Precious metals declined on Tuesday, giving back more than their gains from Monday. Additionally, gold and silver reached 2- and 7-week lows, respectively.
Gold for June delivery declined by $29.70, or 1.5%, to settle at $1,993 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the lowest since May 1.
"Weaker economic data coming out of China has prompted increased concerns about consumer and commercial demand for precious metals. Meantime, bearish outside market forces on this day are working against the metals markets — firmer U.S. dollar index, weaker crude oil and rising U.S. Treasury yields," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Inc, said in a daily research note.
Gold futures traded between $1,989.10 and $2,022.70, after edging up by 0.1% on Monday.
Meanwhile, silver for July delivery sank 39.8 cents, or 1.6%, closing at $23.893 an ounce, marking its lowest settlement since March 29. Silver futures traded between $23.80 and $24.28 after increasing by 0.6% on Monday.
In regards to other precious metals prices on Tuesday:
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July platinum lost $7.80, or 0.7%, to $1,066.90 an ounce, ranging from $1,061.80 to $1,078.70.
- Palladium for June delivery fell by $30.70, or 2%, to $1,499.60, trading between $1,492.50 and $1,535.50.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2023
U.S. Mint published bullion sales were unchanged on Tuesday, following gains in gold and silver coins on Monday. The table below presents a breakdown of U.S. Mint bullion products sold, with columns indicating the number of coins sold (not total ounces) during different time periods.
| US Mint Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday | Last Week | This Week | February | March | April | May | 2023 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 13,000 | 21,500 | 41,500 | 211,000 | 159,000 | 34,500 | 564,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8,000 | 1,000 | 8,000 | 0 | 54,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 18,000 | 18,000 | 12,000 | 10,000 | 12,000 | 18,000 | 132,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 85,000 | 10,000 | 35,000 | 0 | 245,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 23,000 | 9,500 | 19,500 | 73,000 | 61,000 | 32,500 | 245,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 450,000 | 403,000 | 900,000 | 900,000 | 900,000 | 853,000 | 7,502,000 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 7,500 | 500 | 0 | 8,000 |
