PRECIOUS-Gold advances on Greece optimism, China easing

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FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold gained 0.6 percent to $1,733.29 an ounce by 0018 GMT, reversing losses from the previous session.

* U.S. gold rose half a percent to $1,735.20.

* Gold, along with riskier assets, was encouraged by easing from China's central bank, which cut the required reserve ratio over the weekend, boosting lending capacity.

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* Optimism on a deal later in the day between Greece and euro zone finance ministers on the second bailout for Greece also helped buoy the sentiment.

* Money managers in gold futures and options reduced their net long position in the week of February 14, their first decline in five weeks, as investors unwound some safe-haven bets due to optimism surrounding the Greek debt crisis.

MARKET NEWS

* U.S. stocks edged higher on Friday, but investors stayed cautious before a long holiday weekend when hopes are set for Greece's bailout plan to be approved. .N

* The yen fell to six-month lows on the greenback on Monday, while commodity currencies jumped after China's central bank joined other major counterparts globally in stimulating growth.

* U.S. crude futures rose to a fresh nine-month high on Monday after Iran halted oil sales to Britain and France.

DATA/EVENTS

0745 France Business climate Feb

0900 Italy Industrial orders/sales Dec

1600 Eurogroup meeting

U.S.

holiday

PRICES

Precious metals prices 0018 GMT

Metal Last Change Pct chg YTD pct chg Volume

Spot Gold 1733.29 10.10 +0.59 10.84

Spot Silver 33.56 0.34 +1.02 21.20

Spot Platinum 1641.99 11.89 +0.73 17.87

Spot Palladium 691.47 -3.53 -0.51 5.97

COMEX GOLD APR2 1735.20 9.30 +0.54 10.75 4890

COMEX SILVER MAR2 33.57 0.35 +1.05 20.24 1716

Euro/Dollar 1.3208

Dollar/Yen 79.65

COMEX gold and silver contracts show the most active months

(Reporting by Rujun Shen; Editing by Himani Sarkar)