Precious metals futures finished mixed Thursday with gold and silver higher and platinum and palladium lower. Gold settled at its best price in nearly six months while silver scored its best close in more than four months.
Gold for February delivery tacked on $11.50, or 0.9%, to settle at $1,267.90 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the highest since June 25 when gold ended at $1,268.90 an ounce.
"Santa Claus appears to be giving an early present to the gold market bulls, while delivering a lump of coal to the U.S. stock market," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Metals Inc., said in a report. "The yellow metal is supported on safe-haven demand amid another big drop in the U.S. stock market today, as well as worries about a U.S. government shutdown," Wyckoff added.
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,246.20 to a high of $1,263.70. They rose 0.2% on Wednesday, climbed 0.1% on Tuesday, and gained 0.8% on Monday.
Elsewhere, silver for March delivery gained 5.1 cents, or 0.3%, to settle at $14.869 an ounce. The settlement was the highest since silver ended at $15.053 an ounce on Aug. 14. Silver futures traded between $14.62 and $14.88. Silver advanced 0.8% on Wednesday, declined 0.4% on Tuesday, and rose 0.8% on Monday.
In other precious metals futures prices:
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January platinum dipped 20 cents, or less than 0.1%, to $795.80 an ounce, ranging from $785 to $794.80.
- Palladium for March delivery declined $9.40, or 0.8%, to $1,191.90 an ounce, trading between $1,177.30 and $1,204.10. On Wednesday, they ended at a record of $1,201.30 an ounce.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold added $4.75, or 0.4%, to $1,259.75 an ounce.
- Silver added 12.5 cents, or 0.9%, to $14.77 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. Mint bullion products with columns listing the number of coins sold during varying periods.
| US Mint Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday | Last Week | This Week | November | December | 2018 Sales | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 2,000 | 0 | 16,000 | 2,000 | 190,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,000 | 0 | 32,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2,000 | 0 | 62,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 | 0 | 230,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 1,500 | 0 | 5,500 | 1,500 | 121,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 100,000 | 100,000 | 1,645,000 | 350,000 | 15,560,000 |
| Pictured Rocks 5 Oz Silver Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 |
| Apostle Islands 5 Oz Silver Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 |
| Voyageurs 5 Oz Silver Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 |
| Cumberland Island 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 52,500 |
| Block Island 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 80,000 | 0 | 80,000 |
