Palladium climbed slightly Monday while gold, silver and platinum declined. Gold marked its lowest price since December while silver finished near an 11-year low.
Gold for April delivery declined $30.20, or 2%, to settle at $1,486.50 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the lowest since Dec. 20 when gold ended at $1,480.90 an ounce.
"There is more or less a global lockdown" in the wake of the spread of COVID-19, MarketWatch quoted Chintan Karnani, chief market analyst at Insignia Consultants. "There was a mad rush for cash. Traders and investors alike sold everything which could generate cash."
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,450.90 to a high $1,574.80. They declined 9.3% last week.
Silver for March delivery tumbled $1.684, or 11.6%, to settle at $12.816 an ounce. The close was the weakest since July 13, 2009 when silver finished at $12.785 and ounce. Silver futures traded between $11.77 and $15.25. The declined 16% last week.
In other precious metals futures Monday:
-
April platinum fell $86.20, or 11.6%, to $657.70 an ounce, ranging from $562 to $775.
- Palladium for June delivery rose $5, or 0.3%, to $1,514.10 an ounce, trading between $1,355.10 and $1,759.30.
Last week, platinum lost 17% and palladium declined 38.1%.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Friday PM to Monday PM:
- Gold dropped $75.10, or 4.8%, to $1,487.70 an ounce.
- Silver tumbled $2.805, or 17.8%, to $12.965 an ounce.
In LBMA results last week, prices declined 7.2% for gold, 9.8% for silver, 12.6% for platinum, and 32.2% for palladium.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2020
United States Mint bullion products logged broad gains Monday with a combined 7,500 ounces in American Eagle and Buffalo gold coins and 337,500 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) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | February | Last Week | This Week | March | 2020 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 38,000 | 3,500 | 3,500 | 3,000 | 8,000 | 49,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 23,000 | 2,000 | 0 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 26,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 18,000 | 2,000 | 0 | 4,000 | 4,000 | 24,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 60,000 | 20,000 | 5,000 | 20,000 | 35,000 | 115,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 21,000 | 1,000 | 2,000 | 1,000 | 6,000 | 28,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 3,846,000 | 650,000 | 1,570,000 | 337,500 | 2,657,500 | 6,816,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 14,500 | 9,300 | 3,200 | 0 | 6,200 | 30,000 |
