Precious metals futures ended mostly lower on Friday but mostly higher on the week. Silver led losses on the day but it also posted the biggest weekly increase. Gold was little changed for both.
Gold for August delivery on Friday edged down 30 cents, or less than 0.1%, to settle at $1,302.70 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"The G7 talks are a bit disconcerting with tariffs. We have the Fed meeting coming on Wednesday keeping a lid on gold," Reuters quoted Patrick Magilligan, director of metals marketing for Key Metal Refining. "The June 12 meeting with (North) Korea, probably underneath the gold price, keeping it buoyant," he added.
Gold futures traded 0.3% higher this week after moving exactly opposite, down 0.3%, last week. The yellow metal is 0.5% lower on the year to date. In looking ahead to next week, Kitco News offers the following forecasts via their Wall Street & Main Street surveys:
"Seventeen market professionals took part in the survey. There were 10 votes, or 59%, calling for gold prices to rise. There were four votes or 24%, calling for gold to fall, while three voters, or 18%, look for a sideways market.
Meanwhile, 830 voters responded in an online Main Street survey. A total of 505 respondents, or 61%, predicted that gold prices would be higher in a week. Another 223 voters, or 27%, said gold will fall, while 102, or 12%, see a sideways market."
Silver for July delivery declined 7.4 cents, or a bit more than 0.4%, to settle at $16.741 an ounce. Silver futures traded 1.8% higher this week after slipping 0.6% last week. On Thursday, they marked their highest close since April 20. The precious is 2.4% lower on the year so far.
In PGM futures on Friday and for the week:
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July platinum rose $5.40, or 0.6%, to $905.70 an ounce, but dipped 0.1% from a week ago.
- Palladium for September delivery fell $3.90, or nearly 0.4%, to $1,005.70 an ounce, but logged a 0.9% weekly increase.
The pair is lower on the year to date with losses of 3.8% for platinum and 5.2% for palladium.
London Precious Metals Prices
London precious metals prices also ended mostly lower on Friday but mostly higher on the week. In comparing their levels from Thursday PM to Friday PM:
- Gold rose $1, or 0.08%, to $1,298.25 an ounce.
- Silver declined 2.5 cents, or 0.2%, to $16.72 an ounce.
- Platinum fell $4, or 0.4%, to $901 an ounce.
- Palladium declined $12, or 1.2%, to $1,015 an ounce.
In LBMA results for the week, platinum dipped 0.2% while the others logged gains reaching 0.3% for fold, 1.8% for silver, and 2.4% for palladium.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2018
United States Mint bullion sales improved this week for both gold and silver coins. In headline weekly comparisons:
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Gold bullion coins advanced by 11,000 ounces this week after they climbed by 6,000 ounces last week. Splits included 6,000 ounces in American Gold Eagles, matching last week, and 5,000 ounces in American Gold Buffalos against zero last week.
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American Silver Eagle sales rose by 100,000 this week after they were uncharacteristically unchanged last week. Sales of five-ounce silver bullion coins were muted for a seventh week in a row.
Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. Mint bullion products with columns listing the number of coins sold during varying periods.
| US Mint Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Friday | Last Week | This Week / June | April | May | 2018 Sales | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10,000 | 30,000 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 6,000 | 5,500 | 4,000 | 18,500 | 71,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18,000 | 44,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 5,000 | 5,000 | 10,000 | 115,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 5,000 | 2,000 | 16,500 | 52,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 100,000 | 915,000 | 380,000 | 6,487,500 |
| Pictured Rocks 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 |
| Apostle Islands 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 | 0 | 30,000 |
CoinNews will take a one-week break in publishing bullion articles.
