Gold futures advanced for a fifth straight session Wednesday, marking a new about three-month high.
Gold for April delivery climbed $3.40, or 0.3%, to settle at $1,239.50 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement is the highest since Nov. 10 when prices closed at $1,266.40 an ounce.
"The momentum is behind gold at the moment," Bloomberg News quoted Bernard Sin, head of precious metals trading at refiner MKS (Switzerland) SA, said by phone from Geneva. "The trend from a technical perspective is healthy and there is a lot of demand globally."
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,231.30 to a high of $1,246.60. They are 1.5% higher so far this week.
Lower for the first time in four sessions, silver for March delivery shed 5.1 cents, or 0.3%, to $17.705 an ounce. Silver futures traded between $17.62 and $17.88. In the previous session, silver ended at its best level since Nov. 10. The precious metal is still 1.3% higher on the week to date.
In PGM futures on Wednesday:
-
April platinum added $6.50, or 0.6%, to $1,019.40 an ounce, ranging from $1,005.50 to $1,022.30.
- Palladium for March delivery gained $5.30, or 0.7%, to $769.75 an ounce, trading between $785.95 and $773.65.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London bullion prices from Tuesday PM to Wednesday PM:
- Gold rose $11.10, or 0.9%, to $1,242.10 an ounce.
- Silver rose 14 cents, or 0.8%, to $17.74 an ounce.
LBMA platinum and palladium prices are available on the LBMA’s website with a delay of midnight.
US Mint Bullion Coin Sales in 2017
U.S. Mint bullion sales advances included 9,000 ounces in American Gold Eagles and 1,500 ounces in American Gold Buffalos.
Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. bullion products with columns listing the number of coins sold during varying periods. Products with an asterisk (*) are no longer available.
| US Mint Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday Sales | Last Week | This Week | Jan Sales | Feb Sales | 2017 Sales | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 | 0 | 20,000 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 7,500 | 8,000 | 10,000 | 86,500 | 11,500 | 98,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 3,000 | 0 | 4,000 | 19,000 | 4,000 | 23,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36,000 | 0 | 36,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 10,000 | 5,000 | 125,000 | 10,000 | 135,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 1,500 | 4,000 | 4,000 | 32,000 | 6,500 | 38,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 230,000 | 250,000 | 5,127,500 | 250,000 | 5,377,500 |
| 2017 Effigy Mounds 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | – | 17,700 | 100 | 17,700 | 17,700 |
| 2016 Shawnee 5 Oz Silver Coins* | – | |||||
| 2016 Cumberland Gap 5 Oz Silver Coin* | – | |||||
| 2016 Harpers Ferry 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| 2016 Theodore Roosevelt 5 Oz Silver Coin* | – | 800 | – | |||
| 2016 Fort Moultrie 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
