Gold futures fall to lowest of the month

Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange dropped on Thursday, down a fourth session in a row to their lowest level so far this month.

The most active gold contract for April delivery fell 10.8 U.S. dollars, or 0.81 percent, to settle at 1,330.5 dollars per ounce. Gold had lost 2.7 percent, or nearly 38 dollars an ounce, over the past three trading sessions, and closed Thursday at their lowest level since Feb. 28, statistics show.

With the geopolitical crisis easing in Ukraine and U.S. Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen delivering an unintended shock to markets Wednesday, speculators are running away from the gold market, analysts said.

The U.S. Fed after its policy meeting that it would continue to taper its bond-buying program. In response, the U.S. dollar rose and gold fell in electronic trading.

Asked about how long the Fed would wait between the end of its stimulus policy and an increase in its base interest rates, Yellen, at her first press conference, hinted that the central bank may wait around six months after tapering ends before it begins to raise rates.

Silver for May delivery lost 39.6 cents, or 1.90 percent, to close at 20.430 dollars per ounce.