CHICAGO, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell on Wednesday in anticipation of quantitative tightening.

       The most active gold contract for June delivery fell 3.4 U.S. dollars, or 0.17 percent, to close at 1,955.6 dollars per ounce.

       High inflation is prompting more aggressive tightening from the Federal Reserve. Traders may be fearing more to come, and the economic consequences of such policy moves.

       There are market analysts talking of peak U.S. inflation and slowing economic growth, which may take some steam out of gold. The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday cut its forecast for global growth to 3.6 percent in 2022 from its January estimate of 4.4 percent, citing inflation and the Russia-Ukraine conflict as factors.

       The National Association of Realtors reported on Wednesday that U.S. existing home sales dropped 2.7 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.77 million units in March, giving certain support to gold.

       Silver for May delivery fell 12 cents, or 0.47 percent, to close at 25.271 dollars per ounce. Platinum for July delivery fell 1.7 dollars, or 0.17 percent, to close at 987 dollars per ounce.