Gold Slips 1 Percent as Powell’s Hawkish Stance Bolsters Yields

Granules of 99.99 percent pure gold and silver are seen in glass jars at the Krastsvetmet non-ferrous metals plant, one of the world's largest producers in the precious metals industry, in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk, Russia, on Nov. 22, 2018. Ilya Naymushin/Reuters

Gold prices fell over 1 percent on Tuesday after the U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell hinted at big rate hikes down the year to curb soaring inflation, sending Treasury yields higher.

Gold is highly sensitive to rising U.S. interest rates, as they increase the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding bullion.