U.S. gold futures surged toward $1,900 an ounce Monday, registering a fifth straight record high and a string of six session wins in which prices have surged $149.30, or 8.6 percent.
Gains in gold were attributed to multiple factors, several of which were opined by analysts at Wells Fargo, according to MarketWatch:
"Investors’ concerns about the validity and efficacy of the U.S. debt deal, uncertainty about further deficit reduction suggestions … continued dollar weakness and the worsening of the European debt crisis all appear to have helped push gold even higher," said analysts at Wells Fargo in a research note. "While gold appears to be getting a bit frothy, its ascent is justified by the fundamentals."
December gold prices rallied $39.70, or 2.1 percent, to close at the record high of $1,891.90 an ounce on the Comex in New York. Intraday prices traded from a low of $1,858.00 to an all-time high of $1,898.60. Gold has gained $470.50, or 33.1 percent, in 2011.
"Gold is driven by the expectation that at some point inflation will come back, and a continuation of people looking for a safe haven beside just the U.S. Treasury bonds," Reuters quoted Leo Larkin, metals equity analyst at Standard & Poor’s. "It’s still susceptible to a pretty big pullback as things are overdone based on technical indicators."
September silver prices advanced 89.3 cents, or 2.1 percent, to settle at $43.325 an ounce. Silver prices ranged from $42.475 to $44.09. The white metal has gained $12.388, or 40.0 percent, in 2011. Jim Wyckoff of Kitco Metals Inc. wrote the following of the metal in the Thursday Kitco Roundup:
"December silver futures prices closed nearer the session high and scored a fresh 3.5-month high Monday. Silver was supported on spillover buying from the gold market. Silver bulls have gained solid upside near-term technical momentum recently. The silver bulls have the solid overall technical advantage, too.
Bulls’ next upside price objective is producing a close above strong technical resistance at $45.00 an ounce. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is closing prices below solid technical support at $40.00.
First resistance is seen at Monday’s high of $44.10 and then at $44.50. Next support is seen at $43.00 and then at Monday’s low of $42.57. Wyckoff’s Market Rating: 7.5."
Platinum prices for October delivery rose $30.80, or 1.6 percent, to $1,905.70 an ounce, trading as high as $1,909.90. The close was platinum’s best since July 2008. Following eleven straight session increases, platinum has gained 7.2 percent in 2011.
Palladium prices for September delivery advanced $16.30, or 2.2 percent, to $765.10 an ounce. Palladium ranged from $743.50 to $766.80. Palladium is down 4.8 percent in 2011.
London Precious Metals Prices
Earlier London precious metals prices gained as well. When comparing London PM fixing prices from Monday over Thursday, gold rose $29.50 to $1,877.50 an ounce, silver prices advanced $1.51 to $43.49 an ounce, platinum climbed $32.00 to $1,887.00 an ounce and palladium rose $6.00 to $756.00 an ounce.
U.S. Mint Bullion Coin Weekly Sales
Following silence on Thursday and Friday, the United States Mint on Monday published a fresh set of sales figures for its bullion products. Gains were strongest for the American Silver Eagle, advancing 565,000. The smallest tenth-ounce American Gold Eagle scored a pick-up of 5,000 while the largest one-ounce size rose 7,500. The other Mint bullion coin to advance was the American Gold Buffalo. It rose 4,000.
The following daily, august and year-to-date United States Mint bullion coin sales are as of 3:50 p.m. ET.
| Sales of US Mint American Eagle and Buffalo Bullion Coins | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Gains |
August Gains |
YTD 2011 |
|
| Gold Eagle Coin (1 oz.) | 7,500 | 84,000 | 653,000 |
| Gold Eagle Coin (1/2 oz.) | 0 | 3,000 | 61,000 |
| Gold Eagle Coin (1/4 oz.) | 0 | 4,000 | 68,000 |
| Gold Eagle Coin (1/10 oz.) | 5,000 | 45,000 | 310,000 |
| Gold Buffalo Coin (1 oz.) | 4,000 | 21,500 | 113,000 |
| Silver Eagles (1 oz.) | 565,000 | 2.6995M | 27.971M |
| Sales of America the Beautiful 5 Oz. Silver Bullion Coins* | |
|---|---|
| YTD 2011 |
|
| Gettysburg National Military Park 5 oz. | 126,700 |
| Glacier National Park 5 oz. | 126,700 |
| Olympic National Park 5 oz. | 80,700 |
| Vicksburg National Military Park 5 oz. | 27,500 |
| Chickasaw Park 5 oz. | 15,200 |
| TOTAL | 380,400 |
*The Gettysburg and Glacier America the Beautiful Five Ounce Silver Bullion Coins are sold out. Unlike other investment-grade products, the United States Mint does not provide daily per coin sales totals for the Olympic, Vicksburg, and Chickasaw America the Beautiful Five Ounce Silver Bullion Coins. Their individual totals are as of August 2. The five ounce combined coin totals above (last line) are as of August 15. The figure represents an increase of 1,800 from the previous seven days, which was the same increase as the previous week.
