CHICAGO, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell on Thursday as the U.S. dollar index and U.S. Treasury yields rose.

The most active gold contract for December delivery fell 27.50 U.S. dollars, or 1.40 percent, to close at 1,939.60 dollars per ounce.

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday kept the interest rate unchanged but did not rule out the possibility of rate hike one more time at its November meeting.

The Fed's hawkish signal of keeping interest rates higher for a longer period sparked a rally in the U.S. dollar, dampening gold instead.

Economic data released Thursday are mixed. The U.S. Labor Department reported Thursday U.S. applications for jobless claims fell by 20,000 to 201,000 in the week ending Sept. 16, the lowest figure since the last week of January.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia reported that its diffusion index for current activity tumbled to a negative 13.5 in September from a positive 12.0 in August. Economists had expected the index to slump to a negative 0.7.

The National Association of Realtors reported that U.S. existing home sales fell 0.7 percent in August from July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.04 million, below the 4.10-million pace that economists were expecting. Sales slumped 15.3 percent compared with the same month last year.

Silver for December delivery fell 14.90 cents, or 0.63 percent, to close at 23.687 dollars per ounce. Platinum for October delivery fell 17.70 dollars, or 1.88 percent, to close at 924.60 dollars per ounce. Enditem

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