Precious metals fell in tandem at the start of the new trading week on Monday. Their declines ranged from 0.2% for platinum to 2.3% for palladium. Losses in gold and silver were their fourth in five sessions.
Gold for December delivery fell by $6.10, or 0.3%, to settle at $1,970 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"The precious metals are seeing selling interest on rising U.S. Treasury yields, hawkish comments from a Federal Reserve official, and as the near-term technical postures for both markets have turned slightly bearish," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Inc, said in a daily research note.
Gold futures traded between $1,966.10 and $1,981.70. They slipped 1.2% last week.
Meanwhile, silver for September lost 48.4 cents, or 2%, ending at $23.232 an ounce. Silver futures ranged from $23.14 to $23.78. They dropped 3.2% last week for their biggest weekly decline since plunging 7.3% in the week ending June 23.
In other precious metals prices on Monday:
-
October platinum dipped $1.60 to $926.90 an ounce, trading between $916.70 and $933.90.
- Palladium for September delivery fell by $28.40 to $1,236.20 an ounce, ranging from $1,225.50 and $1,270.50.
Last week, platinum declined 1.6% while palladium gained 2%.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2023
The U.S. Mint last published bullion sales changes on Wednesday, Aug. 2, when it adjusted its figures for July. The Mint has yet to report any bullion sales for August.
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) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday / August | May | June | July | 2023 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 60,500 | 35,000 | 41,000 | 666,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 18,000 | 1,000 | 0 | 73,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 32,000 | 4,000 | 0 | 132,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 80,000 | 60,000 | 0 | 385,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 47,000 | 17,000 | 16,500 | 293,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 1,593,000 | 1,482,000 | 209,100,000 | 11,815,000 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 1,200 | 3,500 | 0 | 12,700 |
