Precious metals futures lacked a lot of change Thursday. Gold gained for a second day in a row, with its latest increase at less than 0.1%.
Gold for June delivery rose 30 cents to finish at $1,279.70 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"Given the very strong U.S. dollar index that hit a two-year high overnight and U.S. stock indexes that are at or near multi-month and record highs, the gold and silver market bulls could be faring much worse recently," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Metals Inc., said in a note. "However, the bulls do need a fundamental catalyst to spark significant rally in prices. That’s been a tough chore in a generally quiet marketplace at present."
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,275.20 to a high of $1,284.80. They increased 0.5% on Wednesday, fell 0.3% on Tuesday — ending at their lowest price since Dec. 26, and they edged up 0.1% on Monday.
Meanwhile, silver for May delivery shed 3.7 cents, or 0.3%, to end at $14.879 an ounce. Silver futures traded between $14.81 and $14.98. They rose 0.9% on Wednesday, dropped 1.2% on Tuesday, and gave back 0.1% on Monday.
In other precious metals futures Thursday:
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July platinum turned $1.10 higher, or 0.1%, to $889.70 an ounce, ranging from $881.10 to $892.70.
- Palladium for June delivery rose $1.80, or 0.1%, to $1,406.90 an ounce, trading between $1,397.20 and $1,411.30.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM
- Gold added $9.15, or 0.7%, to $1,280.80 an ounce.
- Silver rose 6 cent, or 0.4%, to $14.865 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 advanced by 900 ounces in American Platinum Eagles and by 500 ounces in American Gold Buffalos.
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 | February | March | April | 2019 Sales | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 900 | 500 | 1,800 | 2,400 | 4,000 | 3,900 | 37,400 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 2,500 | 11,000 | 8,500 | 5,500 | 69,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 19,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,000 | 2,000 | 26,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15,000 | 15,000 | 10,000 | 135,000* |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 500 | 500 | 500 | 6,000 | 5,500 | 5,000 | 40,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2,057,500 | 850,000 | 550,000 | 7,475,000 |
| Lowell 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 80,000 | 0 | 80,000 |
*The U.S. Mint on Thursday adjusted upward the $5 Gold Eagle total for January to 95,000 coins from 90,000 coins, lifting their year-to-date total to 135,000 coins.
