Gold was slightly lower on Wednesday as investors sold to lock in profits after prices hit four-week highs a day earlier in reaction to weaker-than-expected US non-farm payroll data and sold in reaction to a weaker oil market that dragged commodities down. "Crude oil is having a large impact on the commodities sector, dragging everything down," said Paul Sacks, principal gold trader at Aurum Options Strategies in New York. Spot gold was down 0.5 percent at $1,332.95 an ounce at 16:25 EDT (2025 GMT), after hitting $1,344.46 on Tuesday.
US gold futures for December delivery settled down $8.6, or 0.6 percent, at $1,334. Among other precious metals, silver was down 0.4 percent at $22.54 an ounce, having also touched a one-month high on Tuesday at $22.80. Spot platinum was down 0.9 percent at $1,430.74 an ounce, while spot palladium was down 1.07 percent at $743 an ounce. It hit a near two-month high of $752.50 on Tuesday.