Precious metals futures advanced Thursday. In notables, gold posted its tenth straight session increase, silver moved ahead for a seventh session in a row, and palladium closed at an all-time high.
Gold for February delivery settled up $3.10, or 0.2%, to $1,321.60 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the highest since Sept. 15 when prices ended $1,325.20 an ounce.
"Now, traders and investors are looking ahead to Friday’s U.S. employment report from the Labor Department. This report is arguably the most important U.S. data point of the month," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Metals Inc., said in a daily bullion report. "However, a beat to the upside on this report could dent bullish enthusiasm in the precious metals markets, on notions the Federal Reserve would be more likely to raise interest rates at a faster pace. However, it’s my bias that rising U.S. interest rates are pretty much factored into the marketplace for 2018."
Gold futures traded from a low of $1,307.10 to a high of $1,327.30. They edged up 0.2% on Wednesday and rose 0.5% in their start to the new trading week on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, silver for March delivery added 0.2 cents to settle at $17.269 an ounce. The close remains the highest since Nov. 17 when prices settled at $17.373 an ounce. Silver futures ranged from $17.02 to $17.32. They climbed 0.4% on Wednesday and advanced 0.4% on Tuesday.
In other precious metals futures prices:
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April platinum gained $7.90, or 0.8%, to $970.20 an ounce, trading between $949.10 and $971.50.
- Palladium for March delivery moved up $11.40, or 1.1%, to $1,094.75 an ounce, ranging from $1,075.90 to $1,101.70.
"We see palladium prices remaining well supported, although there is a danger from here of a short-term pullback as investors take profits," Reuters quote Mitsubishi.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold dipped 40 cents, or less than 0.1%, to $1,314.50 an ounce.
- Silver added a half penny, or less than 0.1%, to $17.13 an ounce.
LBMA platinum and palladium prices are available on the LBMA’s website with a delay of midnight.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2018
United States Mint bullion sales were unchanged. 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) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday / This Week | Last Week | December | 2017 Sales | 2018 Sales | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 | 0 |
| $25 American Eagle 1 Oz Palladium Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15,000 | 0 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 2,000 | 38,000 | 228,500 | 0 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 3,000 | 37,000 | 0 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 4,000 | 64,000 | 0 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 25,000 | 395,000 | 0 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 14,000 | 99,500 | 0 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 742,000 | 18,065,500 | 0 |
| 2017 Effigy Mounds 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35,000 | 0 |
| 2017 Frederick Douglass 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 | 0 |
| 2017 Ozark Riverways 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 | 0 |
| 2017 Ellis Island 5 Oz Silver Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 40,000 | 0 |
| 2017 George Rogers Clark 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32,400 | 0 |
