Gold futures rose slightly in their start to the new trading week Tuesday with U.S. markets closed on Monday for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday. Other precious metals moved lower.
Gold for February delivery inched up 80 cents, or less than 0.1%, to finish at $1,283.40 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"Both metals [gold and silver] dropped to three-week lows overnight as the bulls are fading, technically. However, there is some keener risk aversion in the marketplace today, as seen in a sell-off in U.S. and other world stock markets. That limited selling interest in the safe-haven gold and silver markets," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Metals Inc., said in a report.
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,276 to a high of $1,285. They shed 0.5% last week.
Meanwhile, silver for March delivery declined 7.4 cents, or 0.5%, to settle at $15.325 an ounce. Silver futures traded between $15.19 and $15.39. They fell last week by 1.6%.
In other precious metals futures prices on Tuesday:
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April platinum lost $10.90, or 1.4%, to $791.20 an ounce, ranging from $788.50 to $804.
- Palladium for March delivery sank $28.60, or 2.1%, to $1,306.50 an ounce, trading between $1,288 and $1,361. On Thursday, palladium logged a record settlement at $1,348.20 an ounce.
Last week, platinum fell 1.9% and palladium soared 4.4%.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Monday PM to Tuesday PM:
- Gold rose $2.55, or 0.2%, to $1,282.10 an ounce.
- Silver was unchanged at $15.26 an ounce.
LBMA platinum and palladium prices are available on the LBMA’s website with a delay of midnight
US Mint 2019 Bullion Sales
United States Mint bullion sales climbed by a combined 3,000 ounces in American Eagle and Buffalo gold coins and by 375,000 ounces in American Silver Eagles.
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) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday / This Week | Last Week | December | 2018 Sales | 2019 Sales | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 2,800 | 0 | 30,000 | 25,600 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 1,500 | 8,500 | 3,000 | 191,000 | 42,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 1,000 | 0 | 32,000 | 14,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 4,000 | 0 | 62,000 | 20,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 15,000 | 0 | 230,000 | 75,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 1,500 | 2,500 | 1,500 | 121,500 | 22,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 375,000 | 710,000 | 490,000 | 15,700,000 | 3,931,000 |
