Precious metals futures moved slightly lower Wednesday. Gold slipped from an eleven-week high and posted its first loss in three sessions.
Gold for December delivery declined $3.60, or 0.3%, to settle at $1,227.40 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"Gold prices are moderately lower in early-afternoon U.S. trading Wednesday, on a normal corrective pullback from recent solid gains that saw prices hit a 10-week high earlier this week," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Metals Inc., said in a daily note. "A big rebound in the U.S. stock market on Tuesday is also denting any safe-haven demand for gold and silver markets today."
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,223.70 to a high of $1,232.90. They edged up less than 0.1% on Tuesday, but ended at their highest price since July 31, and they moved up 0.7% on Monday.
Ending down for a second day in a row, silver for December shed 3.8 cents, or 0.3%, to $14.663 an ounce. Silver futures traded between $14.61 and $14.76. They declined 0.2% on Tuesday and rose 0.6% on Monday for their best settlement since Aug. 28.
In PGM futures on Wednesday:
-
January platinum fell $6.10, or 0.7%, to $840.60 an ounce, ranging from $835.80 to $845.90.
- Palladium for December delivery dropped $6.30, or 0.6% to $1,067.60 an ounce, trading between $1,063.40 and $1,077.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Tuesday PM to Wednesday PM:
- Gold declined $1.65, or 0.1%, to 1,229.05 an ounce.
- Silver fell 10.5 cents, or 0.7%, to $14.65 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 rose by a combined 3,000 ounces in American Eagle and Buffalo bullion coins.
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) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday | Last Week | This Week | September | October | 2018 Sales | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 500 | 6,000 | 2,500 | 14,500 | 13,000 | 164,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 1,000 | 0 | 1,000 | 2,000 | 2,000 | 26,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,000 | 0 | 58,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 40,000 | 10,000 | 210,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 1,500 | 1,000 | 2,500 | 11,000 | 5,000 | 113,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 260,000 | 200,000 | 2,897,500 | 1,130,000 | 13,265,000 |
| 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 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 |
| Cumberland Island 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 52,500 | 0 | 52,500 |
