1.3 percent to $14.0475 an ounce, platinum lost 1 percent to $1,198 an ounce and palladium was down 0.4 percent at $245.50 an ounce as of 10 a.m. Singapore time. (Source: Bloomberg