Investing.com - Gold prices fell to the lowest level in more than a week on Wednesday, as market players prepared for the outcome of the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting and news on the fate of its bond buying program.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for April delivery fell to a session low of $1,338.20 a troy ounce, the weakest since March 10.
Gold last traded at $1,339.90 an ounce during U.S. morning hours, down 1.41%, or $19.10. Prices lost 1.01%, or $13.90 an ounce, on Tuesday to settle at $1,359.00.
Futures were likely to find support at $1,328.20 a troy ounce, the low from March 10 and resistance at $1,392.60, the high from March 17.
Meanwhile, silver for May delivery dropped 1.34%, or 27.9 cents, to trade at $20.58 a troy ounce, the lowest since February 14. Silver ended Tuesday’s session down 1.94%, or 41.3 cents, to settle at $20.86 an ounce.
Traders turned their attention to the Fed’s policy statement later in the session, amid expectations for a further reduction in its monthly bond buying program to $55 billion from the current $65 billion.
The Fed meeting is to be followed by a press conference with Janet Yellen and the bank is also to publish its forecasts on inflation and economic growth.
Elsewhere on the Comex, copper futures for May delivery fell to a session low of $2.878 a pound earlier, the weakest level since July 2010. Copper last traded at $2.882 a pound, down 2.34%, or 6.9 cents.
Sentiment continued to be weighed by concerns over the health of China’s property sector after real estate developer Zhejiang Xingrun reportedly defaulted on nearly $600 million in debt on Tuesday.
Concerns over domestic bond defaults stoked investor worries that financing deals that have locked up vast quantities of copper could unravel.
A cooler property sector not only weighs on demand for copper as construction material, but also dampens consumption from the home appliances sector.
China is the world’s largest copper consumer, accounting for almost 40% of world consumption last year.