Silver, platinum and palladium dropped for a fifth straight session on Thursday, while gold fell for its fourth loss in five sessions and to a new 2018 low. Silver’s close was its weakest in more than two years.
Gold for August delivery lost $3.90, or 0.3%, to settle at $1,224 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement is the lowest since July 13, 2017, when prices ended at $1,217.30 an ounce.
"At the moment it really is all about the U.S. dollar," MarketWatch quoted Michael Armbruster, managing partner at Altavest.
"Gold had a chance to bounce at $1,240, but that level has failed: and the next level of chart support stands at around $1,180, he added. "My advice for gold bulls would be to stay on the sidelines and wait and see how gold behaves around the $1,180 level."
Gold futures traded from a low of $1,210.70 to a high of $1,228.30. They edged up less than 0.1% on Wednesday, fell 1% on Tuesday, and dipped 0.1% on Monday.
Elsewhere, silver for September declined 17.2 cents, or 1.1%, to end at $15.402 an ounce. The settlement is the lowest since April 8, 2016 when the precious metal ended at $15.384 an ounce. Silver futures ranged from $15.18 to $15.59. They shed 0.3% on Wednesday, declined 1.2% on Tuesday, and lost less than a half cent on Monday.
In other precious metals futures prices on Thursday:
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October platinum fell $11.50, or 1.4%, to $806.30 an ounce, trading between $794.50 and $822.10.
- Palladium for September delivery sank $35.60, or 4%, to $866.20 an ounce, ranging from $853.30 to $905.90.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold declined $6.95, or 0.6%, to 1,217.55 an ounce.
- Silver fell 18 cents, or 1.2%, to $15.26 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 were unchanged. Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. Mint bullion products with columns listing the number of coins sold during varying periods.
| US Mint Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday | Last Week | This Week | June | July | 2018 Sales | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 6,000 | 8,000 | 21,500 | 20,500 | 108,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 18,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,000 | 0 | 48,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 15,000 | 15,000 | 15,000 | 140,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 5,500 | 500 | 6,500 | 11,500 | 65,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 290,000 | 180,000 | 435,000 | 545,000 | 7,367,500 |
| Pictured Rocks 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 |
| Apostle Islands 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 |
| Voyageurs 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 | 0 | 30,000 |
With spot silver at basically an over 2 year low, the U.S. Mint should be lowering its silver coin & medal prices. Yet, the Mint actually raised most of its silver coin & set prices earlier this year! Lower your silver product prices Mr. Mint Director Ryder. And get a silver pricing grid like you have for gold, platinum, & palladium coin prices. This is an unfair practice for your loyal customers that are left after many (25%) have left you since 2014!
-NumisdudeTX