Gold climbed yet again Thursday, lifting its streak of gains to seven sessions while also finishing above $1,300 an ounce for the first time since early November.
Gold for April delivery rose $5.10, or 0.4%, to close at $1,300.10 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement price had not closed as high or above $1,300 since ending at $1,308.50 an ounce on Nov. 7. The seven-session rally is the longest since July 2011, according to Bloomberg News.
Gold advanced on "worse-than-expected retail sales figures along with a higher initial jobless claims number — both contributing to lower U.S. dollar DXY -0.49% and therefore a higher gold price," MarketWatch quoted Jeffrey Wright, managing director at H.C. Wainwright.
Gold futures traded from a low of $1,286.20 to a high of $1,302.40. Prices are up 3% since Friday.
"Physical demand is very price sensitive," Bart Melek, an analyst at TD Securities in Toronto, said in a telephone interview, reports Bloomberg News. "We could see demand slow if prices surge."
Silver extended its winning streak to nine straight sessions. Silver for March delivery settled at $20.40 an ounce, gaining 5 cents, or 0.3%. Prices ranged from $20.13 to $20.47. Silver has climbed 2.3% since Friday.
In rounding out the precious metals complex:
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April platinum tacked on $9.30, or 0.7%, to $1,416.60 an ounce, trading between $1,394.90 and $1,417.60. Platinum has advanced for six consecutive sessions.
- Palladium for March delivery rose $2.05, or 0.3%, to $731.10 an ounce, ranging from $721.90 to $731.90. Palladium’s gain marks a second straight.
London Fix Precious Metals
Earlier fixed London precious metals moved slightly. In contrasting the London fix prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold gained $6.50, or 0.5%, to $1,296 an ounce,
- Silver added 7 cents, or 0.4%, to $20.27 an ounce,
- Platinum fell $6, or 0.4%, to $1,397 an ounce, and
- Palladium rose $3, or 0.4%, to $725 an ounce
US Mint Bullion Coin Sales in February
American Silver Eagles were the sole gainers Thursday among U.S. Mint bullion coins. Silver Eagle sales climbed 33,500 for a year-to-date total of 6.5 million. The bullion series was introduced in 1986. Just three other years through their first two complete months logged higher sales. Below is the latest sales breakdown across all U.S. Mint bullion products.
| American Eagle and Buffalo Bullion Sales (# of coins) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday Sales | Week-To-Date Sales | Sales Last Week | Feb Sales | YTD Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins | 0 | 3,000 | 2,000 | 5,000 | 67,500 |
| $25 American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 2,000 | 2,000 | 14,000 |
| $10 American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 8,000 | 8,000 | 36,000 |
| $5 American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins | 0 | 20,000 | 10,000 | 30,000 | 190,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo Gold Bullion Coins | 0 | 2,500 | 5,000 | 7,500 | 49,000 |
| American Eagle Silver Bullion Coins | 33,500 | 875,000 | 850,000 | 1,725,000 | 6,500,000 |
