Precious metals fell on Thursday. Losses in gold, silver and platinum were their third straight with platinum and silver ending at more than two-week lows and gold finishing at an over one-week low.
Gold for June delivery declined $7.40, or 0.4%, to settle at $1,948.20 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the lowest since closing at the same price on April 11.
"This week’s chorus of hawkish Federal Reserve comments and a return to positive real rates have reduced the appeal of both gold and silver," analysts at Zaner wrote in Thursday’s newsletter reported by MarketWatch.
Gold futures traded between $1,938 and $1,960.10. They shed 0.2% on Wednesday, they fell 1.4% on Tuesday, and they rose 0.6% on Monday — posting their highest settlement since March 10.
Silver for May delivery fell 65 cents, or 2.6%, to finish at $24.621 an ounce. The settlement was the lowest since April 6. Silver futures ranged from $24.48 to $25.31. They lost 0.5% on Wednesday, they dropped 2.9% on Tuesday, and they gained 1.8% on Monday for their highest finish since March 6.
In other precious metals on Thursday:
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July platinum gave back $19.20, or 2%, to $967.80 an ounce, trading between $965 and $991.30. The close was platinum’s worst since April 7.
- Giving back a tad more than half of its gain on Wednesday, palladium for June delivery declined $41.90, or 1.7%, to $2,420.20 an ounce, ranging from $2,372.50 and $2,480.50.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2022
Published United States Mint bullion sales were unchanged on Thursday. 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) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday | Last Week | This Week | February | March | April | 2022 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 39,500 | 86,000 | 140,500 | 61,000 | 411,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 2,000 | 0 | 5,000 | 3,000 | 53,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 8,000 | 4,000 | 20,000 | 14,000 | 102,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25,000 | 75,000 | 25,000 | 320,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 10,000 | 28,500 | 64,500 | 17,000 | 171,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 408,000 | 1,500,000 | 1,080,500 | 833,000 | 8,414,500 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25,800 | 14,200 | 0 | 40,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1 Oz Palladium Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
