Precious metals on Thursday ended lower for the third time in four sessions. Losses in gold and silver were modest compared to those for platinum and palladium.
Gold for December delivery shed $3.10, or 0.2%, to finish at $1,317.60 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold prices ranged from an intraday low of $1,302 to a high of $1,322.80.
The real focus for the market is the underperformance of gold "despite having a U.S. government shutdown and other bullish news," MarketWatch quoted Chintan Karnani, chief analyst at Insignia Consultants. "This has actually confused the traders."
"If the U.S. government closure moves into next week, gold will rise… Since gold is below the 100-day moving average of $1,353, the overall trend is bearish to range-bound between $1,270 – $1,356."
On Wednesday, prices jumped $34.60, or 2.7%. On Tuesday, the yellow metal plunged $40.90, or 3.1%, to $1,286.10 an ounce for its lowest settlement price since August 7.
In percentage, silver prices slid a bit more than gold. Silver for December delivery lost 11.1 cents, or 0.5%, to $21.79 an ounce, trading between $21.44 and $21.86. Prices in the prior session rallied 72.2 cents, or 3.4%.
In PGM futures on Thursday:
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January platinum declined $20.10, or 1.4%, to $1,373.30 an ounce, trading between $1,366.10 and $1,395.00. It gained $8.10, or 0.6%, in the prior session.
- Palladium for December delivery tumbled $21, or 2.9%, to $700.20 an ounce, ranging from $698 to $720.80. Palladium on Wednesday edged up $2.30, or 0.3%.
London Fix Precious Metals
London precious metals were mixed for a sixth day. In contrasting the Wednesday PM to Thursday PM London fix prices:
- Gold added $9.75, or 0.7%, to $1,316 an ounce,
- Silver rose 43 cents, or 2%, to $21.57 an ounce,
- Platinum declined $16, or 1.2%, to $1,373 an ounce, and
- Palladium fell $9, or 1.3%, to $706 an ounce
U.S. Mint Bullion Sales in October
For the first time this week, sales totals for United States Mint bullion coins remained unchanged. Sales for the month and year-to-date are listed in the following table:
| American Eagle and Buffalo Bullion Sales | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday Sales | Last Week | Week-To-Date Sales | October Sales | YTD Sales | |
| $50 American Gold Eagle Bullion Coins | 0 | 2,000 | 2,000 | 2,000 | 607,000 |
| $25 American Gold Eagle Bullion Coins | 0 | 3,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 54,000 |
| $10 American Gold Eagle Bullion Coins | 0 | 2,000 | 2,000 | 2,000 | 106,000 |
| $5 American Gold Eagle Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 5,000 | 5,000 | 470,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo Gold Bullion Coins | 0 | 4,500 | 2,500 | 2,500 | 202,500 |
| White Mountain 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | N/A | 35,000* | |||
| Perry’s Victory 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 1,200 | 1,200 | 26,200 |
| Great Basin 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 2,200 | 2,200 | 27,200 |
| Fort McHenry 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 2,000 | 2,000 | 27,000 |
| American Silver Eagle Bullion Coins | 0 | 675,000 | 675,000 | 187,000 | 36,275,000 |
*Sold out.
