Gold prices were almost unchanged Tuesday, registering a modest gain following a slight dip in the previous session.
Gold for December delivery inched up 10 cents to finish at $1,310.60 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"Gold prices gave up early modest gains and ended the U.S. day session near unchanged Tuesday," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Metals Inc., said in a report. "Some early safe-haven demand was offset by some profit taking pressure as the session progressed."
In thin trading volume, gold ranged from a low of $1,306.80 to a high of $1,319.13. Prices dipped 50 cents in the prior session.
"This is the time of year called ‘the dog days of summer,’ which also typically find market participants less interested in trading and more interested in taking their vacations or summer outings before the unofficial end of summer and before school begins," Wyckoff added.
Down for a third time in four sessions, silver for September delivery lost 19 cents, or 1%, to close at $19.91 an ounce. Silver prices traded between $19.88 and $20.16. The white metal tacked on 15 cents on Monday.
In PGM futures on Tuesday:
-
October platinum added 60 cents, or less than 0.1%, to $1,472.20 an ounce, ranging from $1,467.30 to $1,477.70.
- Palladium for September delivery rose $3.30, or 0.4%, to $878 an ounce, trading between $872.90 and $884.05.
London Fix Precious Metals
Earlier fixed London precious metals advanced. In contrasting the London bullion fix prices from Monday PM to Tuesday PM:
- Gold gained $8.50, or 0.7%, to $1,315.75 an ounce,
- Silver added 23 cents, or 1.2%, $20.08 an ounce,
- Platinum edged up $2, or 0.1%, to $1,473 an ounce, and
- Palladium added $19, or 2.2%, to $883 an ounce
US Mint Bullion Sales in August
Sales of United States Mint bullion coins were unchanged as of 3:22 PM ET. Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. Mint bullion products with columns listing the number of bullion coins sold last week, this week so far, last month, the month so far, and the year to date.
| American Eagle and Buffalo Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday Sales | Sales Last Week | Current Sales Week | July Sales | August Sales | YTD Sales | |
| $100 American Platinum Eagle Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 200 | 0 | 200 | 13,100 |
| $50 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 10,000 | 1,500 | 26,000 | 11,500 | 236,000 |
| $25 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27,000 |
| $10 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 2,000 | 0 | 6,000 | 2,000 | 80,000 |
| $5 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 15,000 | 0 | 25,000 | 15,000 | 400,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 4,000 | 0 | 5,500 | 4,000 | 121,000 |
| $1 American Eagle Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 955,000 | 0 | 1,975,000 | 955,000 | 27,058,500 |
| Great Smoky Mountains National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 500 | 0 | 29,500 |
| Shenandoah National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 |
| Arches National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1,500 | 0 | 20,000 |
