Precious metals futures finished divided Thursday with platinum and palladium higher and gold and silver lower. Palladium logged its second straight record settlement — its ninth record close in ten sessions.
Gold for February delivery dipped $1.50, or 0.1%, to settle at $1,292.30 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"On the one hand, the outlook for gold and other metals look bullish in 2019. The Fed’s likely inaction this year [according to some analysis, though others disagree] should help to devalue the dollar against her major rivals," MarketWatch quoted Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst with Forex.com.
"But on the other hand, the fact that all the other major central banks are meanwhile in no rush to raise interest rates means there is no real alternative currency that yield-seeking investors will be piling into yet," he said in recent commentary. "So, the dollar could remain supported for a while yet."
Gold futures ranged from a low of $1,288.30 to a high of $1,295. They gained 0.4% on Wednesday, shed 0.2% on Tuesday, and rose 0.1% on Monday.
Elsewhere, silver for March delivery declined 10.2 cents, or 0.7%, to close at $15.536 an ounce. Silver futures traded between $15.48 and $15.65. They rose 0.1% on Wednesday, lost 0.4% on Tuesday, and climbed 0.2% on Monday.
In other precious metals futures on Thursday:
-
April platinum advanced $4.40, or 0.5%, to $812.30 an ounce, ranging from $803.60 to $816.10.
- Palladium for March delivery jumped $29.70, or 2.3%, to settle at $1,348.20 an ounce — another fresh record. Palladium traded between $1,320.20 and $1,396.40.
London Precious Metals Prices
In comparing earlier fixed London gold and silver prices from Wednesday PM to Thursday PM:
- Gold declined $1.60, or 0.1%, to $1,290.70 an ounce.
- Silver rose 3.5 cents, or 0.2%, to $15.757 an ounce.
LBMA platinum and palladium prices are available on the LBMA’s website with a delay of midnight
US Mint 2019 Bullion Sales
United States Mint bullion sales rose by a combined 5,000 ounces in American Eagle and Buffalo gold coins, by 1,000 ounces in American Platinum Eagles, and by 75,000 ounces in American Silver Eagles.
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 | This Week | December | 2018 Sales | 2019 Sales | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 1,000 | 22,800 | 1,000 | 0 | 30,000 | 23,800 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 3,500 | 32,000 | 6,500 | 3,000 | 191,000 | 38,5000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 13,000 | 0 | 0 | 32,000 | 13,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 2,000 | 16,000 | 2,000 | 0 | 62,000 | 18,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 60,000 | 15,000 | 0 | 230,000 | 75,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 1,000 | 18,500 | 2,500 | 1,500 | 121,500 | 21,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 75,000 | 2,846,000 | 595,000 | 490,000 | 15,700,000 | 3,441,000 |
