Investing.com -- Gold prices slid down toward $1,200 on Wednesday during a lightly-traded session, hours after India unexpectedly cut its benchmark interest rate.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold future prices for April delivery fell $4.00 or 0.33% to $1,200.40 a troy ounce in U.S. afternoon trading.
Futures were likely to find support at $1,194.60, the low from March 3, and resistance at $1,223.00, the high from March 2.
Earlier on Wednesday, India's central bank lowered its interest rate 0.25% to 7.5%, marking its second rate cut in months. A lower interest-rate is often regarded as a positive sign for gold, as it decreases the price of holding onto the precious metal.
India is the world's largest purchaser of gold.
The move came days after China announced over the weekend that it will be undertaking easing measures with its benchmark interest rate. In combination with India, the two Asian nation account for more than 50% of all gold purchases worldwide.
Trading remained light ahead of the European Central Bank's announcement on Thursday detailing the start of its €60 billion a month quantitative easing program. In China, analysts anticipate that Premier Li Keqiang could lower the nation's economic growth target for the year as the National People's Congress annual meeting opens on Thursday.
Traders in the U.S. also awaited the release of Friday's monthly jobs report for the month of February. On Wednesday, payroll services firm ADP said in its monthly National Employment Report that the private sector added 212,000 non-farm jobs last month. The amount fell shortly below forecasts of a 220,000 gain. For the month of January, private payrolls were revised upward to 250,000 from a previously reported total of 213,000.
Gold prices for future delivery still remained well above $1,190 a troy ounce, a level it reached Tuesday when it was priced at a seven-week low.
Meanwhile, silver futures for May delivery fell 0.121 or 0.74% to 16.172 a troy ounce.
Elsewhere on Comex, copper for May delivery rose 0.003 or 0.09% to 2.659.