Precious metals futures ended mixed on Friday and for the week. Gold logged a third day of losses while silver drove its losing streak to four straight days, and both posted their first weekly declines in four weeks.
Gold for December delivery lost $9.80, or 0.8%, to settle at $1,264.60 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold fell as the dollar rallied following a better-than-expected U.S. jobs report, opined analysts.
"The strong rise in non-farm payrolls together with the drop back in the unemployment rate to a joint 16-year low suggests the Fed will still need to raise rates again later this year, even if inflation remains subdued," Reuters quoted Simona Gambarini, commodities economist at Capital Economics. "In the absence of substantial geopolitical risks, we think that Fed tightening will prove too strong a headwind for gold prices this year.
Gold futures traded 0.3% lower this week after a string of three weekly gains lifted their prices by 4.8%. On Tuesday, gold settled at $1,279.40 an ounce for its best close since June 8. The yellow metal is 9.8% higher so far this year.
In looking ahead to next week, Kitco News offers the following forecasts via their Wall Street vs. Main Street survey:
"Seventeen market professionals took part in a Kitco News Wall Street survey. Eight voters, or 48%, see gold prices rising by the end of next week. Seven, or 41%, said lower, while the other two, or 12%, see a sideways market.
The Kitco online Main Street poll resulted in 714 votes, with 342 participants, or 48%, calling for gold to climb over the next week. Another 272 voters, or 38%, said that gold will fall, while 100, or 14%, were neutral."
Meanwhile, silver for September delivery tumbled 37.8 cents, or 2.3%, to end at $16.252 an ounce. Silver futures fell 2.7% this week after three prior weekly advances brought prices up by 8.2%. In its last daily increase Monday, silver settled at $16.786 an ounce for its best close since June 14. Silver is 1.6% higher on the year to date.
In PGM futures on Friday and for the week:
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October platinum added $4.40, or 0.5%, to $969 an ounce, for a 3.5% weekly gain.
- Palladium for September delivery shed $6.20, or 0.7%, to $874.80 an ounce, slipping 0.6% on the week.
Both metals are higher on the year so far with increases of 7% for platinum and 28% for palladium.
London Precious Metals Prices
London precious metals prices ended mixed on Friday and for the week. In comparing their levels from Thursday PM to Friday PM:
- Gold declined $10.40, or 0.8%, to 1,257.70 an ounce.
- Silver added 23 cents, or 1.4%, to $16.70 an ounce.
- Platinum rose $10, or 1%, to $966 an ounce.
- Palladium fell $11, or 1.2%, to $884 an ounce.
For the week, gold shed 0.6% while the other London bullion prices registered increases of 0.8% for silver, 4.2% for platinum and 1% for palladium.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2017
United States Mint bullion sales were also mixed this week — slightly stronger for gold coins and weaker for a third week in a row for silver coins. In week-over-week comparisons:
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Gold coins moved up by 2,500 ounces after rising by 1,000 ounces last week. Splits include 1,000 ounces in American Gold Eagles compared to 500 ounces previously and 1,500 ounces in American Gold Buffalos compared to 500 ounces previously.
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Silver coins advanced by just 50,000 ounces compared to 205,000 ounces previously. American Silver Eagles accounted for all silver sales for a sixth straight week.
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) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Friday / Aug | Last Week | This Week | June | July | YTD | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 500 | 1,000 | 4,000 | 13,500 | 155,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,000 | 52,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 | 30,000 | 290,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 500 | 1,500 | 2,000 | 5,000 | 71,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 205,000 | 50,000 | 986,000 | 2,320,000 | 14,553,500 |
| 2017 Effigy Mounds 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8,800 | 0 | 35,000 |
| 2017 Frederick Douglass 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 |
| 2017 Ozark Riverways 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 | 0 | 20,000 |
This article was edited to include updated Aug. 7 U.S. Mint figures. The American Silver Eagle’s total for July changed to 2,320,000 from 2,270,000, bringing up the YTD to 14,553,500. In addition, the 1 oz. Gold Eagle’s total for July climbed to 13,500 from 12,500, bring up their YTD to 155,500.
