Gold futures declined for a third session in a row on Tuesday as risk appetite increased and as speculation broadened that the U.K. would stay in the European Union.
Gold for August delivery fell $19.60, or 1.5%, to settle at $1,272.50 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"The market interest in Brexit is really what built up the big move that we saw in gold," Bloomberg News quoted Tim Evans, chief market strategist at Long Leaf Trading Group Inc. in Chicago. "The sentiment in terms of what they’re going to do is definitely shifting on the ground. The gold market is reflecting that."
The U.K. votes on Thursday on an exit from the European Union (Brexit).
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,272 to a high of $1,297.40. Tuesday’s settlement was the lowest since June 8. The yellow metal marked a more than 17-month high just four sessions ago.
Elsewhere, silver for July delivery lost 19.5 cents, or 1.1%, to settle at $17.319 an ounce. Silver futures traded between $17.22 and $17.61. On Monday, they moved up 0.6%.
In PGM futures on Tuesday:
-
July platinum shed $5.70, or 0.6%, to $981.50 an ounce, ranging from $972.90 to $994.50.
- Palladium for September delivery gained $2.90, or 0.5%, to $551.35 an ounce, trading between $540 and $553.75.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Monday PM to Tuesday PM:
- Gold declined $9.20, or 0.7%, to $1,272.60 an ounce.
- Silver rose 2.5 cents, or 0.1%, to $17.36 an ounce.
LBMA platinum and palladium prices are available on the LBMA’s website with a delay of midnight.
US Mint Bullion Coin Sales in 2016
United States Mint bullion sales were unchanged Tuesday. On Monday, the U.S. Mint set its weekly allocation of American Silver Eagle at 2,204,500 coins. 2016 Silver Eagles are running at a record pace with 24,795,500 sold, marking a 26.9% increase over those sold through same time in record-breaking year 2015.
Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. Mint bullion products with columns listing the number of bullion coins sold during varying periods of time.
| US Mint Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday / This Week | Last Week | Apr Sales | May Sale | June Sales | 2016 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 14,000 | 93,500 | 64,500 | 36,000 | 379,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 1,000 | 6,000 | 7,000 | 1,000 | 44,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 2,000 | 14,000 | 10,000 | 4,000 | 80,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 15,000 | 55,000 | 60,000 | 35,000 | 470,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 3,000 | 19,500 | 18,500 | 9,000 | 107,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 468,000 | 4,072,000 | 4,498,500 | 1,382,500 | 24,795,500 |
| 2016 Shawnee 5 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 105,000 |
| 2016 Cumberland Gap 5 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 0 | 64,000 | 11,000 | 0 | 75,000 |
| 2016 Harpers Ferry 5 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 1,200 | 64,000 | 11,000 | 34,200 | 34,200 |
Another day without any sales of silver or gold bullion coins to the Mint’s 13 worldwide bullion coin Authorized Purchasers. I realize we are only halfway through the year, but does anyone think the 2015 record of 47 million ASE $1 bullion coins will be broken this year?
-NumisDudeTX