Monthly Archives: September 2011

Volatile precious metals have already affected one category of coins issued by the United States Mint. The bureau on Monday suspended numismatic silver products due to plunging silver prices.

And now, for a third straight week, the Mint on Wednesday is expected to implement price cuts on its collector gold coins due to plummeting gold prices. Since gold has fallen to such an extent, coin prices are likely to be cut deeper than normal [...]

U.S. gold futures advanced 3.6 percent Tuesday, snapping a string of four straight session losses. Rebounding equities, a weaker U.S. dollar, and bargain hunting were attributed to yellow metal gains.

"Over the last several days, we have gone back to the traditional dollar positive, gold negative relationship. With the dollar under significant pressure today, it has driven buying back into gold," Reuters quoted David Meger, director of metals trading at Vision Financial Markets, a futures brokerage.

Marking their best single-day advance since August 8, gold prices for December delivery rose $57.70 to close at [...]

Sales trickled in for the 2011-P Gettysburg National Military Park Five Ounce Silver Uncirculated Coin as compared to the prior five issues in the America the Beautiful Five Ounce Silver Uncirculated Coin series.

Launched Thursday at the same $279.95 price as the previous coins but with higher per household limits of five instead of one, buyers snapped up 9,549 through to Monday according to the latest United States Mint sales figures. Given that the Mint suspended sales of many silver products on Monday, including that of the Gettysburg uncirculated coin, next week's sales figure may be challenged further unless a re-release happens soon and at a cheaper price [...]

A day of recovery was apparently in the making in the precious metals markets this morning as the complex opened solidly in the "green" against a pullback in the US dollar and amid rising optimism that Europe and its currency would live to see another day.

After the worst three-day rout since the scary days of 2008 and the worst four-day slide since 1983, one would expect as much from the commodities' space. The questions that remain relate to how durable today's optimism (and buying) will prove to be. The appetite for risk was back on the investment menu and it was being reflected in 3% gains in copper and equal-sized advances in crude oil, for starters. [...]

U.S. gold fell for a fourth straight session Monday, closing to its lowest price in two months. Gold, traditionally purchased as a safe investment in volatile markets, has not been a safe haven. The yellow metal declined $45 on Monday after plummeting $101.90 on Friday for its biggest single day loss since January 1980. Gold has given up $214.30, or 11.8 percent, in four sessions.

In the December futures contract on the Comex in New York, gold prices declined 2.7 percent to settle at $1,594.80 an ounce. It rebounded from an earlier low of [...]

Legislation introduced Tuesday, September 20, calls for $50 gold, silver dollar and 50-cent clad commemorative coins to honor James Monroe, the fifth president of the United States.

Presented by Rep. Rob Wittman, R-VA, as the James Monroe Commemorative Coin Act and numbered H.R. 2968, the bill would authorize the United States Mint to offer each commemorative coin in calendar year 2016 -- the bicentennial of Monroe's election. The legislation marks a second attempt at passage. Wittman introduced a nearly identical bill in December 2009, numbered H.R. 4329. That bill died due to inaction. [...]

If anyone thought that Friday's heart-stopping $100+ free-fall in gold was, well,... heart-stopping, they had better be thankful that they were asleep overnight as the yellow metal fell some $130 and touched the $1,531 (not a misprint) level. Safe-haven seekers remain on a quest that thus far has yielded only one "safe" asset and not much of a "haven" in many a market.

Financial writers quickly ran out of superlatives and, frankly, out of comparisons as well, because while gold was set to notch its largest decline in nearly 30 years, the aforementioned $128.40 swing from [...]

U.S. gold prices plummeted nearly $102 toward $1,600 an ounce on Friday, capping the biggest weekly loss since February 1983. The daily drop was the largest since January 22, 1980.

"The bull case for gold is on pause for the near term," Reuters quoted Adam Klopfenstein, senior market strategist for precious metals at MF Global in Chicago.

"In the near-term, the flight-to-quality interest in owning gold is also out of the window as people are not interested in buying it even in the face of fears in the economy. Until it stabilizes, I'm staying out of this market."

Gold prices plunged $101.90, or 5.9 percent, to close at $1,639.80 an ounce in the [...]

Selling of commodities intensified overnight after a brutal day on Thursday. Gold prices fell by more than $50 per ounce as they penetrated previous "must-hold" support numbers at the $1,702-$1,705 area, and traded as low as $1,683.00 during the early morning hours.

Spot New York bullion dealings opened at the $1,686.90 level on the bid-side on Friday, showing a loss of $49.30 per ounce as persistent selling and the "get me out by day's end" Friday patterns remained in evidence [...]