Gold prices settled higher on Thursday for the first time in five sessions, and bounced slightly from a more than two-week low.
Gold for August delivery added $2.30, or 0.2%, to settle at $1,188.80 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"Short covering in the futures market and some bargain hunting in the cash market were featured," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Metals Inc., said in a report. "As has been the case for some time now, precious metals traders are keeping one eye on the U.S. dollar index, which traded on both sides of unchanged Thursday but was lower in afternoon action."
Gold traded from a low of $1,180.20 to a high of $1,192.80. Prices through the prior four sessions fell by a total of $23.10, or 1.9%.
Ending higher for the first time in four sessions, silver for July delivery added 2 cents, or 0.1%, to close at $16.67 an ounce. Silver prices ranged from $16.54 to $16.78. They declined in the previous three sessions by a total of 48 cents, or 2.8%.
In PGM futures on Thursday:
-
July platinum declined $2.70, or 0.2%, to $1,116.30 an ounce, trading between $1,108.70 and $1,127.30.
- Palladium for September delivery was unchanged at $785.60 an ounce, ranging from $781.35 to $789.80.
London Precious Metals Prices
Earlier fixed London precious metals prices were mostly lower. Silver was the exception. In comparing London bullion prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold declined 85 cents, or less than 0.1%, to $1,185 an ounce,
- Silver added 2 cents, or 0.1%, to $16.68 an ounce,
- Platinum fell $7, or 0.6%, to $1,115 an ounce, and
- Palladium shed $2, or 0.3%, to $784 an ounce.
US Mint Bullion Coin Sales in May
In a rarity, United States Mint bullion sales are flat on the week through Thursday. 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 / This Week | Last Week | April Sales | May Sales | YTD Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 6,000 | 23,500 | 9,500 | 132,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 0 | 4,000 | 2,000 | 31,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 0 | 4,000 | 6,000 | 54,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 10,000 | 30,000 | 30,000 | 295,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 3,500 | 10,000 | 7,000 | 73,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 590,000 | 2,851,500 | 1,648,500 | 16,571,000 |
| 2015 Homestead 5 Oz Silver Coins* | – | 35,000 | |||
| 2015 Kisatchie 5 Oz Silver Coins* | 0 | 0 | 30,000 | 12,000 | 42,000 |
