WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Gold prices drifted lower on Wednesday, losing ground for the first time in three days, as stronger equity markets dimmed the commodity's safe-haven appeal a bit.
Expectations for further talks between Russia and Ukraine, and prospects of interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve too contributed to the drop in demand for gold.
The dollar's retreat from higher levels helped limit gold's downside. The dollar index, which rose to 97.83 in the Asian session, dropped to 97.29 around noon before recovering slightly to 97.43.
Gold futures for April ended down by $21.50 or about 1.1% at $1,922.30 an ounce, off the day's high of $1,951.40.
Silver futures for May ended lower by $0.351 at $25.190 an ounce, while Copper futures for May settled at $4.6655 per pound, up $0.0690 from the previous close.
On the U.S. economic front, payroll processor ADP released a report showing U.S. private sector employment jumped by much more than expected in the month of February.
The data said private sector employment surged by 475,000 jobs in February compared to economist estimates for an increase of 388,000 jobs.
The report also showed a substantial revision to the January data, with the revised data showing employment spiked by 509,000 jobs compared to the previously reported loss of 301,000 jobs.
Meanwhile, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell told the House Financial Services Committee the Fed still believes it will be appropriate to raise interest rates later this month, citing inflation well above 2% and a strong labor market.
The likely increase in interest rates comes even though Powell acknowledged that the Russia-Ukraine conflict has introduced significant uncertainty for the U.S. economic outlook.
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