Gold Rises 2% on Week; Palladium Scores Record

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Precious metals climbed as a group for a second day in a row Friday. Gold, silver and palladium posted sharp weekly gains. Palladium also ended the week at another record.

Gold for June delivery added $13.40, or 0.8%, to settle at $1,780.20 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

"Gold continues to derive strength from falling Treasury yields, a weaker dollar, and worsening coronavirus conditions in Europe," MarketWatch quoted Lukman Otunuga, senior research analyst at FXTM.

Gold futures traded 2% higher this week after climbing 1% last week. They are 6.1% lower on the year to date. In looking ahead to next week, Kitco News offers the following forecasts via their Wall Street & Main Street surveys:

"This week in Kitco News’ Weekly Gold Survey, out of 13 participating Wall Street analysts, all said that they expect to see higher prices next week. This is the first time in the survey’s history that 100% of all analysts have been bullish on gold…

Sentiment among retail investors was slightly more balanced than Wall Street’s; however, it remains firmly bullish. A total of 1,103 votes were cast in online Main Street polls. Of these, 715 respondents, or 65%, looked for gold to rise next week. Another 201, or 18%, said lower, while 187 voters, or 17%, were neutral."

Advancing for a fourth straight session, silver for May delivery added 14.1 cents, or 0.5%, to settle at $26.105 an ounce. Silver futures traded 3.1% higher this week after rising 1.5% last week. They are 1.2% lower on the year.

In PGM futures on Friday and for the week:

  • July platinum rose $8.50, or 0.7%, to $1,208.70 an ounce, but shed 60 cents on the week.

  • Palladium for June delivery tacked on $35.30, or 1.3%, to $2,774.70 an ounce — an all-time settlement high, for a 5.3% weekly gain.

The two are higher on the year so far with advances of 12% for platinum and 13.1% for palladium.

US Mint Bullion Sales in 2021

United States Mint bullion sales slowed compared to a week ago — for silver coins and overall for gold coins. In week-over-week comparisons:

  • Sales of American Gold Eagles moved up 6,500 ounces compared to 13,000 ounces last week.

  • Sales of American Buffalo gold coins rose 5,000 ounces after rising 3,500 ounces last week.

  • Sales of American Silver Eagles increased by 457,000 ounces compared to 596,000 ounces.

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)
Friday Last Week This Week February Sales March Sales April Sales 2021 Sales
$50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin 0 13,000 6,500 121,000 55,500 19,500 387,000
$25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin 0 0 0 9,000 0 0 31,000
$10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin 0 0 0 0 20,000 0 56,000
$5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin 0 0 0 0 55,000 0 150,000
$50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin 0 3,500 5,000 16,000 33,500 8,500 119,500
$1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin 90,000 596,000 457,000 3,191,500 4,087,000 1,053,000 13,106,500
$100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin 0 0 0 N/A 35,000 0 35,000
Tuskegee Airmen 5 oz Silver Coin 0 50,000 0 N/A N/A 50,000 50,000
$1 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin* 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
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