Gold rose modestly for a second straight session on Tuesday, supported by a weaker U.S. dollar and some safe-haven buying.
Gold for August delivery gained $4, or 0.3%, to settle at $1,177.60 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"Gold prices ended the U.S. day session moderately higher Tuesday, on some more short covering in the futures market and bargain hunting in the cash," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Metals Inc., said in a report. "The key ‘outside markets’ also were in a bullish posture for the precious metals on this day, as the U.S. dollar index was weaker and crude oil prices were solidly higher."
Gold prices traded from a low of $1,171.80 to a high of $1,182.30. They turned up in the previous session by $5.50 or 0.5%.
Dropping for a fifth session in a row, but barely, silver for July delivery slipped less than a half cent to close at $15.96 an ounce. Silver prices ranged from $15.91 to $16.14. They declined on Monday by 0.2%.
In PGM futures on Tuesday:
-
July platinum advanced $7.30, or 0.7%, to $1,108.50 an ounce, trading between $1,102.10 and $1,115.10.
- Palladium for September delivery declined $3.85, or 0.5%, to $739.90 an ounce, ranging from $739.50 and $752.50.
London Precious Metals Prices
Earlier fixed London precious metals prices mostly moved higher. In comparing London bullion prices from Monday PM to Tuesday PM:
- Gold rose $4.60, or 0.4%, to $1,177.40 an ounce,
- Silver added 7 cents, or 0.4%, to $16.13 an ounce,
- Platinum gained $11, or 1%, $1,109 an ounce, and
- Palladium was unchanged at $746 an ounce.
US Mint Bullion Coin Sales in June
United States Mint bullion sales advanced on Tuesday by 12,000 ounces in gold coins and 650,000 ounces in silver coins. Two-day gold sales this week at 15,000 ounces have already matched last week’s total, which marked an 11-week high.
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 | Current Week | May Sales | June Sales | YTD Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coins | 7,500 | 10,500 | 9,500 | 13,500 | 20,000 | 156,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3,000 | 0 | 32,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coins | 2,000 | 0 | 2,000 | 10,000 | 2,000 | 60,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coins | 20,000 | 15,000 | 20,000 | 40,000 | 35,000 | 340,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coins | 2,000 | 3,000 | 3,000 | 9,500 | 6,000 | 81,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coins | 650,000 | 975,000 | 650,000 | 2,023,500 | 1,625,000 | 18,571,000 |
| 2015 Homestead 5 Oz Silver Coins* | – | 35,000 | ||||
| 2015 Kisatchie 5 Oz Silver Coins* | – | 12,000 | – | 42,000 | ||
