Gold prices fall marginally ahead of Fed Reserve meeting

Gold prices were marginally lower today, Dec. 15, ahead of the Federal Reserve's interest rate decision later in the day, as investors awaited whether the bank would make a decision to speed up the process of reducing bond purchases.

The World Health Organization (WHO) warned that the Omicron is spreading faster than any previous strain of COVID-19, amid the possibility of its spread all over the world. So far 77 countries have announced registration of infections with the new strain.

Gold futures contracts for February delivery fell 0.3% to reach $1,767.90 per ounce at 10:40am Makkah time. Spot price for the yellow metal fell 0.2% to reach $1,767.66 per ounce.

Elsewhere, silver futures for March delivery fell 0.2% to reach $21.89 an ounce. Spot price for platinum delivery fell 0.6% to reach $918.77, while palladium declined 1.4% to reach $1,600 per ounce.

The main dollar index, which measures the performance of the US currency against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.1% to 96.474 points.