Gold prices settled higher for the third time in four sessions on Thursday, lifted by improved haven demand as the dollar retreated and stocks dived.
Gold for December delivery added $2.40, or 0.2%, to close at $1,221.90 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"The stock market’s big drop is providing some temporary support to gold," Phil Streible, a senior commodity broker at R.J. O’Brien & Associates in Chicago, said in a telephone interview according to Bloomberg News. "Also, there could be some physical buying" after prices reached new lows, he said.
In U.S. stocks on Thursday, the Dow fell 1.5%, the S&P 500 lost 1.6% and the Nasdaq dropped 1.9%.
Gold prices ranged from a high of $1,224.80 to a low of $1,206.60, the weakest point since Jan. 2. The yellow metal this week has logged modest changes in daily closings. Gold slipped $2.50 on Wednesday, gained $4.10 on Tuesday and climbed $1.30 on Monday.
Silver for December delivery declined 26 cents, or 1.5%, to end at $17.44 an ounce. The white metal was down as far as $17.27 an ounce, the lowest since June 2010.
In PGM futures on Thursday:
-
October platinum dropped $5.20, or 0.4%, to $1,314.20 an ounce, ranging from $1,299.40 to $1,318.80.
- Palladium for December delivery tumbled $17.30, or 2.1%, to $802.75 an ounce, trading between $795.50 and $816.90.
London Fix Precious Metals
Earlier fixed London precious metals declined. In contrasting London bullion Fix prices and the LBMA Silver Price from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold shed $3.50, or 0.3%, to $1,213.75 an ounce,
- Silver fell 24 cents, or 1.4%, to $17.52,
- Platinum shed $18, or 1.4%, at $1,310 an ounce, and
- Palladium declined $14, or 1.7%, to $807 an ounce
US Mint Bullion Coin Sales
United States Mint bullion sales were unchanged Thursday, but they advanced later in the afternoon on Wednesday. Gains included 3,000 ounces in gold coins and 35,000 ounces in silver coins. Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. Mint bullion products with columns listing the number of bullion coins sold on the prior day, last week, this week, this month, and the year to date.
| American Eagle and Buffalo Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday Sales | Last Week | Current Week | August Sales | September Sales | YTD Sales | |
| $100 American Platinum Eagle Bullion Coins | 0 | 200 | 200 | 700 | 600 | 14,200 |
| $50 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 2,000 | 15,500 | 7,500 | 21,000 | 42,000 | 287,500 |
| $25 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5,000 | 32,000 |
| $10 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 2,000 | 2,000 | 6,000 | 6,000 | 90,000 |
| $5 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 5,000 | 5,000 | 10,000 | 25,000 | 25,000 | 435,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo Bullion Gold Coins | 500 | 4,000 | 3,500 | 8,000 | 11,500 | 136,500 |
| $1 American Eagle Silver Bullion Coins | 35,000 | 950,000 | 1,040,000 | 2,007,500 | 2,800,000 | 30,911,000 |
| Great Smoky Mountains National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 1,500 | 0 | 0 | 2,000 | 31,500 |
| Shenandoah National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 500 | 500 | 1,000 | 21,500 |
| Arches National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 500 | 300 | 1,200 | 800 | 22,000 |
| Great Sand Dunes 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 500 | 1,200 | 7,500 | 4,200 | 11,700 |
