CHICAGO, Aug. 16 (Xinhua) -- Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell on Wednesday ahead of release of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) July meeting minutes.

The most active gold contract for December delivery fell 6.90 U.S. dollars, or 0.36 percent, to close at 1,928.30 dollars per ounce.

Shortly after floor trading of gold closed, the FOMC meeting minutes were released, showing most Fed officials continued to worry about "significant upside inflation risks."

The U.S. dollar index and U.S. Treasury yields remained higher after release of the minutes.

The Bank of America predicted that the Federal Reserve may hold rate steady in September and hike rate in November.

Economic data released Wednesday were mixed. The Federal Reserve reported that U.S. industrial production rose one percent in July, well above the median expectation for a 0.3 percent increase by economists.

The U.S. Commerce Department reported that U.S. residential starts increased 3.9 percent in July to a 1.45 million annualized rate, matching the median estimate by economists.

The U.S. Commerce Department further reported that U.S. residential permits, which can hint at future home construction, rose just 0.1 percent in July month on month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.44 million. Economists expected permits to rise 2.1 percent month on month.

Silver for September delivery fell 12.10 cents, or 0.53 percent, to close at 22.535 dollars per ounce. Platinum for October delivery fell 90 cents, or 0.10 percent, to close at 891.30 dollars per ounce.