PRECIOUS-Gold gains on physical demand, but ETF outflows persist

SINGAPORE, May 29 (Reuters) - Gold edged higher on Wednesday, supported by strong physical demand after prices fell 1 percent the previous day, but gains are likely to be limited by persistent outflows from exchange-traded funds. FUNDAMENTALS * Spot gold rose 0.2 percent to $1,382.89 an ounce by 0029 GMT, after falling to $1,373.14 on Tuesday. * U.S. gold rose 0.3 percent to $1,382.50. * Wall Street rallied on Tuesday after data showed that U.S. consumer confidence in May was the highest in more than 5 years, while home prices accelerated in March by the most in nearly seven years. * Bank of America Merrill Lynch lowered its gold and silver price forecasts for 2013, citing weak fundamentals and lack of investment buying. The bank now expects gold prices to average $1,478 an ounce in 2013, 12 percent below its prior forecast of $1,680. * South Africa may take unspecified "interventions" in the gold and platinum sectors as part of a state plan to maintain the viability of the industries, mines minister Susan Shabangu said on Tuesday. * The U.S. Mint is resuming sales of its small American Eagle gold bullion coins, a further sign that a coin-buying frenzy has started to fade after investors took advantage of bargain prices following gold's historic two-day sell-off in mid-April. The U.S. Mint, one of the world's largest gold and silver coin producers, had halted sales of its small gold bullion coins last month as surging demand depleted its inventory. * Holdings in SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, fell to 1012.25 tonnes on Tuesday, their lowest since February 2009. * For the top stories on metals and other news, click , or MARKET NEWS * Japan's Nikkei share average rose on Wednesday with technical signs in its favour after last week's tumultuous trade pulled the index down 10 percent from a 5-1/2-year high. * The dollar, which rebounded against the euro and yen on Tuesday, rose 0.2 percent on Wednesday. DATA/EVENTS (GMT) 0755 Germany Unemployment rate 0800 Euro zone M3 money supply 0800 Italy Business confidence 1145 U.S. ICSC weekly chain store sales 1200 Germany Inflation 1255 U.S. Redbook weekly retail sales 2030 U.S. API weekly crude stocks Precious metals prices 0029 GMT Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg Volume Spot Gold 1382.89 2.64 +0.19 -17.42 Spot Silver 22.35 0.12 +0.54 -26.19 Spot Platinum 1462.50 5.00 +0.34 -4.72 Spot Palladium 753.25 -1.75 -0.23 8.85 COMEX GOLD JUN3 1382.50 3.60 +0.26 -17.50 3421 COMEX SILVER JUL3 0.22 0.00 +0.55 -99.26 584 Euro/Dollar 1.2845 Dollar/Yen 102.35 (Reporting by A. Ananthalakshmi; Editing by Richard Pullin)