Gold settles lower, then moves up after Fed announces first interest-rate hike since 2018

Gold futures settled lower on Wednesday, then headed higher in electronic trading after the Federal Reserve announced the first interest-rate increase since 2018. Fed officials lifted the fed funds rate by one-quarter point to the 0.25% to 0.5% range and noted that the Russia-Ukraine war put upward pressure on inflation. April gold was at $1,913.30 an ounce in electronic trading shortly after the announcement. That follows a settlement of $1,909.20, down $20.50, or 1.1%, for Wednesday’s session, the lowest finish for a most-active contract since Feb. 28, FactSet data show.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.