Gold and silver advanced Thursday, snapping a string of multi-session declines with the help of an easing greenback.
Gold for April delivery edged up $1.30, or 0.1%, to close at $1,151.90 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"This little correction in the dollar could last for days, but until there is a shift where people see opportunity to put capital into another currency, I don’t know how far the dollar can go," Bloomberg News quoted Lance Roberts, the chief strategist for STA Wealth Management in Houston.
Gold traded from a low of $1,147.50 to a high of $1,165.70. On Wednesday, gold closed at its weakest level since Nov. 6 and marked a seventh decline in eight sessions.
Silver for May delivery tacked on 15 cents, or 1%, to settle at $15.52 an ounce. Prices ranged from $15.39 to 15.69. Until today, silver had ended flat or lower for nine straight sessions.
In PGM futures on Thursday:
-
April platinum dipped 50 cents to $1,114.90 an ounce, trading between $1,112.50 and $1,131.90.
- Palladium shed $2.45, or 0.3%, to $786.95 an ounce, ranging from $785.55 to $799.50.
London Fix Precious Metals
Earlier fixed London precious metals moved in the same direction as New York bullion futures. In comparing London bullion Fix prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold added $2.25, or 0.2%, to $1,152.25 an ounce,
- Silver rose 4 cents, or 0.3%, to $15.68 an ounce,
- Platinum lost $5, or 0.4%, to $1,118 an ounce, and
- Palladium fell $8, or 1%, to $789 an ounce.
US Mint Bullion Coin Sales in March
United States Mint gold sales rose for a fourth day in a row Thursday, padding a total for the week so far that is already the highest since weekly sales in mid-January and at least double each of the weekly totals going back to mid-February.
U.S. Mint bullion products below show with columns showing the number of coins sold during varying periods.
| US Mint Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday Sales | Last Week | Current Week | February Sales | March Sales | YTD Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coins | 2,000 | 2,500 | 14,000 | 12,500 | 16,500 | 80,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 3,000 | 1,000 | 2,000 | 4,000 | 24,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 2,000 | 0 | 0 | 2,000 | 38,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coins | 5,000 | 20,000 | 20,000 | 50,000 | 40,000 | 205,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 1,500 | 2,000 | 12,000 | 3,500 | 50,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 587,000 | 786,500 | 3,022,000 | 1,373,500 | 9,925,500 |
| 2015 Homestead 5 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 0 | 8,000 | 20,000 | 8,000 | 28,000 |
