Precious metals futures mostly climbed Tuesday, with silver the exception — ending down for the third time in four sessions. Gold advanced for a second day in a row to finish at an about one-week high.
Gold for April delivery added $4, or 0.3%, to settle at $1,330.40 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The close is the highest since Monday, Feb. 5.
"Gold held up better than stock markets last week… Relative to stocks, gold looks to be good in value and continued volatility in the equity markets might make gold more attractive for its lower volatility," analysts at Heraeus Precious Metals said in a note, according to Reuters. "So far, gold investors have been largely unconcerned. While demand for investment bars increased slightly, ETFs posted outflows with total holdings falling."
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,323.70 to a high of $1,333.50. They gained 0.8% on Monday.
Silver for March delivery shed 4.2 cents, or 0.3%, to settle at $16.528 an ounce. Silver futures traded between $16.41 and $16.65. They rallied 2.7% on Monday.
In rounding out precious metals futures prices:
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April platinum rose $2.90, or 0.3%, to $975.70 an ounce, ranging from $971.90 to $981.90.
- Palladium for March delivery added $4.55, or 0.5%, to $980.70 an ounce, trading between $976.55 and $988.75.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Monday PM to Tuesday PM:
- Gold rose $3.05, or 0.2%, to $1,325.35 an ounce.
- Silver added 18 cents, or 1.1%, to $16.605 an ounce.
LBMA platinum and palladium prices are available on the LBMA’s website with a delay of midnight.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2018
United States Mint bullion sales advanced by 200,000 ounces in American Silver Eagles and by 2,500 ounces in American Platinum Eagles. 2018-dated Platinum Eagles debuted on Monday, Feb. 12.
Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. bullion products with columns listing the number of coins sold during varying periods.
| US Mint Bullion Sales (# of coins) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday | Last Week | This Week | December | January | February | 2018 Sales | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 2,500 | N/A | 17,500 | N/A | N/A | 17,500 | 17,500 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 500 | 1,500 | 38,000 | 36,000 | 3,000 | 39,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3,000 | 16,000 | 0 | 16,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,000 | 26,000 | 0 | 26,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25,000 | 80,000 | 0 | 80,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 500 | 500 | 14,000 | 24,000 | 2,000 | 26,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 200,000 | 225,000 | 385,000 | 742,000 | 3,235,000 | 610,000 | 3,845,000 |
