Gold ended in positive territory Thursday after snapping a string of three straight session increases on Wednesday.
Gold for April delivery rose $3.80, or 0.3%, to close at $1,331.80 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gains came on safe-haven concerns over the crisis in Ukraine and following remarks from Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, opined analysts.
"There is some safe-haven buying," Frank Lesh, a trader at FuturePath Trading LLC in Chicago, said in a telephone interview according to Bloomberg. "The Fed clearly seems concerned about the economic conditions."
Yellen on Thursday said the following, in part, to the Senate Banking Committee.
"A number of data releases have pointed to softer spending, and part of that softness may reflect adverse weather conditions. It’s difficult to discern how much."
Gold prices on the day ranged from a low of $1,324 to a high of $1,336.40.
Silver rose for the first time since Monday. Silver for May delivery, the new most active contract, advanced 6 cents, or 0.3%, to close at $21.35 an ounce. The precious metal traded between $21.03 and $21.52.
PGMs also notched gains. In their daily breakdowns:
-
April platinum rose $24.30, or 1.7%, to finish at $1,453.40 an ounce. Platinum ranged from $1,419.50 to $1,455.50.
- Palladium for June delivery climbed $10.55, or 1.4%, to settle at $743.85 an ounce. It traded between $726.05 and $747.20.
London Fix Precious Metals
Aside from silver, earlier fixed London precious metals advanced. In contrasting the London fix prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold edged up 50 cents to $1,332.25 an ounce,
- Silver declined 47 cents, or 2.1%, to $21.38 an ounce,
- Platinum gained $14.50, or 1%, to $1,447 an ounce, and
- Palladium rose $10, or 1.4%, to $743 an ounce
US Mint Bullion Coin Sales in February
U.S. Mint gold coin sales rose for the first time since Friday, gaining a total of 3,000 ounces. The bureau’s silver coins have been silent since Tuesday but gains on the week are already the strongest since the debut week of the newly dated 2014 American Silver Eagles.
Below is a current sales breakdown across all the Mint’s 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 | 2,000 | 2,000 | 10,000 | 19,000 | 81,500 |
| $25 American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2,000 | 14,000 |
| $10 American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8,000 | 36,000 |
| $5 American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins | 5,000 | 5,000 | 15,000 | 50,000 | 210,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo Gold Bullion Coins | 500 | 500 | 2,000 | 12,000 | 53,500 |
| American Eagle Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 1,171,500 | 750,000 | 3,671,500 | 8,446,500 |
