Gold and silver futures rallied Wednesday. Silver scored its best close in nearly two months while gold ended at its highest price in more than a week.
Gold for December delivery advanced $16.70, or 1.3%, to settle at $1,279.30 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the strongest since Aug. 1 when prices ended 10 cents higher. The precious metal saw safe-haven demand over rising tensions between the U.S. and North Korea.
"The threat has escalated and investors are rushing from equities back into precious metals for safety," Bloomberg News quoted Phil Streible, senior market strategist at RJO Futures in Chicago. "It seems the U.S. is one step closer to engaging in military conflict with North Korea."
Gold futures traded from a low $1,265.90 to a high of $1,282.40. They dipped 0.2% on Tuesday and added a dime in their start to the week on Monday.
Ending higher for a second day in a row after dropping for five straight sessions, silver for September delivery jumped 47.4 cents, or 2.9%, to settle at $16.863 an ounce. The close was the highest since June 14. Silver futures ranged from $16.43 to $16.91. They advanced 0.9% in the previous session and slipped one-tenth of a cent on Monday.
In PGM futures on Wednesday:
-
October platinum increased $1.60, or 0.2%, to $976.10 an ounce, trading between $974.20 and $985.
- Palladium for September delivery declined $6.55, or 0.7%, to $891.85 an ounce, ranging from $888.60 to $898.75.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Tuesday PM to Wednesday PM:
- Gold added $9.25, or 0.7%, to 1,271.05 an ounce.
- Silver added 20 cents, or 1.2%, to $16.59 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
United States Mint bullion sales were unchanged as of 3:27 p.m. ET. 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) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday | Last Week | This Week | July | August | YTD | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 1,000 | 500 | 13,500 | 500 | 156,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 1,000 | 0 | 1,000 | 28,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,000 | 0 | 52,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 | 0 | 290,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 1,500 | 0 | 5,000 | 0 | 71,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 50,000 | 110,000 | 2,320,000 | 110,000 | 14,663,500 |
| 2017 Effigy Mounds 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 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 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 |
