Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell moderately on Wednesday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average reached a record high.

The most active gold contract for December delivery inched down 1 U.S. dollar, or 0.08 percent, to settle at 1,278.40 dollars per ounce.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 37.62 points, or 0.17 percent, to 22,001.54 as of 1743 GMT. When equities post gains, the gold futures usually fall.

The Automatic Data Processing (ADP) reported Wednesday that private sector hiring remained strong in July as employers added 178,000 jobs, showing that private companies continues to see job gains.

Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar remained weak, limiting the fall of gold futures.

The U.S. Dollar Index continued its downturn on Wednesday. It fell 0.42 percent to reach 92.65 as of 1732 GMT.

The index is a measure of the dollar against a basket of other major currencies. Gold and the dollar typically move in opposite directions, which means if the dollar goes down, gold futures usually rise.

As for other precious metals, silver for September delivery dropped 3.1 cents, or 0.18 percent, to close at 16.733 dollars per ounce. Platinum for October went up 4.3 dollars, or 0.45 percent, to settle at 953.80 dollars per ounce.