CHICAGO, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) -- Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell on Tuesday as the U.S. dollar strengthened.

The most active gold contract for February delivery fell 50 cents, or 0.02 percent, to close at 2,033.00 U.S. dollars per ounce.

In a moderated discussion hosted by the Rotary Club of Atlanta on Monday, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Raphael Bostic said inflation has come down more than he expected and is on a path to reaching the Fed's 2-percent goal, though it's too early to declare victory.

Bostic repeated his expectation for two rate cuts this year, and told reporters that he expects the first cut in the third quarter.

In remarks prepared for delivery to the South Carolina Bankers Association 2024 Community Bankers Conference, Federal Reserve Governor Michelle Bowman said on Monday that current policies are tight enough to achieve the 2-percent inflation target. However, she doesn't believe current conditions are appropriate for rate cuts.

Following the remarks, the odds for interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve in March dropped.

The U.S. Commerce Department reported Tuesday that U.S. goods and services trade deficit decreased by 2 percent from revised 64.5 billion dollars in October to 63.2 billion dollars in November, dampening gold.

Investors now await U.S. December consumer price index to be released on Thursday and U.S. producer price index on Friday, to gauge the likely path ahead for U.S. monetary policies.

Silver for March delivery fell 21.90 cents, or 0.94 percent, to close at 23.091 dollars per ounce. Platinum for April delivery fell 15.90 dollars, or 1.66 percent, to close at 943.50 dollars per ounce.