(Reuters) – Gold rose on Wednesday, recouping some of the ground it lost a day earlier, as doubts regarding the U.S. stimulus package dragged down Asian equities and U.S. stock futures, and the dollar fell.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold XAU= was up 0.5% at $1,657.29 per ounce by 0054 GMT, having fallen about 2% in the previous session on hopes for global stimulus measures to shield the world economy from the effects of the fast-spreading coronavirus.

* U.S. gold futures GCv1 slipped 0.3% to $1,654.70 per ounce.

* Asian shares and Wall Street futures fell as growing scepticism about Washington’s stimulus package to fight the outbreak knocked the steam out of an earlier rally. [MKTS/GLOB]

* As U.S. coronavirus cases rose steadily, the White House and Congress negotiated measures to bolster the U.S. economy and Americans’ paychecks against the outbreak’s impact, although there was no immediate sign of a deal.

* The dollar resumed its descent against the safe-haven Japanese yen and Swiss franc after a rebound the previous day as nervous sentiment over the epidemic persisted. [USD/]

* The total number of infected cases in mainland China rose to 80,778 as of Tuesday, while more than 116,000 people have been infected globally, as the outbreak spread to more countries, causing greater economic damage.

* Japan announced a second package of measures worth about $4 billion in spending to cope with the fallout to the economy of the outbreak, focusing on support for small and mid-sized firms.

* Britain’s new finance minister, Rishi Sunak, will pledge billions of pounds to fight the impact of the epidemic on Wednesday, and the Bank of England might add its firepower to the attempt to stave off the risk of a new recession.

* The euro zone economy grew at a snail’s pace in the fourth quarter, figures confirmed, as investments and consumer and government spending just offset the impact of a sharp rise in imports.

* SPDR Gold Trust (GLD), the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings fell 0.18% to 962.03 tonnes on Tuesday. [GOL/ETF]

* Palladium XPD= fell 0.7% to $2,403.73 per ounce, while platinum XPT= was up 0.2% at $870.18.

* Silver XAG= rose 0.9% to $17.02 per ounce.