Gold edged lower for a second day of losses Wednesday but silver, platinum and palladium rebounded slightly.
Gold for February delivery dipped $2.00, or 0.1%, to $1,693.80 an ounce on the Comex in New York. The closing price remains the lowest since Nov. 5, first predicated by a loss of $25.30 on Tuesday. A firmer U.S. dollar and continued uncertainty over U.S. fiscal cliff negotiations were among factors analysts cited for losses.
"Gold could remain under pressure until there is more visibility into how the stock market is going to react to the [fiscal] cliff, and if central bank purchases of gold will continue," MarketWatch quoted Richard Hastings, a macro strategist at Global Hunter Securities.
In other New York futures prices Wednesday:
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March silver gained 15.2 cents, or 0.5%, to $32.96 an ounce. Silver plunged 95.1 cents on Tuesday.
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Platinum for January delivery closed at $1,584.20 an ounce, edging up $1.30 or 0.1%. The PGM traded between $1,571.00 and $1,597.50.
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March palladium added $4.75, or 0.7%, to $687.45 an ounce, ranging from $673.25 to $689.80.
Bullion Prices in London
London precious metals were mixed to unchanged. In contrasting the most recent PM fixings:
- Gold lost $3.75, or 0.2%, to $1,694.00 an ounce,
- Silver fell 23.0 cents, or 0.7%, to $33.07 an ounce,
- Platinum was unchanged at $1,587.00 an ounce, and
- Palladium added $1.00, or 0.2%, to $681.00 an ounce
US Mint Bullion Coin Sales in December
Sales of U.S. Mint bullion coins advanced for a second day Wednesday. Gains were modest for the Mint’s Silver Eagles, up 28,000 compared to the previous day’s pick-up of 700,000. Gold Eagles were stronger, rising 11,500 versus the prior advance of 7,000. Gold Buffalo coins also climbed, up 500 compared to the previous 2,000.
A breakdown of U.S. Mint sales by bullion coin are in the tables below.
| US Mint American Eagle and Buffalo Bullion Coin Sales | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday Sales | Last Week | Week-To-Date / December Sales | YTD 2012 | |
| $50 American Eagle Gold Coins | 11,500 | 68,000 | 18,500 | 612,500 |
| $25 American Eagle Gold Coins | 0 | 2,000 | 1,000 | 69,000 |
| $10 American Eagle Gold Coins | 0 | 0 | 2,000 | 72,000 |
| $5 American Eagle Gold Coins | 0 | 5,000 | 0 | 315,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo Gold Coins | 500 | 6,500 | 2,500 | 126,500 |
| American Silver Eagle Coin | 28,000 | 500,000 | 728,000 | 32,835,500 |
| America the Beautiful 5 Oz. Silver Bullion Coin Sales | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday Sales | Last Week | Week-To-Date / December Sales | All-Time Total | |
| 2012 El Yunque National Forest 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 2,000 | 21,900 |
| 2012 Chaco Culture National Historical Park 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 |
| 2012 Acadia National Park 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 3,100 | 0 | 25,400 |
| 2012 Hawai’i Volcanoes 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 |
| 2012 Denali National Park 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 1,400 | 0 | 20,000 |
| 2011 Olympic National Park 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 85,900 |
| 2011 Vicksburg National Military Park 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39,500 |
| 2011 Chickasaw Park 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29,700 |
| TOTAL | 0 | 4,500 | 2,000 | 262,400 |
Sales above are in the number of coins sold. Total ounces may be calculated by using the weight of the coin.
