Gold futures fell more than 3% Monday to the lowest in nearly one month, pacing sharp losses in crude oil and other commodities, with a stronger U.S. dollar also reducing the metal's investment appeal. Gold for February delivery was last down $30, or 3.5%, at $825 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. It dropped to $823 earlier, the lowest since Dec. 15. The metal ended last week's trading down for the first week in five, falling 2.8%. Monday's losses in gold paced sharp declines in other commodities and global equities. Crude oil tumbled more than 6% to below $39 a barrel on demand worries, while European and Asian stocks moved broadly lower. Falling crude prices tend to put downward pressures on gold prices as weaker crude reduces gold's appeal as a hedge against inflation. Also moving gold lower, the U.S. dollar rose against the euro on expectations that the European Central Bank will cut its key interest rate later this week. The ECB's key lending rate stands at 2.5%. Most economists expect the central bank to order up a reduction of half a percentage point, or 50 basis points, on Thursday. See full story. A stronger greenback tends to pressure dollar-denominated commodities prices as it makes those commodities more expensive to buyers holding other currencies. Gold was losing ground "on the back of a falling euro, rising dollar, falling oil combination," said Jon Nadler, senior analyst at Kitco Bullion Dealers. Other metals also moved lower Monday. March copper tumbled 5.6% to $1.4721 a pound, while March silver lost 3.6% to $10.905 an ounce. April platinum dropped 3.7% to $968 an ounce. March palladium fell 2.7% to $186.80.90 an ounce. Holdings in the SPDR Gold Trust, the largest exchange-traded gold fund, totaled 787.60 tons Friday, unchanged from a day earlier, according to the latest data from the fund.

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