Precious metals closed with very narrow changes Wednesday. Gold was the single gainer in very light, range-bounded trading.
Gold prices for December delivery settled up $3.20, or 0.2%, to $1,616.00 an ounce. Prices traded between an intraday low and high of $1,605.90 and $1,619.50.
"There appears to be little investor enthusiasm to push gold prices in any clear direction. A dearth of important economic releases this week and thin summer turnover may leave gold trading in a near-term no-man’s land," said James Steel, HSBC’s chief commodity analyst, according to Reuters.
In other New York precious metals:
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Barely snapping a three-day winning streak, silver prices for September delivery edged down 1.1 cents to $28.075 an ounce. Silver ranged from a low of $27.66 to a high of $28.21.
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Platinum for October delivery was also nearly unchanged, dipping 20.0 cents to $1,410.20 an ounce. Platinum touched a low of $1,399.00 and a high of $1,411.40.
- Palladium for September delivery declined $1.70, or 0.3%, to $586.50 an ounce, trading between $581.50 and $587.95.
London Precious Metals
London precious metals were mixed Wednesday. When comparing London PM Fix prices:
- Gold added $2.25, or 0.1%, to $1,613.25 an ounce,
- Silver lost 16.0 cents, or 0.6%, to $27.84 an ounce,
- Platinum declined $8.00, or 0.6%, to $1,402.00 an ounce, and
- Palladium was unchanged at $585.00 an ounce
Sales of U.S. Mint Bullion Coins
Sales of U.S. Mint bullion coins were unchanged Wednesday as of 4:24 p.m. ET. The latest daily, August and year-to-date sales figures for U.S. Mint bullion products follow.
| US Mint American Eagle and Buffalo Bullion Coin Sales | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Gains | August Gains | YTD 2012 | |
| $50 American Gold Eagle Coins | 0 | 3,500 | 317,000 |
| $25 American Gold Eagle Coins | 0 | 0 | 56,000 |
| $10 American Gold Eagle Coins | 0 | 0 | 54,000 |
| $5 American Gold Eagle Coins | 0 | 5,000 | 195,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo Gold Coins | 0 | 2,500 | 81,500 |
| American Silver Eagle Coins | 0 | 765,000 | 20,435,000 |
| America the Beautiful 5 Oz. Silver Bullion Coin Sales | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Gains | August Gains | All-Time Total | |
| 2012 El Yunque National Forest 5 oz. Silver Coins | 0 | 400 | 13,600 |
| 2012 Chaco Culture National Historical Park 5 oz. Silver Coins | 0 | 400 | 7,800 |
| 2012 Acadia National Park 5 oz. Silver Coins | 0 | 600 | 10,500 |
| 2011 Olympic National Park 5 oz. Silver Coins | 0 | 0 | 85,500 |
| 2011 Vicksburg National Military Park 5 oz. Silver Coins | 0 | 0 | 39,100 |
| 2011 Chickasaw Park 5 oz. Silver Coins | 0 | 0 | 29,400 |
| TOTAL | 0 | 1,400 | 185,900 |
Above U.S. Mint bullion sales are in coin totals, not in amount of ounces sold.
