Precious metals futures finished lower Thursday with losses ranging from 0.1% for gold to 1.3% for platinum.
Gold for December delivery dipped $1.30 to settle at $1,201.60 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"The U.S. economy is still in a very good place. The expectations of a rate hike next year is tilting toward four from three," Reuters quoted Nicholas Cawley, an analyst at DailyFX.com.
"The higher the rates, the more attractive for investors looking for safe haven to move into U.S. Treasuries than gold."
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,199.60 to a high of $1,210.70. They shed 0.3% on Wednesday, rose 1.3% on Tuesday — ending at a two-week high, and lost 0.4% on Monday.
Elsewhere, silver for December fell 8 cents, or 0.6%, to settle at $14.59 an ounce. Silver futures traded between $14.56 and $14.81. They declined 0.2% on Wednesday, gained 1.3% on Tuesday, and fell 1.4% on Monday.
In other precious metals futures prices Thursday:
-
January platinum dropped $11.20 to $824.50 an ounce, ranging from $823.20 to $836.40.
- Palladium for December delivery fell $7.50, or 0.7%, to $1,045.50 an ounce, trading between $1,041.10 and $1,056.90 an ounce. Last Friday, it ended at $1,072.80 an ounce for its best close since late January.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold rose $2.25, or 0.2%, to 1,203.45 an ounce.
- Silver declined 10.5 cents, or 0.7%, to $14.63 an ounce.
LBMA platinum and palladium prices are available on the LBMA’s website with a delay of midnight.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2018
United States Mint bullion sales were unchanged. 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) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday | Last Week | Week / Oct. | August | September | 2018 Sales | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 3,500 | 2,000 | 17,500 | 14,500 | 153,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 1,000 | 0 | 4,000 | 2,000 | 24,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4,000 | 4,000 | 58,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 5,000 | 10,000 | 40,000 | 205,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 4,500 | 1,000 | 20,000 | 11,000 | 109,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 935,000 | 545,000 | 1,530,000 | 2,897,500 | 12,680,000 |
| Pictured Rocks 5 Oz Silver Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 |
| Apostle Islands 5 Oz Silver Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 |
| Voyageurs 5 Oz Silver Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 |
| Cumberland Island 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 52,500 | 52,500 |
