Wednesday saw a decline in gold prices, giving up some of the previous gains as the greenback strengthened and there was some ambiguity about the date of the Fed's interest rate trims during this year.

Spot gold muted at $2,064.16 per ounce, while gold futures dipped a bit to $2,072.40 per ounce. Both dropped 0.3% yesterday.

In the last few trading days of 2023, the yellow metal saw a significant surge because of mounting expectations that the Fed will start lowering interest rates as early as March 2024. Spot gold remained trading just $100 away from its record peak set early in December.

However, it seems that the markets were waiting for further confirmation that the Fed will start reducing interest rates in 2024. In response, the yellow metal gave up some of its recent gains, and the dollar swiftly recovered from Tuesday's close to five-month lows. 

The markets are in tense awaiting of the Fed's December meeting minutes, which are scheduled later in the day. Analysts cautioned that the minutes could not be as dovish as anticipated.

In December, gold saw a robust rally as well, and there might be more upward momentum ahead. Lower interest rates are good news for gold since investing in it has a higher opportunity cost when yields are high.