CHICAGO, Oct. 5 (Xinhua) -- Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell on Wednesday as the U.S. dollar strengthened.
The most active gold contract for December delivery fell 9.7 U.S. dollars, or 0.56 percent, to close at 1,720.8 dollars per ounce.
Rising U.S. Treasury yields also dampened gold.
Gold was under additional pressure as economic data released Wednesday are positive. The Automated Data Processing Inc. employment report shows that U.S. private sector added 208,000 jobs in September, better than the 200,000 median forecast by economists.
The S&P Global U.S. Services Purchasing Managers' Index came in at 49.3 percent in September, up from the final August estimate of 43.7.
Nevertheless, the Institute for Supply Management's Services index was at 56.7 percent in September, down slightly from 56.9 percent in August.
Investors are waiting for the September jobs report on Friday.
Silver for December delivery fell 55.5 cents, or 2.63 percent, to close at 20.544 dollars per ounce. Platinum for January delivery fell 19.1 dollars, or 2.05 percent, to close at 914.6 dollars per ounce.
