Gold declined from a more than one-week high on Thursday while silver, platinum and palladium extended their gains.
Gold for December delivery fell $7.60, or 0.4%, to settle at $1,720.20 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Gold was "pressured by comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell that again leaned hawkish on U.S. monetary policy. Powell’s comments boosted the U.S. dollar index and U.S. Treasury yields, both of which had been weaker ahead of his speech. The yellow metal had seen higher prices overnight, but lost those gains to trade near steady when upbeat U.S. jobless claims data were released, and then sold off when Powell made his remarks," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Inc, said in a daily research note.
Gold futures traded between $1,713.70 and $1,739.40. They rose 0.9% on Wednesday, for their highest close since Aug. 30, and they shed 0.6% in their start to the trading week on Tuesday.
Up for a fourth straight session, silver for December delivery rose 18.2 cents, or 1%, to finish at $18.442 an ounce. The settlement was the highest since Aug. 29. Silver futures ranged from $18.24 to $18.67. They gained 2% on Wednesday and they edged 0.2% higher on Tuesday.
In other precious metals futures prices on Thursday:
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Also rising for a fourth session in a row, October platinum tacked on $19.20, or 2.3%, to $866.40 an ounce, ranging from $847.20 to $874.10. The close was the strongest since Aug. 29.
- Up for a second day, palladium for December delivery soared $124.20, or 6.1%, to $2,147 an ounce, trading between $2,010.50 and $2,180.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2022
On Thursday, published United States Mint bullion sales increased by 425,000 ounces in American Silver Eagles and a combined 21,500 ounces in American Gold Eagles.
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 | May | June | July | August* | September | 2022 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 20,000 | 164,500 | 31,000 | 59,500 | 47,500 | 20,000 | 753,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 7,000 | 6,000 | 5,000 | 2,000 | 0 | 73,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 4,000 | 8,000 | 18,000 | 2,000 | 4,000 | 4,000 | 138,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 5,000 | 50,000 | 135,000 | 20,000 | 20,000 | 5,000 | 550,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 56,000 | 21,500 | 39,500 | 22,500 | 11,500 | 333,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 425,000 | 1,350,000 | 925,000 | 850,000 | 850,000 | 425,000 | 12,831,500 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 23,500 | 15,500 | 1,000 | 0 | 80,000 |
*Also on Thursday, the U.S. Mint adjusted August sales with American Gold Eagle increases for the:
- 1-oz to 47,500 coins from 43,500 coins,
- 1/2-oz to 2,000 coins from 1,000 coins,
- 1/4-oz to 4,000 coins from 2,000 coins, and
- 1/10-oz to 20,000 coins from 15,000 coins.
On Tuesday, the Mint adjusted the August total for the American Gold Buffalo, lifting its sales to 22,500 coins from 17,500 coins.
