By Nick Godt, MarketWatch Gold sinks as Greek woes, Fed views lift dollar NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Gold futures were under heavy selling pressure early on Thursday, as concerns about the debt repayment ability of Greece and a clearer schedule for the end of the Federal Reserve's stimulus measures boosted the U.S. dollar and reduced the precious metal's investment appeal. Gold for February was down $16.50, or 1.5%, at $1,119.30 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The less actively traded January contract was down $16.80, or 1.5%, at $1,118.90 an ounce. "People are realizing that the Fed will be unwinding as it gave specific details of the process," after it left interest rates unchanged as expected on Wednesday, said Dan Greenhaus, market strategist at Miller Tabak. "The dollar and commodities are trading off that," he said. Also lifting demand for the safe haven provided by the dollar, Standard & Poor's late on Wednesday downgraded Greece to BBB+, matching a fellow downgrade from Fitch Ratings just over a week ago, on concerns the country will struggle to bring lower a deficit that is over 12% of its gross domestic product. The dollar index (DXY 77.65, +0.65, +0.85%) , which measures the U.S. unit against a basket of major currencies, recently gained 0.8% to 77.64.

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