Gold and silver futures advanced in their start to the new trading week on Tuesday, with both metals ending at levels last logged in 2014.
Gold for August delivery gained $19.70, or 1.5%, to settle at $1,358.70 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement is the highest since Mar 18, 2014 when gold closed at $1,359 an ounce.
"Safe haven demand has continued to grow … A lot of people believe that global monetary easing worldwide is going to continue," Reuters quoted Phillip Streible, senior commodities broker at R.J. O’Brien in Chicago. "I think the gold market is a good place to go right now, especially with record low interest rates."
Gold futures traded from a low of $1,338.50 to a high of $1,360.30. Markets in the U.S. closed Monday for Independence Day. Last week, gold climbed 1.3% for a fifth straight weekly gain.
Advancing for the ninth time in ten sessions, silver for September delivery jumped 31.9 cents, or 1.6%, to close at $19.907 an ounce. The settlement is the highest since Aug. 14, 2014 when silver finished at $19.91 an ounce. Silver futures ranged from $19.61 to $21.23. They soared last week by 10.1%.
In other precious metals futures on Tuesday:
-
October platinum added $19.80, or 1.9%, to $1,076.90 an ounce, trading between $1,050.20 and $1,079.30.
- Palladium for September delivery declined $3, or 0.5%, to $602.65 an ounce, ranging from $590.60 to $617.40.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Monday PM to Tuesday PM:
- Gold was unchanged at $1,350.75 an ounce.
- Silver declined 63 cents, or 3.1%, to $19.73 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. Earlier in the day, the U.S. Mint said its latest weekly allocation of American Silver Eagles is 2,839,500 coins. 2016 Silver Eagles are running at a record pace with sales of 26,250,500 coins, marking a 16.3% 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 / July | Last Week | May Sale | June Sales | 2016 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 13,000 | 64,500 | 62,500 | 406,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 0 | 7,000 | 3,000 | 46,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 0 | 10,000 | 10,000 | 86,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 15,000 | 60,000 | 70,000 | 505,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 2,500 | 18,500 | 14,500 | 112,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 938,000 | 4,498,500 | 2,837,500 | 26,250,500 |
| 2016 Shawnee 5 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 105,000 |
| 2016 Cumberland Gap 5 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 0 | 11,000 | 0 | 75,000 |
| 2016 Harpers Ferry 5 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34,200 | 34,200 |
