Gold futures declined slightly Thursday, as the U.S. dollar rallied after showing some weakness on Wednesday.
Gold for February delivery shed $5.10, or 0.4%, to settle at $1,172.40 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"A strong U.S. dollar against the world currencies continues to be a significantly bearish weight on the precious metals markets," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Metals Inc., said in a report. "The technical chart posture for gold also remains firmly negative."
The dollar rallied Thursday after the ECB extended its bond-buying program but announced that it would reduce purchases each month to €60 billion from €80 billion.
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,170.90 to a high of $1,180.70. They gained 0.6% in the previous session, lost 0.5% on Tuesday, and dipped 0.1% on Monday.
Elsewhere, silver for March delivery dropped 17.9 cents, or 1%, to settle at $17.096 an ounce. Silver futures traded between $17.02 and $17.29. On Wednesday, they rallied 2.8%.
In other metals trading Thursday:
-
January platinum edged up 60 cents, or less than 0.1%, to $943.80 an ounce, ranging from $935.40 to $952.90.
- Palladium for March delivery gained $6.40, or 0.9%, to $739.05 an ounce, trading between $716.30 and $745.95.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London bullion prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold lost $6.60, or 0.6%, to $1,171.05 an ounce.
- Silver added 36 cents, or 2.2%, to $17.13 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 Thursday as of 3:25 p.m. ET, though all of the agency’s major 2016-dated coins have sold out.
Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. Mint bullion products with columns listing the number of coins sold during varying periods. Products with an asterisk (*) are no longer available.
| US Mint Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday Sales | Last Week | This Week | Nov Sales | Dec Sales | 2016 Sales | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coins* | – | 20,000 | ||||
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coins* | – | 29,000 | 23,000 | 129,000 | 23,000 | 817,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 1,000 | 2,000 | 7,000 | 2,000 | 73,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coins* | – | 2,000 | 2,000 | 18,000 | 2,000 | 152,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coins* | – | 20,000 | 40,000 | 105,000 | 40,000 | 925,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 6,500 | 5,500 | 29,500 | 5,500 | 212,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coins* | – | 175,000 | 240,000 | 3,061,000 | 240,000 | 37,701,500 |
| 2016 Shawnee 5 Oz Silver Coins* | – | 105,000 | ||||
| 2016 Cumberland Gap 5 Oz Silver Coins* | – | 75,000 | ||||
| 2016 Harpers Ferry 5 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 0 | 100 | 1,500 | 100 | 38,100 |
| 2016 Theodore Roosevelt 5 Oz Silver Coins* | – | -2,000 | 800 | 6,600 | 800 | 40,000 |
| 2016 Fort Moultrie 5 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | -3,000 | 0 | 27,800 | 0 | 27,800 |
