Gold, silver and platinum closed lower on Tuesday for the first time in six sessions as the U.S. dollar rebounded following an upbeat U.S. housing market report.
Gold for June delivery dropped $20.90, or 1.7%, to settle at $1,206.70 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"The dollar broke out last week as investors interpreted mostly soft economic data as reason for the [Federal Reserve] to delay "rate liftoff" to the end of 2015 or even out to 2016," MarketWatch quoted Tyler Richey, an analyst for the 7:00’s Report. "However, after … [the] strong housing starts number, and with multiple other reports due out later this week with optimistic results expected, the uptrend in gold is being tested."
U.S. housing starts jumped 20.2% in April to their highest level in nearly 7-1/2 years, the Commerce Department said on Tuesday. The percent increase was the biggest since February 1991.
Gold traded on the day from a low of $1,205.10 to a high of $1,225.50. Prices over the prior five sessions advanced $44.60, or 3.8%. They settled on Monday at a more than three-month high.
Silver for July delivery tumbled 66 cents, or 3.7%, to close at $17.07 an ounce. Prices ranged from $16.87 to $17.74.
In PGM futures on Tuesday:
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July platinum declined $27.60, or 2.3%, to $1,150.90 an ounce, trading between $1,147.20 and $1,178.10.
- Down for a second day in a row, palladium for June delivery fell $17.85, or 2.3%, to $775.15 an ounce, ranging from $774.70 to $788.20.
London Precious Metals Prices
Earlier fixed London precious metals prices declined as well. In comparing London bullion prices from Monday PM to Tuesday PM:
- Gold shed $9.20, or 0.8%, to $1,214.30 an ounce,
- Silver fell 30 cents, or 1.7%, to $17.40 an ounce,
- Platinum declined $19, or 1.6%, to $1,155 an ounce, and
- Palladium lost $13, or 1.6%, to $784 an ounce.
US Mint Bullion Coin Sales in May
United States Mint bullion sales were unchanged Tuesday as of 4:11 PM ET. 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) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday Sales | Last Week | Weekly Sales | April Sales | May Sales | YTD Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 1,000 | 500 | 23,500 | 4,000 | 126,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 2,000 | 0 | 4,000 | 2,000 | 31,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,000 | 6,000 | 54,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 5,000 | 0 | 30,000 | 20,000 | 285,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 2,000 | 1,000 | 10,000 | 4,500 | 70,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 225,000 | 250,000 | 2,851,500 | 1,308,500 | 16,231,000 |
| 2015 Homestead 5 Oz Silver Coins* | – | 35,000 | ||||
| 2015 Kisatchie 5 Oz Silver Coins* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 | 12,000 | 42,000 |
