Precious metals ended lower on Thursday for a second session in a row as the U.S. dollar bounced from earlier weakness.
Gold for June delivery declined $8.10, or 0.7%, to close at $1,182.20 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"A firmer U.S. dollar index and lower crude oil prices on this day worked against the precious metals market bulls," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Inc, said in a daily note. "Traders and investors are now squarely focused on Friday morning’s U.S. jobs report, which is arguably the most important U.S. economic data of the month."
Gold prices traded from a low of $1,177.90 to a high of $1,192. They slipped in the prior session by 0.2%.
Silver for July delivery lost 21 cents, or 1.3%, to settle at $16.30 an ounce. Silver prices ranged from $16.16 to $16.56. They fell on Wednesday by 7 cents.
In rounding out the precious metals complex:
-
July platinum fell $11.40, or 1%, to $1,131.40 an ounce, trading between $1,130.30 and $1,147.10.
- Palladium for June delivery retreated $6.90, or 0.9%, to $785.75 an ounce, ranging from $778.60 to $794.05.
London Precious Metals Prices
Earlier fixed London precious metals prices declined as well. In comparing London bullion prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold gave back $7.25, or 0.6%, to $1,187 an ounce,
- Silver dipped 6 cents, or 0.4%, to $16.35 an ounce,
- Platinum declined $14, or 1.2%, to $1,130 an ounce, and
- Palladium fell $3, or 0.4%, to $789 an ounce.
US Mint Bullion Coin Sales in May
United States Mint bullion sales registered gains of 1,000 ounces in gold coins and 59,500 ounces in silver coins.
Bullion news of the day revolved around the sellout of the Kisatchie coin, the second of the 2015-dated America the Beautiful Five Ounce Silver Bullion Coins. It reached 42,000. The prior Homestead coin sold out as well, but at a lower total of 35,000. The next release in the five ounce series depicts Blue Ridge Parkway. The coin is set to launch on June 22, according to the Mint.
Below is a listing of U.S. Mint bullion products that shows the number of coins sold during varying periods. Products with an asterisk (*) are no longer available.
| US Mint Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday Sales | Last Week | Current Week | April Sales | May Sales | YTD Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 11,500 | 2,500 | 23,500 | 2,500 | 125,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 1,000 | 0 | 4,000 | 0 | 29,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coins | 2,000 | 0 | 6,000 | 4,000 | 6,000 | 54,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coins | 5,000 | 5,000 | 15,000 | 30,000 | 15,000 | 280,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 2,000 | 1,500 | 10,000 | 1,500 | 67,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coins | 50,000 | 678,000 | 833,500 | 2,851,500 | 833,500 | 15,756,000 |
| 2015 Homestead 5 Oz Silver Coins* | – | 35,000 | ||||
| 2015 Kisatchie 5 Oz Silver Coins* | 1,900 | 500 | 12,000 | 30,000 | 12,000 | 42,000 |
