Gold edged lower Wednesday, maintaining a price below $1,650 an ounce for a second session. The U.S. dollar offered resistance as it fluctuated between gains and losses, eventually settling a tad higher.
Gold for April delivery shed $4.50, 0.3%, to close at $1,645.10 an ounce on the Comex in New York. The precious metal traversed through intraday trading levels of $1,640.70 and $1,655.00.
"Support from both the investor and spec (speculative) community is needed in order for gold to stage a convincing recovery from here," UBS said in a note according to Reuters. "But the lack of urgent fundamental motivation makes it difficult for gold market participants to muster enough conviction."
Silver tracked gold, despite analysts at HSBC raising their silver price forecasts. Silver for March delivery slipped 15.0 cents, or 0.5%, to settle at $30.869 an ounce.
"Greater industrial silver consumption is one of the most compelling arguments in favor of higher prices," said analysts at HSBC.
MarketWatch reported that HSBC hiked their 2013 silver target to $33 from $32 an ounce and also upped their 2014 target to $31 from $28 an ounce.
In PGM futures prices Wednesday:
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Rising for a second straight day, April Platinum gained $12.50, or 0.7%, to $1,729.70 an ounce, trading between $1,717.80 and $1,735.90.
- Sister metal palladium advanced for a third day in a row. Palladium for March delivery added 65.0 cents, or 0.1%, to $772.05 an ounce. Prices ranged from $766.00 to $777.60.
Bullion Prices in London
Aside from gold, precious metals in London climbed. In contrasting the Tuesday PM to Wednesday PM Fix prices:
- Gold dipped $2.50, or 0.2%, to $1,645.00 an ounce,
- Silver added 19.5 cents, or 0.6%, to $31.035 an ounce,
- Platinum gained $22.00, or 1.3, to $1,730.00 an ounce, and
- Palladium stepped up $8.00, or 1.0%, to $773.00 an ounce
US Bullion Coin Sales in February
On Wednesday, both American Eagle gold and silver coins notched gains for a second day. Advances were a bit stronger, though not to the levels logged on many days last month.
| American Eagle and Buffalo Bullion Coin Sales | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday Sales | Last Week | Week-To-Date | Feb Sales | YTD Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins | 2,000 | 31,000 | 3,000 | 34,000 | 158,500 |
| $25 American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins | 0 | 1,000 | 0 | 1,000 | 18,000 |
| $10 American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins | 0 | 4,000 | 0 | 4,000 | 28,000 |
| $5 American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins | 0 | 20,000 | 5,000 | 25,000 | 135,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo Gold Bullion Coins | 0 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 2,000 | 74,500 |
| American Eagle Silver Coins | 170,000 | 979,500 | 629,000 | 1,608,500 | 9,106,500 |
| America the Beautiful 5 Oz. Silver Bullion Coin Sales | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday Sales | Last Week | Week-To-Date | Feb Sales | All-Time Sales | |
| 2012 El Yunque National Forest 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 400 | 100 | 500 | 22,400 |
| 2012 Chaco Culture National Historical Park 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 1,000 | -400 | 600 | 20,600 |
| 2012 Acadia National Park 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25,400 |
| 2012 Hawai’i Volcanoes 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 |
| 2012 Denali National Park 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 |
| 2011 Olympic National Park 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 104,900 |
| 2011 Vicksburg National Military Park 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 200 | 2,000 | 2,200 | 45,700 |
| 2011 Chickasaw Park 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | -2,060 | 2,000 | -60 | 35,600 |
| TOTAL | 0 | -460 | 3,700 | 3,240 | 294,600 |
The Chaco Culture silver coin total moved down 400 on Monday. The Chickasaw silver coin total last Tuesday was adjusted lower by 2,260. The week earlier its sales had trimmed by 40. Such negative adjustments are very atypical in U.S. Mint reported bullion coin sales.
All bullion figures above are in the number of coins sold. Calculate total ounces by using the bullion coin’s weight.
