Silver, platinum and palladium declined on Friday, adding to their weekly losses. Silver finished the day at a more than six-week low. Gold, meanwhile, climbed for a second session in a row but still registered a sizable weekly loss.
Gold for December delivery rose $1.20, or 0.07%, to settle at $1,785.50 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Gold futures traded 3.6% lower this week after dipping 0.9% last week. On Tuesday, they marked their lowest settlement since Nov. 3. The yellow metal is 5.8% 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 15 Wall Street analysts participated in Kitco News’ gold survey. For only the second time on record, the survey showed a three-way tie. Each scenario garnered five votes.
Meanwhile, a total of 1,527 votes were cast in an online Main Street poll. Of these, respondents, 1,024 or 67%, looked for gold to rise next week. Another 304, or 20%, said lower, while 199 voters, or 13%, were neutral."
Elsewhere, silver for December delivery declined 38.9 cents, or nearly 1.7%, to close at $23.107 an ounce. The settlement was the lowest since Oct. 12 when silver ended at $22.514 an ounce.
Silver futures traded 6.8% lower this week after sliding 2.2% last week. They are down 12.5% on the year.
In PGM futures on Friday and for the week:
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January platinum lost $21, or 2.2%, to end at $954.30 an ounce, for a 7.9% weekly decline.
- Palladium for December delivery dropped $58.80, or 3.2%, to finish at $1,789.10 an ounce, for a loss on the week of 13.7%.
Both metals are well lower on the year so far with losses of 11.6% for platinum and 27.1% for palladium.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2021
U.S. Mint bullion sales slowed or stalled from a week earlier. In week-over-week comparisons:
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Sales of American Gold Eagles rose 24,500 ounces after increasing 31,500 ounces last week.
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Sales of American Buffalo gold coins advanced 8,500 ounces after rising 11,000 ounces last week.
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Sales of American Silver Eagles were flat after gaining 524,500 ounces last week.
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Sales of American Palladium Eagles were flat for a second week in a row.
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) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Friday / This Week | Last Week | September | October | November | 2021 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 24,000 | 29,500 | 67,500 | 135,500 | 97,000 | 1,046,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 2,000 | 4,000 | 7,000 | 6,000 | 94,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 2,000 | 0 | 8,000 | 22,000 | 8,000 | 158,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 10,000 | 35,000 | 85,000 | 35,000 | 485,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 8,500 | 11,000 | 24,000 | 41,000 | 35,000 | 335,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 524,500 | 2,735,000 | 1,076,000 | 999,000 | 27,750,500 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 75,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1 Oz Palladium Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8,700 | 8,700 |
| Tuskegee Airmen 5 oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 52,900 |
