Kuala lumpur: Gold futures on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives closed lower today, tracking the weaker performance on the US Commodity Exchange (COMEX), amid rising expectations of a US interest rate hike following US Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's recent speech at the Jackson Hole Symposium.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Quintex Intel global strategist Stephen Innes noted that gold prices closed weaker today primarily due to London traders selling into the market as soon as they came in, driven by the probability of a United States' interest rate hike moving back above 65 percent. "That has temporarily pushed back against retail buying that had started to rebuild after Friday's three percent drop," he told Bernama.

Innes attributed the trend to positioning adjustments rather than a major change in the outlook for gold. "Traders are now waiting for Friday's nonfarm payrolls report, which is the next important potential hawkish US Federal Reserve's signpost ahead of the Federal Open Market Committee's meeting," he added.

At the close, the spot-month September 2026 contract fell to US$4,385.70 per troy ounce from US$4,602.0 per troy ounce last Friday, and the October 2026 contract edged down to US$4,401.9 per troy ounce from US$4,619.30. The November 2026 contract slid to US$4,417.80 per troy ounce from US$4,635.50 per troy ounce, while the December 2026, February 2027, and April 2027 contracts slipped to US$4,425.60 per troy ounce from US$4,643.30 per troy ounce.

Trading volume declined to 117 lots from 347 lots last Friday, while open interest decreased to 164 contracts from 415 contracts previously. Physical gold was fixed at US$4,562.75 per troy ounce at the London Bullion Market Association's afternoon fix on August 28, 2026.