Gold prices edged higher Thursday after the yellow metal settled to its lowest point of the year on Wednesday. Gains were limited by the U.S. dollar which turned up against other major currencies for a ninth straight session.
"Gold has behaved closer to risky assets rather than differentiating itself as a safe haven asset and has been winded by the possibility of further quantitative easing being scaled back," Reuters quoted Suki Cooper, precious metals analyst at Barclays Capital.
Gold prices for June delivery rose $1.30, or 0.1%, to $1,595.50 an ounce on the Comex in New York, trading through a daily range of $1,585.00 to $1,602.20. A smidgen of bargain hunting was also cited as providing support for gold on Thursday.
"The drop was large and quick, so it’s not surprising to see some buying at these levels," Bloomberg quoted Xiang Nan, an analyst at CITICS Futures Co., a unit of China’s biggest listed brokerage. "But the dollar looks to be strong in the near term and this will limit gains."
In other metal futures prices on Thursday:
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Silver prices for July delivery dipped 6.3 cents, or 0.2%, to $29.178 an ounce, trading between $28.940 and $29.455.
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Platinum prices for July delivery lost $5.40, or 0.4%, to $1,493.80 an ounce, ranging from $1,486.10 to $1,509.00.
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Palladium prices for June delivery climbed $1.70, or 0.3%, to $615.35 an ounce, moving between $611.10 and $622.55.
London Precious Metal
London precious metals were mixed as platinum declined while silver, gold and palladium advanced. When comparing the most recent London PM fixings:
- Gold prices gained $16.00, or 1.0%, to $1,598.50 an ounce,
- Silver added 48.0 cents, or 1.7%, at $29.25 an ounce,
- Platinum shed $9.00, or 0.6%, to $1,490.00 an ounce, and
- Palladium advanced $5.00, or 0.8%, at $620.00 an ounce
U.S. Mint Bullion Coins
The U.S. Mint’s most popular bullion coins rose Thursday. The Silver Eagle climbed 75,000, marking a second straight day of gains, and the one-ounce Gold Eagle added 1,000 to extend its streak of daily increases to four.
The following are the available daily, May and year-to-date bullion coin sales totals as reported by the U.S. Mint.
| U.S. Mint American Eagle and Buffalo Bullion Coin Sales | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Gains | May Gains | YTD 2012 | |
| American Gold Eagle Coins (1 oz.) | 1,000 | 31,500 | 212,500 |
| American Gold Eagle Coins (1/2 oz.) | 0 | 0 | 51,000 |
| American Gold Eagle Coins (1/4 oz.) | 0 | 0 | 42,000 |
| American Gold Eagle Coins (1/10 oz.) | 0 | 0 | 135,000 |
| American Gold Buffalo Coin (1 oz.) | 0 | 1,000 | 56,500 |
| American Silver Eagle Coins | 75,000 | 435,000 | 12,094,000 |
| America the Beautiful 5 Oz. Silver Bullion Coin Sales | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Prior Weekly | Weekly Gains | All-Time Total | |
| Olympic National Park 5 oz. Silver Coins | 0 | 0 | 85,100 |
| Vicksburg National Military Park 5 oz. Silver Coins | 0 | 0 | 38,300 |
| Chickasaw Park 5 oz. Silver Coins | 0 | 0 | 28,900 |
| TOTAL | 0 | 0 | 152,300 |
All coin sales figures in the above tables are in number of coins, not in the amount of ounces sold. The U.S. Mint last updated five ounce bullion silver coins sold on Monday, April 9.
