Strong rupee nudges up India's gold demand..

MUMBAI (Reuters) - India's gold demand picked up slightly on Thursday as the rupee appreciated against the dollar easing the import-driven metal's price, but a majority of the buyers waited for further falls, dealers said.

"There was some small interest this morning," said one dealer in a large private bank, "But nothing now."

The rupee, at a 9-year high against the dollar in the wake of a cut in U.S. interest rates, raised expectations of further falls in the price of gold, dealers said.

Overseas gold was up and seemed to aim at its 26-year high of $730 an ounce set last year in May, but traders and retailers said they believed it was overbought, and may head down.

"Nobody is fixing prices yet," said Rahul Gupta, director of PP Jewellers in New Delhi, referring to his wholesale clients.

Gupta said his clients were waiting for a fall to 9,200 rupees per 10 grams levels.

India's busy season is now on, but will be interrupted by an inauspicious phase from Sept. 27 to Oct 11, when weddings are not usually scheduled.

Yet, if prices are right, buyers would book gold to take deliveries later, most dealers said.


Credit Suisse Raises Gold, Silver Forecasts...

Credit Suisse Group, Switzerland's second-biggest bank, raised its 12-month forecast for gold, silver and other precious metals because of supply shortfalls and a decline in the value of the dollar.

Gold may trade at $730 to $770 an ounce, compared with the Zurich-based bank's previous forecast of $670 to $720, according to a report yesterday by Tobias Merath, Credit Suisse's head of commodity research.

Silver may trade at $13.50 to $14.50 an ounce compared with the bank's previous forecast of $12.50 to $14.50. Credit Suisse said that platinum may trade at $1,400 to $1,600 an ounce, up from a range of $1,250 to $1,450.

Palladium investors cool to oversupply - Norilsk..

Palladium may trade at $310 to $350 an ounce, compared with $300 to $340, the bank said.

Gold for immediate delivery was at $729.17, silver at $13.1462, platinum at $1,312 and palladium at $335 as of 9:25 a.m. in London.

New York - Ample supplies of palladium might be discouraging purchases by investors even as demand grows from manufacturers and jewellers, Norilsk Nickel, the world's largest producer of the precious metal, said on Tuesday.

"There is not enough investment demand," said Anton Berlin, head of department for analysis and market developments at Norilsk.

"Investors know that on-ground stocks are very high and may be immediately delivered to the market."

Inventories may total 300 to 500 tons, compared with annual demand of 250 to 300 tons, according to Norilsk.

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