The most active gold contract for December delivery fell 5.5 U.S. dollars, or 0.31 percent, to close at 1,771.2 dollars per ounce.
Market analysts hold that the minutes of the Federal Reserve's July meeting released Wednesday were neutral to just slightly dovish, and the markets showed "no significant reactions."
Economic data released Thursday also dampened gold. The U.S. Labor Department reported that U.S. initial jobless claims fell by 2,000 to 250,000 in the week ending August 13.
The Philadelphia Federal Reserve's monthly manufacturing index rose to 6.2 in August from negative 12.3 in July, topping all 30 estimates of economists, which had a median prediction for a reading of minus 5.0.
The National Association of Realtors reported that U.S. existing-home sales fell 5.9 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.81 million in July. This is the sixth straight monthly decline, and the sales number was in line with market expectations.
Silver for September delivery fell 26.7 cents, or 1.35 percent, to close at 19.464 dollars per ounce. Platinum for October delivery fell 14.4 dollars, or 1.57 percent, to close at 904.9 dollars per ounce.
Latest comments