By Polya Lesova
FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) -- Gold futures fell sharply on Thursday after the International Monetary Fund announced plans to sell 191.3 tons of gold on the open market. The sale, announced late Wednesday, is part of a total of 403.3 metric tons designated for sale last September. Gold futures for April delivery dropped $18.50, or 1.6%, to $1,101.60 an ounce in electronic trading on Globex. "The IMF announcement came in the after-market session and saw gold fall more than $5 an ounce in a matter of minutes, and follow-through offers have been generated overnight, with gold testing below $1,100 an ounce, as a result of the weaker euro/dollar cross," said James Moore, an analyst at TheBullionDesk.com, in a note to clients. The euro was down 0.3% to $1.3563.
