Gold rises as investors shy away from risk amid US political uncertainty

Gold prices climbed on Monday, with investor appetite for risk curbed by worries over a partial U.S. government shutdown, Sino-U.S. trade tensions and faltering global economic growth.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold had risen 0.4 percent to to $1,261.47 per ounce by 0103 GMT.

* U.S. gold futures were up 0.5 percent at $1,264.1 per ounce.

* The dollar index, a gauge of its value versus six major peers, was steady at 96.90 in early Asian trade.

* The U.S. economy slowed slightly more than previously estimated in the third quarter and momentum appears to have moderated further in the fourth quarter, with new orders and shipments of manufactured capital goods falling in November.

* The partial U.S. government shutdown was almost certain to drag through the Christmas holiday after the Senate adjourned on Saturday without breaking an impasse over President Donald Trump`s demand for more funds for a border wall.

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* Trump has privately discussed the possibility of firing Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, a move that could roil already volatile financial markets, two sources familiar with situation said on Saturday.

* China and the United States held a vice ministerial-level call on Friday, the second such contact in a week, achieving a "deep exchange of views" on trade imbalances and the protection of intellectual property, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said.

* Asian stocks started in subdued fashion on Monday as investors fretted that the political instability in the United States was leaving the country rudderless at a time when the global economy was showing signs of faltering. 

* Trump`s Treasury secretary called top U.S. bankers on Sunday amid an ongoing rout on Wall Street and made plans to convene a group of officials known as the "Plunge Protection Team".

* The Italian government won a gruelling vote of confidence on its 2019 budget in the upper house in the early hours of Sunday, as it races to get the package approved before a year-end deadline.

* SPDR Gold Trust, the world`s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings rose 0.46 percent to 772.67 tonnes on Friday from 769.14 tonnes on Thursday.