Gold closed lower for the first time in three sessions on Wednesday as the U.S. dollar rallied to a four-year high.
Gold for December delivery dipped $2.50, or 0.2%, to settle at $1,219.50 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"A rally in the U.S. dollar index to a four-year high has been a major bearish ‘outside market’ factor working against gold and silver," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Metals Inc., said in a report. "Also, the continued bearish technical postures for both gold and silver are allowing the sellers to remain in control."
Gold prices ranged from an intraday low of $1,216.20 to a high of $1,226.70. Gold advanced $4.10 on Tuesday and $1.30 on Monday.
Silver for December delivery declined 8 cents, or 0.4%, to $17.70 an ounce, trading between $17.51 and $17.87. Silver inched up a penny in the previous session.
In PGM futures on Wednesday:
-
October platinum lost $13.30, or 1%, to $1,319.40 an ounce, ranging from $1,316.50 to $1,341.50.
- Palladium for December delivery rose $4.25, or 0.5%, to $820.05 an ounce, trading between $813.60 and $825.45.
London Fix Precious Metals
Earlier fixed London precious metals moved in the same direction as bullion futures in New York. In contrasting London bullion Fix prices and the LBMA Silver Price from Tuesday PM to Wednesday PM:
- Gold shed $4.75, or 0.4%, to $1,217.25 an ounce,
- Silver lost 16 cents, or 0.9%, to $17.76,
- Platinum fell $9, or 0.7%, at $1,328 an ounce, and
- Palladium advanced $10, or 1.2%, to $821 an ounce
US Mint Bullion Coin Sales
United States Mint bullion sales were unchanged Wednesday as of 2:46 PM ET, but they advanced later in the afternoon on Tuesday. Gains included:
- 100 ounces in platinum coins,
- 3,300 ounces in gold coins, and
- 354,500 ounces in silver coins.
Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. Mint bullion products with columns listing the number of bullion coins sold on the prior day, last week, this week, this month, and the year to date.
| American Eagle and Buffalo Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday Sales | Last Week | Current Week | August Sales | September Sales | YTD Sales | |
| $100 American Platinum Eagle Bullion Coins | 100 | 200 | 200 | 700 | 600 | 14,200 |
| $50 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 2,000 | 15,500 | 5,500 | 21,000 | 40,000 | 285,500 |
| $25 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5,000 | 32,000 |
| $10 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 2,000 | 2,000 | 2,000 | 6,000 | 6,000 | 90,000 |
| $5 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 3,000 | 5,000 | 5,000 | 25,000 | 20,000 | 430,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo Bullion Gold Coins | 500 | 4,000 | 3,000 | 8,000 | 11,000 | 136,000 |
| $1 American Eagle Silver Bullion Coins | 345,000 | 950,000 | 1,005,000 | 2,007,500 | 2,765,000 | 30,876,000 |
| Great Smoky Mountains National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 1,500 | 0 | 0 | 2,000 | 31,500 |
| Shenandoah National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 500 | 0 | 500 | 500 | 1,000 | 21,500 |
| Arches National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 200 | 500 | 300 | 1,200 | 800 | 22,000 |
| Great Sand Dunes 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 1,200 | 500 | 1,200 | 7,500 | 4,200 | 11,700 |
