EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK

Gold rose above $1,360 an ounce on Monday as the dollar's retreat from highs versus the euro took some pressure off prices, with a second consecutive weekly price rise underpinning investors' confidence in the metal.

Resurgence of far-right in Europe (SLIDESHOW)

The chief of Germany’s central bank Axel Weber will resign from his job at the end of April, according the German government, following a meeting with German chancellor Angela Merkel

Bundesbank president Axel Weber said in an interview released on Saturday he decided he did not want to be a candidate for the European Central Bank presidency because of a lack of acceptance in some European countries.

On Thursday, yields on the Portuguese 10-year sovereign debt reached an all-time euro-era high of 7.6 percent.

World stock markets fell hard on Thursday, with Hong Kong shares losing 2% and London's FTSE100 dropping 0.9% by lunchtime. Indian stock markets have lost more than $20 million per minute so far in 2011, the Economic Times reports, with billionaire Anil Ambani blaming vicious and illegal rumors.

Gold held close to the previous session's near three-week high in Europe on Wednesday, supported by an increased focus on inflation after China's second interest rate hike in six weeks.

If Fine Gael party emerges as a key partner in a coalition government, the senior debt holders will have to make sacrifices as the new government goes ahead with a bank debt restructuring.

Gold held near $1,350 an ounce on Monday after the metal's first weekly rise this year supported investor confidence in the metal, though a more optimistic view of the global economic outlook is continuing to weigh on prices.

U.S. employment rose far less than expected in January, partly the result of severe snow storms that slammed large parts of the nation, but the unemployment rate fell to its lowest level since April 2009.

Gold rose over 1 percent in choppy trade on Thursday, with a sudden jump by over $20 per ounce within minutes as large buy orders were apparently triggered in the future markets. This comes unexpected to precious metals experts, as the gold price was supposed to be kept low by the usual large Wall Street players during todays speech by Bernanke, and was set to rally on Friday, when unexpectedly bad labor market numbers will come in and drive gold prices higher.

Spot gold was bid at $1,328.05 an ounce at 1300 GMT, against $1,336.00 late in New York on Wednesday. U.S. gold futures for April delivery fell $3.90 to $1,328.20. Concerns over the fallout from unrest in Egypt, where six people were killed after supporters of president Hosni Mubarak opened fire on protestors overnight, have underpinned prices, but have not sparked fresh investment, analysts said.

Fundamentals and nasty surprises are on investors minds heading into February, with big tests in the coming week about jobs and inflation and increasing worries over Egypt and its region.

Gold Bullion prices failed to rally from last night's tumble in Asian and London trade on Friday, extending the month's sharp losses and hitting to four-month lows in the US Dollar and six-month lows against the Swiss Franc and commodity currency Aussie and Canadian Dollars.

The Federal Reserve showed on Wednesday it was in no rush to cut short its rescue of the U.S. economy, saying high unemployment still justified its $600 billion bond-buying plan even though the economy has

Gold fell to its lowest in ten weeks on Tuesday, putting the price on course for its worst monthly performance in 13 months as safe-haven demand evaporated and investors booked further profits on the 2010 rally.

Factories in the euro zone reported the strongest monthly price increase on record for raw materials and fuel in January, according to a business survey that again showed German strength propelling the bloc's service sector.

Asian stocks rose on mild bargain buying after a sell-off last week, while the euro hovered near a nine-week high before a Fed meeting this week where it is expected to paint a cautious view of the world's biggest economy.

The euro zone inflation rate, excluding volatile energy and food prices, does not gauge future price pressures well, European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet was quoted as saying on Sunday.

European leaders should not shy away from a proposal to buy back the bonds of troubled euro member states but should not rely too much on rich countries, Eurogroup Chief Jean-Claude Juncker said.

Europe's financial system is a mess right now compared to the US financial system. However, it doesn't have to be this way, according to hedge fund heavyweight David Tepper.