Gold futures ended lower on Thursday for the first time in four sessions, slipping from a more than two-year high.
Gold for August delivery shed $5, or 0.4%, to $1,362.10 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The decline was attributed to a stronger U.S. dollar, which was boosted by an ADP report showing private-sector employment increased by 172,000 from May to June. The gain was larger than expected.
"In the short term, I do see a risk that the dollar will rise further, so that will again cap the upside for gold," Reuters quoted Danske Bank analyst Jens Pedersen.
On Friday, the U.S. Labor Department will release its much-anticipated jobs report for June. Gold should climb if the numbers are weaker than the expected 170,000 to 200,000 range. Likewise, the yellow metal would likely dip if the jobs data comes in on target or is better than expected.
Gold futures traded from a low of $1,358.90 to a high of $1,372.90. On Wednesday, they rose 0.6% and closed at their highest level since Mar. 17, 2014.
Snapping a six-session winning streak, silver for September delivery dropped 36.5 cents, or 1.8%, to settle at $19.838 an ounce. Silver futures ranged from $19.86 to $20.34. They rose 1.5% in the prior session and registered their best settlement since Aug. 4, 2014.
In rounding out the precious metals futures complex:
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October platinum added $3.80, or 0.4%, to $1,095.10 an ounce, trading between $1,082 and $1,096.50.
- Palladium for September delivery gained $4.80, or 0.8%, to $612.35 an ounce, ranging from $601.60 to $613.05.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold fell $9.55, or 0.7%, to $1,356.70 an ounce.
- Silver fell 48 cents, or 2.4%, to $19.95 an ounce.
LBMA platinum and palladium prices are available on the LBMA’s website with a delay of midnight.
US Mint Bullion Coin Sales in 2016
United States Mint bullion sales were unchanged as of 4:02 p.m. ET. Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. Mint bullion products with columns listing the number of bullion coins sold during varying periods of time.
| US Mint Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday Sales | Last Week | This Week / July | May Sale | June Sales | 2016 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 13,000 | 5,500 | 64,500 | 62,500 | 411,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7,000 | 3,000 | 46,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 0 | 2,000 | 10,000 | 10,000 | 88,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 15,000 | 5,000 | 60,000 | 70,000 | 510,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coins | 0 | 2,500 | 1,000 | 18,500 | 14,500 | 113,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 938,000 | 250,000 | 4,498,500 | 2,837,500 | 26,500,500 |
| 2016 Shawnee 5 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 105,000 |
| 2016 Cumberland Gap 5 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11,000 | 0 | 75,000 |
| 2016 Harpers Ferry 5 Oz Silver Coins | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34,200 | 34,200 |
