Spot gold was down 0.4 percent at $2,018.29 an ounce by 1445 GMT. It hit a record high of $2,135.40 yesterday, falling more than $100 in a single day, down two percent.

U.S. gold futures were down 0.3 percent at $2,036.80.

“The rise in the US dollar index this week had an external negative impact on the market…but the $2,000 level remains a near-term floor in the gold market,” said Jim Wyckoff, senior analyst at Kitco Metals. .

The dollar rose 0.2 percent to near its highest level in more than a week, lifting gold prices for holders of other currencies.

After cautious comments from senior Federal Reserve officials, 61 percent of traders expect an interest rate cut of at least 25 basis points in March, and 87 percent of them expect it to happen in May, according to the CME Feed Watch service.

“We expect (gold) prices to rise permanently to $2,100 in the second half of 2024, when the US Federal Reserve begins to cut interest rates,” Commerzbank said in a note.

The monthly Job Openings and Labor Market Turnover (JOLTS) report showed that available jobs in the U.S. fell to 8.73 million in October from 9.35 million in September, indicating a slowdown in labor demand.

Investors await the ADP survey of private sector employment, scheduled for release tomorrow, Wednesday, ahead of Friday’s U.S. nonfarm payrolls report.

As for other precious metals, silver fell 1.1 percent to $24.22 an ounce and platinum was down 2.2 percent to $896.17 in spot transactions. Palladium fell 2 percent to $956.84 an ounce.