Gold prices declined Wednesday, snapping a four-session winning streak and after closing at a more than two week high on Tuesday. Other precious metals gained on the day, led by palladium which soared 25.8%.
Gold for April delivery declined $27.40, or 1.7%, to settle at $1,633.40 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"The gold price is slowing down after two impressive sessions of gains," wrote Carlo Alberto De Casa, chief analyst at ActivTrades, in daily note reported by MarketWatch.
"The risk-on dynamic, which in the last 48 hours largely dominated the markets, is not supporting bullion prices, while investors are probably switching some liquidity back to stocks," he wrote.
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,615.20 to a high of $1,699.30. They surged 6% on Tuesday — posting their highest finish since March 6, and they jumped 5.6% on Monday.
Silver for March delivery tacked on 61.6 cents, or 4.3%, to close at $14.873 an ounce. Silver futures traded between $14.205 and $14.93. They rallied 7.5% on Tuesday and they soared 7.1% on Monday.
In PGM futures prices Wednesday:
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April platinum gained $43.80, or 6.2%, to $745.50 an ounce, ranging from $708.50 to $747.90.
- Palladium for June delivery soared $460.70 to $2,247.60 an ounce, trading between $1,811.90 and $2,319.90. On the week, the metal is up $707.40 or 45.9%.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Tuesday PM to Wednesday PM:
- Gold declined 30 cents, or 0.02%, to $1,605.45 an ounce.
- Silver rose 34 cents, or 2.5%, to $13.965 an ounce.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2020
United States Mint bullion sales increased by 1,000 ounces in American Gold Buffalos and a combined 11,500 ounces in American Gold Eagles.
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) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday | Last Week | This Week | January | February | March | 2020 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 11,000 | 68,500 | 50,000 | 38,000 | 3,500 | 123,500 | 165,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 3,000 | 5,000 | 23,000 | 2,000 | 8,000 | 33,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 6,000 | 14,000 | 18,000 | 2,000 | 20,000 | 40,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 5,000 | 55,000 | 250,000 | 60,000 | 20,000 | 95,000 | 175,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 1,000 | 40,500 | 2,000 | 21,000 | 1,000 | 47,500 | 69,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 862,500 | 1,650,000 | 3,846,000 | 650,000 | 4,832,500 | 9,328,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14,500 | 9,300 | 6,200 | 30,000 |
