NEW YORK (AFX) - Comments on inflation from Federal Reserve Chief Ben Bernanke and a more conciliatory tone from Iran on its nuclear program combined to send gold and other precious metals sharply lower in New York Tuesday, traders and analysts said.
August gold lost $14 to $634.70 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange. July silver lost 45 cents to $11.845 an ounce.
'The market is finally listening to what the Fed governors are saying -- that interest rates are going to go higher,' said Leonard Kaplan, president of Prospector Asset Management.
Much of the selling came in the form of long liquidation by large funds, said Kaplan.
July platinum settled down $22.60 at $1,235.90 an ounce. September palladium settled down $12.95 at $351.05 an ounce.
U.S. spot gold at 1:36 p.m. ET traded at $630.10 an ounce, down $6.95.
The benchmark July copper contract settled 11.15 cents lower at $3.4895 per pound.
The July crude oil contract ended at $72.50 a barrel, down 10 cents, after falling as low as $71.35.
The July gasoline contract rose 1.46 cents to $2.1788 a gallon after falling as low as $2.14 a gallon.
July heating oil ended 0.01 cent higher at $2.0426 a gallon.
July natural gas fell 7.8 cents to settle at $6.385 a million British thermal units.
On the New York Board of Trade, July Arabica coffee ended 2.35 cents lower at 96.10 cents a pound and September lost 2.35 cents to 98.90 cents a pound.
The most active July cocoa contract settled down $14 at $1,460 per metric ton.
July futures on raw sugar in foreign ports settled down 0.30 cent at 15.09 cents a pound while October lost 0.27 cent to 15.46 cents a pound.
On the Chicago Board of Trade, July corn fell 5.25 cents to $2.4775 per bushel. July soybeans ended 9.75 cents lower at $5.9350 a bushel. July wheat ended down 13.50 cents at $3.85 per bushel.
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.