Gold added to last week’s gains and closed at a three-week high. Silver and palladium also advanced.
Gold for December delivery turned up $8.30, or 0.7%, to $1,230 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"More safe-haven demand was featured amid the recent U.S. stock market sell-off. Short covering by the futures traders, whose bearish bets recently are not paying off, and bargain hunting in the cash market were also seen in gold to start the trading week," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Metals Inc., said in a report. "A lower U.S. dollar index was also a bullish “outside market” factor working in favor of the precious metals market bulls Monday."
Gold traded from $1,223.60 to $1,238, the highest price most since Sept. 17. Gold last week posted its first weekly gain in six weeks.
Silver for December delivery tacked on 4 cents, or 0.2%, to close at $17.35 an ounce. Prices ranged from $17.28 to $17.68. Silver surged 2.8% last week.
In PGM futures on Monday:
-
January platinum shed 40 cents to $1,261.20 an ounce, trading between $1,255.10 and $1,276.30.
- Palladium for December delivery added 90 cents to $785.95 an ounce, ranging from $781.95 to $793.85.
Last week platinum gained 2.8% and palladium jumped 4%.
London Fix Precious Metals
Earlier fixed London precious metals were flat to higher. In contrasting London bullion Fix prices and the LBMA Silver Price from Friday PM to Monday PM:
- Gold rose $10, or 0.8%, to $1,229 an ounce,
- Silver climbed 15 cents, or 0.9%, to $17.41,
- Platinum added $1, or less than 0.1%, to $1,257 an ounce, and
- Palladium was unchanged at $784 an ounce
London precious metals last week increased by 2% for gold, 1.7% for silver, 0.6% for platinum and 2.8% for palladium.
US Mint Bullion Coin Sales in October
United States Mint bullion coin sales were unchanged Monday following solid gains last week for silver coins and exceptional gains for gold coins.
Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. Mint bullion products with columns listing the number of bullion coins sold on last week, last month, in October, and the year to date.
| American Eagle and Buffalo Bullion Sales (# of coins) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday Sales | Last Week | September Sales | October Sales | YTD Sales | |
| $100 American Platinum Eagle Bullion Coins | 0 | N/A* | 2,700 | 400 | 16,700 |
| $50 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 24,500 | 50,500 | 28,500 | 324,500 |
| $25 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 3,000 | 6,000 | 4,000 | 36,000 |
| $10 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 6,000 | 8,000 | 6,000 | 98,000 |
| $5 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 5,000 | 30,000 | 10,000 | 450,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 8,500 | 14,500 | 11,000 | 150,500 |
| $1 American Eagle Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 870,000 | 4,140,000 | 2,520,000 | 34,771,000 |
| Great Smoky Mountains National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 3,500 | 0 | 33,000 |
| Shenandoah National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 1,000 | 0 | 21,500 |
| Arches National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 0 | 800 | 0 | 22,000 |
| Great Sand Dunes 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 0 | 800 | 4,500 | 1,300 | 13,300 |
