Precious metals futures advanced Wednesday with gains ranging from 0.7% for platinum to 2% for palladium.
Gold for December delivery climbed $3.20, or 0.3%, to settle at $1,282.90 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"Gold prices were moderately higher in early-afternoon U.S. trading Wednesday. Early losses were erased as bargain hunters ‘bought the dip’ that had occurred this week," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Metals Inc., said in a report. "A slightly bullish FOMC minutes report also gave the gold and silver markets a lift."
Gold futures traded from a low of $1,273.20 to a high of $1,286.10. They slipped 0.8% in the previous session and declined 0.3% in their start to the week on Monday.
Silver for September delivery tacked on 22.6 cents, or 1.4%, to settle at $16.94 an ounce. Silver futures ranged from $16.61 to $16.94. They sank 2.4% on Tuesday and gained 0.3% in the previous session to settle at their best level since June 14.
In PGM futures on Wednesday:
-
October platinum added $7.10 to $974.50 an ounce, trading between $963.80 and $984.40.
- Palladium for September delivery jumped $18.15 to $910.20 an ounce, ranging from $885.90 to $917.20.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Tuesday PM to Wednesday PM:
- Gold gained $2.45, or 0.2%, to 1,272.75 an ounce.
- Silver dropped 21 cents, or 1.2%, to $16.68 an ounce.
LBMA platinum and palladium prices are available on the LBMA’s website with a delay of midnight.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2017
United States Mint bullion sales were unchanged as of 3:47 p.m. ET. 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 | Last Week | This Week | July | August | YTD | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 4,500 | 0 | 13,500 | 4,500 | 160,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 1,000 | 0 | 0 | 1,000 | 28,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,000 | 0 | 52,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 | 0 | 290,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 2,000 | 0 | 6,000 | 2,000 | 74,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 110,000 | 125,000 | 2,320,000 | 235,000 | 14,788,500 |
| 2017 Effigy Mounds 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35,000 |
| 2017 Frederick Douglass 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 |
| 2017 Ozark Riverways 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 |
