A rise in the dollar, minutes after the Federal Reserve meeting, weighed on gold prices

Gold prices fell on Wednesday as the dollar weakened and U.S. Treasury yields fell, after minutes of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s June monetary policy meeting confirmed expectations that interest rates will remain high for a longer period of time.

The U.S. Federal Reserve agreed to keep interest rates unchanged at its June meeting, even though a majority of the central bank predicted more monetary tightening would eventually be needed, according to meeting minutes released Wednesday.

Price movements

Spot gold was down 0.5 percent at $1916.49 an ounce by 18:32 GMT, while U.S. gold futures were down 0.1 percent at $1927.10.

Ten-year US Treasury yields hit a four-month high after the meeting’s minutes were released, while the dollar rose 0.3 percent against its rivals.

Higher interest rates lead to lower investment in gold, which does not provide returns but is considered a safe hedge in times of economic uncertainty.

Investors now expect 86 percent of the Fed to raise interest rates by 25 basis points, with rate cuts starting in 2024, according to CME Group’s VideoWatch tool.

Among other precious metals, spot silver rose 0.8 percent to $23 an ounce, platinum fell 0.1 percent to $914.11 and palladium rose 1 percent to $1,255.78.