Platinum drove its winning streak Thursday to six straight sessions. Other precious metals, meanwhile, declined. Losses in gold and silver were their third in a row. Both finished at about 1-1/2-week lows.
Gold for December delivery settled down $12.40, or 0.7%, to $1,861.50 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the weakest since Nov. 9.
"Though there’s anticipation for more (stimulus), some people are electing to take profits until there’s more clarity." Reuters quoted said Jeffrey Sica, founder of Circle Squared Alternative Investments.
"(Vaccines) removed some of the longer-term uncertainty when it comes to the virus. So although there are concerns about the short-term implications of the spike, longer term, people are a lot more optimistic, which is probably why we’ve seen somewhat of a pullback in gold."
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,850 to a high of $1,872.60. They lost 0.6% on Wednesday, they shed 0.1% on Tuesday, and they rose 0.08% on Monday.
Silver for December delivery dropped 40 cents, or 1.6%, to settle at $24.048. Like for gold, silver’s finish was its lowest since Nov. 9. Silver futures traded between $23.67 and $24.43. They fell 0.8% on Wednesday, they gave back 0.6% on Tuesday, and they edged 0.1% higher on Monday.
In PGM futures on Wednesday:
-
January platinum edged up 60 cents, or 0.06%, to $951.50 an ounce, ranging from $936.10 to $956.50.
- Palladium for December delivery fell $34.20, or 1.5%, to $2,319.80 an ounce, trading between $2,270.60 and $2,334.50.
London Precious Metals Prices (LBMA)
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold declined $18.75, or 1%, to $1,857.35 an ounce.
- Silver fell 33.5 cents, or 1.4%, to $23.98 an ounce.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2020
United States Mint bullion sales were unchanged Thursday. Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. Mint bullion products with columns listing the number of coins sold during varying periods. Products with an asterisk (*) are no longer available.
| US Mint Bullion Sales (# of coins) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday | Last Week | This Week | September | October | November | 2020 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 7,000 | 23,500 | 18,500 | 64,500 | 52,500 | 674,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 3,000 | 6,000 | 3,000 | 67,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 4,000 | 2,000 | 4,000 | 8,000 | 10,000 | 106,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 10,000 | 5,000 | 10,000 | 25,000 | 30,000 | 345,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 1,500 | 6,000 | 4,500 | 19,500 | 15,000 | 223,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 1,048,500 | 276,000 | 2,958,500 | 3,397,000 | 3,456,000 | 27,989,500 |
| America Samoa 5 oz Silver Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45,000 |
| Weir Farm 5 oz Silver Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45,000 |
| Salt River Bay 5 oz Silver Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45,000 |
| Marsh Billings 5 oz Silver Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45,000 |
| Tallgrass Prairie 5 oz Silver Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45,000 | 0 | 0 | 45,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 56,500 |
