NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Gold futures ended slightly lower on Tuesday, pressured by speculation that the Federal Reserve might hint at mopping up some of the massive amount of money it injected in the financial system.
Gold for February delivery, the most active contract, finished the session down 80 cents at $1,123.0 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The January contract lost 90 cents to finish at $1,122.50 an ounce.
Earlier, gold failed to benefit from news that U.S. production prices rose much more than expected in November, mostly due to higher energy prices. Gold is often regarded as a hedge against inflation.
