Precious metals ended lower on Tuesday, registering drops ranging from 1.4% for gold to 3.1% for palladium. Losses in gold and silver come after both scored more than five-month highs on Monday.
Gold for June delivery fell $27.40 to settle at $1,959 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"Heightened geopolitical risks and global growth concerns could trigger risk aversion, sending investors rushing towards gold’s safe embrace," MarketWatch quoted Lukman Otunuga, manager, market analysis at FXTM. However, an appreciating dollar, rising Treasury yields, and expectation for a Federal Reserve interest-rate hike "may create multiple obstacles down the road."
Gold futures traded between $1,952.60 and $1,985.10. They rose 0.6% on Monday, posting their highest settlement since March 10.
Silver for May delivery dropped 75.9 cents, or 2.9%, to close at $25.391 an ounce. Silver futures ranged from $25.21 to $26.20. They gained 1.8% on Monday, for their highest finish since March 11.
In other precious metals prices on Tuesday.
-
July platinum declined $31.80 to $988.70 an ounce, trading between $982.30 and $1,026.40.
- Palladium for June delivery fell $64.70, or 2.7%, to $2,380.40 an ounce, ranging from $2,346 and $2,442.50.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2022
Published United States Mint bullion sales increased on Tuesday by 408,000 ounces in silver coins and a combined 52,500 ounces in gold coins.
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) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday / This Week | Last Week | January | February | March | April | 2022 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 39,500 | 0 | 123,500 | 86,000 | 140,500 | 61,000 | 411,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 2,000 | 0 | 45,000 | 0 | 5,000 | 3,000 | 53,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 8,000 | 0 | 64,000 | 4,000 | 20,000 | 14,000 | 102,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 195,000 | 25,000 | 75,000 | 25,000 | 320,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 10,000 | 0 | 61,500 | 28,500 | 64,500 | 17,000 | 171,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 408,000 | 0 | 5,001,000 | 1,500,000 | 1,080,500 | 833,000 | 8,414,500 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | N/A | 25,800 | 14,200 | 0 | 40,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1 Oz Palladium Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
