Gold futures settled higher for a second straight session Thursday as U.S. and world stocks weakened.
Gold for June delivery tacked on $5.30, or 0.4%, to settle at $1,224.20 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"I think it’s a market looking for the next catalyst. Speculators are stuck waiting," Reuters quoted Afshin Nabavi, head of trading at MKS in Switzerland. "Higher real rates in the U.S., better economic growth in Europe; those all end up being headwinds," he added.
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,216.90 to a high of $1,227.70. They rose 0.2% on Wednesday, shed 0.9% on Tuesday — closing at their lowest price since March 15, and edged up 20 cents on Monday.
Silver for July delivery advanced 5.8 cents, or 0.4%, to settle at $16.265 an ounce. Silver futures traded between $16.16 and $16.39. They gained 0.9% on Wednesday, declined 1.2% on Tuesday, logging their lowest settlement since Dec. 30, and shed 0.1% on Monday.
In other precious metals futures:
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July platinum added $7.80, or 0.9%, to $917.70 an ounce, ranging from $909.40 to $919.60.
- Palladium for June delivery dipped 40 cents, or less than 0.1%, to $798.95 an ounce, trading between $792.65 and $809.10.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London bullion prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold inched up 20 cents to $1,223.15 an ounce.
- Silver gained 8 cents, or 0.5%, to $16.37 an ounce.
LBMA platinum and palladium prices are available on the LBMA’s website with a delay of midnight.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2017
U.S. Mint bullion sales were unchanged Thursday. Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. 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 | April Sales | May Sales | 2017 Sales | |
$100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 |
$50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 2,000 | 500 | 3,500 | 2,500 | 129,500 |
$25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 1,000 | 0 | 1,000 | 26,000 |
$10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2,000 | 0 | 46,000 |
$5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 10,000 | 20,000 | 10,000 | 220,000 |
$50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 3,500 | 2,000 | 61,000 |
$1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 530,000 | 450,000 | 835,000 | 980,000 | 9,772,500 |
2017 Effigy Mounds 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 100 | 500 | 900 | 600 | 21,200 |
2017 Frederick Douglass 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 800 | 1,200 | 17,600 | 2,000 | 19,600 |