Gold prices edged 0.2% higher Wednesday after plummeting 2% in the previous session.
Gold for June delivery rose $3.20 to settle at $1,303.50 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The precious metal traded from a low of $1,293.50 to a high of $1,307.10.
"Gold prices ended the U.S. day session steady to slightly higher Wednesday, on some mild short covering and bargain hunting" Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Inc, said in a daily note. "The yellow metal is trying to regain its composure and stabilize after suffering a severe beating on Tuesday that turned the near-term technical posture from bullish to bearish."
Silver for May delivery gained 15 cents, or 0.7%, to end at $19.63 an ounce. Silver prices ranged from $19.33 to $19.81. The white metal plunged in the prior session by 52 cents, or 2.6%.
In rounding out the precious metals complex:
-
July platinum fell $6.80, or 0.5%, to $1,437.80 an ounce, trading between $1,433.90 and $1,446.40.
- Palladium for June delivery inched up $6.40, or 0.8%, to $802.30 an ounce, ranging from $790.15 to $804.05.
London Fix Precious Metals
Aside from silver, earlier fixed London precious metals advanced. In contrasting the London fix prices from Tuesday PM to Wednesday PM:
- Gold added $3.50, or 0.3%, to $1,301.50 an ounce,
- Silver slipped 17 cents, or 0.9%, to $19.60 an ounce,
- Platinum fell $7, or 0.5%, to $1,442 an ounce, and
- Palladium lost $9, or 1.1%, to $800 an ounce
US Mint Bullion Sales in March
The U.S. Mint published another day of wide bullion gains, adding to already strong figures with sales so far this week at 13,500 ounces in gold coins and 1,122,000 ounces in silver coins. Those top last week sales of 9,000 ounces in gold coins and 1,050,500 ounces in silver coins.
Below is a sales breakdown for U.S. Mint bullion products with columns offering the number of bullion coins sold on Wednesday, last week, this week so far, last month, the month-to-date, and the year-to-date.
| American Eagle and Buffalo Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday Sales | Sales Last Week | Sales This Week | March Sales | April Sales | YTD Sales | |
| $100 American Platinum Eagle Bullion Coins | 200 | 300 | 300 | 10,000 | 900 | 10,900 |
| $50 American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins | 2,000 | 3,000 | 7,500 | 16,000 | 19,500 | 120,000 |
| $25 American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2,000 | 1,000 | 18,000 |
| $10 American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins | 2,000 | 8,000 | 8,000 | 4,000 | 18,000 | 60,000 |
| $5 American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins | 0 | 10,000 | 10,000 | 30,000 | 30,000 | 270,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo Gold Bullion Coins | 1,500 | 3,000 | 3,000 | 12,000 | 13,000 | 78,500 |
| $1 American Silver Eagle Bullion Coins | 50,000 | 1,050,500 | 1,085,000 | 5,354,000 | 2,428,500 | 16,307,500 |
| Great Smoky Mountains National Park 5 Oz Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 7,400 | 12,400 | 10,000 | 22,400 |
