Kuala lumpur: Gold futures on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives ended lower on Wednesday, despite a weaker US dollar ahead of the release of the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting minutes later tonight.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Quintex Intel global strategist Stephen Innes mentioned that traders are keenly awaiting more insights from the FOMC minutes regarding the US Federal Reserve's approach to monetary policy.

At the market close, the spot-month August 2026 contract fell to US$4,360.0 per troy ounce from Tuesday's US$4,393.70 per troy ounce. The September 2026 contract also dropped to US$4,376.60 per troy ounce from its previous US$4,410.30 per troy ounce.

Similarly, the October and November 2026 contracts decreased to US$4,392.70 per troy ounce from US$4,426.40 per troy ounce the previous day. The December 2026 and February 2027 contracts saw a decline as well, ending at US$4,400.50 per troy ounce from US$4,434.20.

The trading volume experienced a rise, reaching 327 lots compared to 182 lots on Tuesday, while open interest significantly increased to 413 contracts from a previous total of 256 contracts.

Meanwhile, physical gold was set at US$4,403.50 per troy ounce, according to the London Bullion Market Association's afternoon fix on August 18, 2026.