Precious metals futures logged gains Thursday ranging from 0.5% for platinum to 2.9% for silver. Gold registered its best close since early April 2013.
Gold for April delivery — the new, most active contract — gained $13.20, or 0.8%, to settle at $1,589.20 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the highest since April 1, 2013 when gold finished at $1,600.90 an ounce.
"The coronavirus economic impact is growing and a flight to Treasuries and gold will likely remain the favorite trades on Wall Street," Edward Moya, a senior market analyst at broker OANDA, said in a note reported by Reuters.
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,576.80 to a high of $1,590.70. They edged up 0.04% on Wednesday, they declined 0.5% on Tuesday, and they rose 0.4% on Monday.
Silver for March delivery surged 50.5 cents to settle at $17.992 an ounce. Silver futures traded between $17.52 and $18.04. They gained 0.2% on Wednesday, they tumbled 3.3% on Tuesday, and they lost 0.3% on Monday.
In other precious metals prices Thursday:
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April platinum added $5.20 to $980.50 an ounce, ranging from $965.50 to $985.
- Palladium for March delivery settled up $13.50, or 0.6%, to $2,215.70 an ounce, trading between $2,178.80 and $2,254.40.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold added $4.80, or 0.3%, to $1,578.25 an ounce.
- Silver rose 25.5 cents, or 1.5%, to $17.725 an ounce.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2020
United States Mint bullion sales remained unchanged according to available figures from the Mint’s website. Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. Mint bullion products with columns listing the number of coins sold during varying periods. Products with an asterisk (*) are no longer available.
| US Mint Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday / This Week | November | December | 2020 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 8,000 | 2,000 | 19,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin* | 0 | 5,000 | 0 | 13,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 2,000 | 0 | 14,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 5,000 | 1,500 | 10,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 463,000 | 0 | 2,298,000 |
