Gold prices slipped slightly Wednesday after soaring to a more than six-week high on Tuesday.
Gold for February delivery shed $2.60, or 0.2%, to settle at $1,229.40 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Profit-taking and crude oil price weakness were among factors cited for gold’s modest decline.
"A lower oil price reduces the inflation expectations, which is in turn negative for gold," Daniel Briesemann, an analyst at Commerzbank AG in Frankfurt, said in a telephone interview according to Bloomberg News. "After the sharp price rise yesterday, the marketplace is hesitant to put more money into gold at the moment."
Crude-oil ended at a fresh five-year low on Wednesday with prices near $61 a barrel, off about 43% from a peak of over $107 in June.
Gold traded between $1,225.30 and $1,238.90. Prices on Tuesday rallied $37.10, or 3.1%, and touched the highest price at $1,239 since Oct. 23
In rounding out the precious metals complex:
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Silver for March delivery added 5 cents, or 0.3%, to $17.19 an ounce, ranging from $16.95 to $17.36.
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January platinum lost $4.20, or 0.3%, to $1,242.60 an ounce, trading between $1,239.50 and $1,254.60.
- Palladium for March delivery advanced $9.80, or 1.2%, to $821.40 an ounce, ranging from $808.20 to $822.50.
In the previous session, silver surged 5.3%, platinum rose 1.4% and palladium added 1.7%.
London Fix Precious Metals
Earlier fixed London precious metals were mixed. In comparing London bullion Fix prices from Tuesday PM to Wednesday PM:
- Gold gained $2, or 0.2%, to $1,229 an ounce,
- Silver jumped 69 cents, or 4.2%, to $17.06 an ounce,
- Platinum fell $3, or 0.2%, to $1,241 an ounce, and
- Palladium added $6, or 0.7%, to $815 an ounce
US Mint Bullion Coin Sales in December
United States Mint bullion sales were unchanged Wednesday. They did change later in the day on Tuesday with:
- American Silver Eagles rising 187,000;
- Shenandoah 5 oz silver coins gaining 300; and
- Great Sand Dunes 5 oz silver coins advancing 800.
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, in December, and the year to date. Coins with an asterisk (*) have sold out.
| American Eagle and Buffalo Bullion Sales (# of coins) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Last Week | This Week | November Sales | December Sales | YTD Sales | |
| $100 American Platinum Eagle Bullion Coins* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16,700 |
| $50 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 12,000 | 0 | 49,000 | 12,000 | 414,500 |
| $25 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 0 | 0 | 8,000 | 0 | 46,000 |
| $10 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 6,000 | 0 | 12,000 | 6,000 | 118,000 |
| $5 American Eagle Bullion Gold Coins | 30,000 | 0 | 40,000 | 30,000 | 560,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo Bullion Gold Coins | 2,500 | 0 | 12,500 | 2,500 | 175,500 |
| $1 American Eagle Silver Bullion Coins | 821,500 | 682,500 | 3,426,000 | 1,504,000 | 43,051,000 |
| Great Smoky Mountains National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33,000 |
| Shenandoah National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 300 | 300 | 900 | 600 | 23,900 |
| Arches National Park 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22,000 |
| Great Sand Dunes 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 1,800 | 800 | 1,700 | 2,600 | 20,500 |
| Everglades 5 Oz Silver Bullion Coins | 7,000 | 0 | 27,000 | 7,000 | 34,000 |
