Gold futures bounced to an 11-week high Thursday as the U.S. dollar traded lower and investors sought some safety.
Gold for April delivery gained $11.10, or 0.9%, to settle at $1,219.40 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The close is the highest since Nov. 16.
"There is no imminent concern of a Fed rate hike, and that gleams the green light on for the metals to move higher," Bloomberg News quoted David Meger, a director of metals trading at High Ridge Futures in Chicago. "The weakening dollar and the lack of concern of a Fed interest-rate hike, and slightly higher inflationary numbers in the market, all support the precious metals."
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,210.20 to a high of $1,227.50. They slipped 0.3% in the previous session.
Lower for a second day in row after climbing for three straight, silver for March delivery lost 2.1 cents, or 0.1%, to settle at $17.429 an ounce. Silver futures traded between $17.41 and $17.75. In the previous session, they declined 0.5%. On Tuesday, they closed at their best point since Nov. 10.
In rounding out precious metals action:
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April platinum edged down 20 cents, or less than 0.1%, to $999.60 an ounce, ranging from $998.50 to $1,015.
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Palladium for March delivery fell $3.85, or 0.5%, to $759.05 an ounce, trading between $757.55 and $770.90.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London bullion prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold added $18.30, or 1.5%, to $1,221.95 an ounce.
- Silver rose 11 cents, or 0.6%, to $17.71 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 2017
U.S. Mint bullion sales were unchanged as of 3:21 p.m. ET. This article will be updated if new figures become available by the end of the day.
Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. bullion products with columns listing 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 | This Week | Jan Sales | Feb Sales | 2017 Sales | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 20,000 | 0 | 20,000 | 0 | 20,000 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 10,000 | 6,500 | 86,500 | 0 | 86,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 1,000 | 0 | 19,000 | 0 | 19,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 2,000 | 0 | 36,000 | 0 | 36,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 25,000 | 5,000 | 125,000 | 0 | 125,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 4,000 | 1,500 | 32,000 | 0 | 32,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 325,000 | 230,000 | 5,127,500 | 0 | 5,127,500 |
| 2016 Shawnee 5 Oz Silver Coins* | – | |||||
| 2016 Cumberland Gap 5 Oz Silver Coin* | – | |||||
| 2016 Harpers Ferry 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| 2016 Theodore Roosevelt 5 Oz Silver Coin* | – | 0 | – | 800 | – | – |
| 2016 Fort Moultrie 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
