Gold settled down for a third straight session on Wednesday, closing at a fresh, more than three-month low.
Gold for December delivery slipped $3.20, or 0.3%, to end at $1,245.30 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement price was the lowest since gold ended at $1,244.30 an ounce on June 4.
"Early, tepid short covering gave way to more technical selling pressure as the session progressed. Also, the key ‘outside markets’ were bearish for gold Wednesday, as the U.S. dollar index was firmer and crude oil prices were lower," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Metals Inc., said in a report. "The dollar index is hovering near a 14-month high, while Nymex crude oil futures hit a seven-month low Wednesday."
Gold prices ranged from a low of $1,244.50 to a high of $1,258.50.
Silver prices closed higher for the first time since Friday. Silver for December delivery advanced less than a penny to $18.93 an ounce, trading between $18.90 and $19.13.
In PGM futures on Wednesday:
-
October platinum lost $4.80, or 0.4%, to $1,381 an ounce, ranging from $1,378.50 to $1,392.
- Palladium for December delivery declined $11.40, or 1.3%, to $849.05 an ounce, trading between $846.30 and $865.
London Fix Precious Metals
Earlier fixed London precious metals moved in the same direction as New York bullion futures. In contrasting the London bullion Fix prices and the LBMA Silver Price from Tuesday PM to Wednesday PM:
- Gold lost $4.75, or 0.4%, to $1,251 an ounce,
- Silver rise a penny to $19.01,
- Platinum declined $13, or 0.69%, to $1,382 an ounce, and
- Palladium tumbled $30, or 3.4%, to $856 an ounce
US Mint Bullion Sales
United States Mint bullion sales climbed Wednesday. Sales gains included:
- 100 ounces of American Platinum Eagles;
- 2,500 ounces of American Gold Eagles;
- 1,000 ounces of American Buffalo Gold coins; and
- 200,000 ounces of American Silver Eagles
Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. Mint bullion products with columns listing the number of bullion coins sold on the day, last week, this week so far, last month, this month so far, and the year to date.
| American Eagle and Buffalo Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday Sales | Sales Last Week | Current Week | August Sales | September Sales | YTD Sales | |
| $100 American Platinum Eagle Bullion Coins | 100 | 100 | 100 | 700 | 200 | 13,800 |
| $50 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 2,500 | 13,500 | 3,500 | 21,000 | 17,000 | 262,500 |
| $25 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 4,000 | 1,000 | 0 | 5,000 | 32,000 |
| $10 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 2,000 | 0 | 6,000 | 2,000 | 86,000 |
| $5 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 10,000 | 0 | 25,000 | 10,000 | 420,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo Bullion Gold Coins | 1,000 | 3,000 | 1,000 | 8,000 | 4,000 | 129,000 |
| $1 American Eagle Silver Bullion Coins | 200,000 | 340,000 | 440,000 | 2,007,500 | 780,000 | 28,891,000 |
| Great Smoky Mountains National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 500 | 0 | 500 | 30,000 |
| Shenandoah National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 500 | 500 | 500 | 21,000 |
| Arches National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1,200 | 0 | 21,200 |
| Great Sand Dunes 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 2,500 | 7,500 | 2,500 | 10,000 |
