Precious metals moved together to record losses on Thursday, with platinum taking the lead with a 1.9% drop. Gold’s decline marked its first in six sessions, following a recent climb to a more than two-week high.
Gold for December delivery declined by $27.50, or 1.4%, to settle at $1,939.60 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"Gold and silver prices are sharply down in midday U.S. trading Thursday, in the aftermath of the two-day FOMC meeting that produced an even more hawkish tone on U.S. monetary policy than the marketplace had expected. That’s bearish for raw commodity markets, including the metals," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Inc, said in a daily research note.
On the day, gold futures traded between $1,933.10 and $1,952.20. They increased by 0.7% on Wednesday, marking their highest settlement since Sept. 1. Furthermore, they inched 0.02% higher on Tuesday and climbed by 0.4% on Monday.
Silver for December delivery shed 14.9 cents, or 0.6%, to end at $23.687 an ounce. Silver futures ranged from $23.06 to $23.75. They rose by 1.6% on Wednesday, for their best finish since Sept. 5, they declined by 0.2% on Tuesday, and they increased by 0.5% on Monday.
In other precious metals prices on Thursday:
-
October platinum gave back $17.70 to $924.60 an ounce, trading between $916.90 and $933.50.
- Palladium for December delivery fell by $11.80, or 0.9%, to $1,269.50 an ounce, ranging from $1,235.50 to $1,274.50.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2023
U.S. Mint bullion sales have remained unchanged since a week ago Wednesday, Sept. 13. 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) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday / This Week | Last Week | July | August | September | 2023 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 8,500 | 41,000 | 78,000 | 12,000 | 756,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 10,000 | 0 | 2,000 | 10,000 | 85,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 22,000 | 0 | 2,000 | 22,000 | 156,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 15,000 | 0 | 150,000 | 35,000 | 570,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 1,500 | 16,500 | 19,500 | 15,500 | 328,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 785,000 | 209,100,000 | 3,124,000 | 1,502,000 | 16,441,000 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12,700 |
