March 1 (Bloomberg) -- Gold rose in Asia for the fourth day in five as the prospect of United Nations sanctions against Iran spurred demand from investors buying bullion as a haven.

Tensions surrounding Iran's nuclear program have heightened this week with the U.S., the U.K., Russia, China, France and Germany set to discuss by telephone later today elements of a new UN resolution against Iran, the State Department said Feb. 26.

``Fundamentally, nothing much has changed for gold, the geopolitical tensions remain, if anything it is a safe haven,'' said Darren Heathcote, head of trading at Investec Bank (Australia) Ltd. ``I think the expectations are it will head towards the highs of yesterday, around the $679 level again.''

Gold for immediate delivery rose as much as $8.20, or 1.2 percent, to $677.55 an ounce and traded at 676.96 at 12:11 p.m. Sydney time, extending the metal's 0.9 percent gain late yesterday in New York.

Gold, which often gains in times of geopolitical tension, rose to $682.25 on Feb. 21 as a UN deadline imposed on Iran to stop enriching uranium passed.

The White House has rejected the possibility of bilateral talks with Iran ahead of an international security conference on Iraq on March 10, which will be attended by both the U.S. and Iran, Agence France-Press reported yesterday.

``They will be concerned that Iran are not going to step up to the plate about this whole situation,'' Heathcote said. ``If the UN sanctions come into play then maybe there will be some concern that we are going to have another Iraq situation.''

The U.S. will not engage in diplomatic recognition of Iran are bilateral talks, White House spokesman Tony Snow was cited as saying by AFP. Disagreement over Iran's nuclear program boosted oil prices and helped push gold to a 26-year high of $730.40 an ounce on May 12.

Gold futures for April delivery rose as much as $7.70, or 1.1 percent, to $680.20 an ounce and traded at $679.80 at 12:06 p.m. Sydney time in electronic trading on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 2.1 percent yesterday.

``The headwind that is blowing against gold is proving a bit too strong and thus bullion is nervously pacing the $665-$680 corridor looking for signs of either continued liquidation or bargain hunting demands,'' said Jon Nadler, an investment- products analyst at Montreal- based Kitco Minerals & Metals Co., said in a note to clients Feb. 28.

In Japan, gold for delivery in December 2007 fell 3 yen, or 0.1 percent, to 2,609 yen a gram ($684 an ounce) at 12:10 Sydney time on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange.

A futures contract is an obligation to buy or sell a commodity at a set price for delivery by a specific date.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jesse Riseborough in Melbourne at jriseborough@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: February 28, 2007 20:19 EST