Gold prices inched up on Thursday, following a rally in the previous session, as fears about a coronavirus-led steep slump in global economic activity lent support to the metal as a safe-haven asset.

FUNDAMENTALS
Spot gold gained 0.1% to $1,592.56 per ounce by 0011 GMT, having risen 1.2% in the previous session. U.S. gold futures rose 0.9% to $1,605.

Asian equities looked set for further losses on Thursday, after a dire warning about the U.S. coronavirus death toll and mounting evidence the fast-spreading disease has sent the world economy hurtling into a deep recession.

The pandemic is putting increasing strains on emerging market economies, but the International Monetary Fund has sufficient resources to meet their needs for now, IMF officials said on Wednesday.

Factories fell quiet across much of the world in March as the outbreak paralyzed economic activity.

U.S. manufacturing activity contracted less than expected in March, but disruptions caused by the pandemic pushed new orders received by factories to an 11-year low, data on Wednesday showed, while private payrolls dropped last month for the first time in 2-1/2 years.

Boston Federal Reserve Bank President Eric Rosengren said social distancing efforts meant to contain the outbreak have "stilled" the economy and could lead the unemployment rate to "rise dramatically."

Germany's export-dependent manufacturing sector saw the steepest decrease in output in almost 11 years in March, a survey showed on Wednesday, due to virus-led plant closures in Europe's biggest economy.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Wednesday that his agency, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund backed debt relief to help developing countries cope with the pandemic's social and economic consequences.

Sales of gold from Australia's Perth Mint soared to their highest in about seven years, the refiner said on Wednesday, as fears over the economic fallout from the virus prompted investors to buy the precious metal as a hedge.  

SPDR Gold Trust , the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings rose 0.18% to 968.75 tonnes on Wednesday.

Palladium rose 1.7% to $2,253.97 per ounce, platinum slipped 0.2% to $716.06, while silver eased 0.2% $13.97.

DATA/EVENTS (GMT)
0600  UK Nationwide house price MM, YY  March
1230  U.S. International trade                  Feb
1230  U.S. Initial jobless claim                 weekly
1400  U.S. Factory order MM                    Feb

(Reporting by K. Sathya Narayanan in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)

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