Affected by investors' profit-taking ahead of New Year's Day, the price of gold futures on the COMEX Division of the New York Mercantile Exchange settled slightly lower Tuesday. Silver ended higher and platinum went down, Xinhua reported.
Gold price for February delivery fell 5.30 U.S. dollars, or 0.6 percent, to 870 dollars an ounce. March silver gained 17 cents to 10.98 dollars per ounce. April platinum went down 6 dollars, settling at 917.40 dollars per ounce.
When gold climbed as high as 892 dollars per ounce Monday, investors began to take profit, which resulted in gold cutting most of its gains.
And with fears about escalating tensions in the Middle East easing Tuesday, investors continued to sell gold to book profits.
Crude oil and the U.S. dollar, two key factors affecting gold futures both kept steady relatively Tuesday, which contributed to the moderate change in the gold price.