Precious metals mostly declined Wednesday. Gold futures closed lower for a third straight session, registering a 2-1/2-week low, while silver futures retreated for a second day to end at their lowest level in 6 weeks.
Gold for June delivery lost $3, or 0.2%, to settle at $1,264.20 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement is the lowest since April 10.
"World stock markets paused at mid-week, after the good early-week gains," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Metals Inc., said in a report. "However, traders and investors worldwide are still in an upbeat mood, which is bearish for safe-haven gold."
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,260.70 to a high of $1,269.70. They slipped 0.8% on Tuesday and declined 0.9% on Monday.
Elsewhere, silver futures for May delivery settled down 22.8 cents, or 1.3%, to $17.363 an ounce. The close is the lowest since March 16. Silver futures traded between $17.29 and $17.63. They dropped 1.5% on Tuesday and inched up less than a half-cent on Monday.
In PGM futures on Wednesday:
-
July platinum fell $9.50, or 1%, to $948.10 an ounce, ranging from $945.80 to $958.40.
- Palladium for June delivery added $8.50, or 1.1%, to $805.15 an ounce, trading between $796.50 and $808.20.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London bullion prices from Tuesday PM to Wednesday PM:
- Gold fell $5.95, or 0.5%, to $1,261.85 an ounce.
- Silver declined 25 cents, or 1.4%, to $17.59 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. 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) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday Sales | Last Week | This Week | Mar Sales | April Sales | 2017 Sales | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 500 | 16,000 | 3,000 | 126,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1,000 | 0 | 25,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,000 | 2,000 | 46,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 5,000 | 10,000 | 35,000 | 20,000 | 210,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 500 | 500 | 8,500 | 3,000 | 58,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 220,000 | 235,000 | 1,615,000 | 835,000 | 8,792,500 |
| 2017 Effigy Mounds 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 300 | 0 | 200 | 900 | 20,600 |
| 2017 Frederick Douglass 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 4,200 | 1,400 | N/A | 17,600 | 17,600 |
