Precious metals futures rallied Friday, posting gains ranging from 1.4% for gold to 3.1% for palladium. Gold ended the day at its best price in more than seven months. All but palladium advanced on the week.
Gold for February delivery tacked on $18.30 to finish at $1,298.10 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the highest since June 14 when gold ended at $1,308.30 an ounce.
"The major catalyst supporting gold is a big drop in the dollar, amid expectations the Fed will reiterate a pause to its hiking cycle next week," Reuters quoted said Fawad Razaqzada, an analyst with Forex.com.
Gold futures rose 1.2% this week after slipping 0.5% last week. The yellow metal has advanced in five of the last six weeks and is 1.3% higher on the year to date.
In looking ahead to next week, Kitco News offers the following forecasts via their Wall Street & Main Street surveys:
"Eighteen market professionals took part in the Wall Street survey. There were 13 votes, or 72%, calling for higher prices. One respondent, or 6%, said lower, while four, or 22%, said sideways.
Meanwhile, 266 respondents took part in an online Main Street poll. A total of 126 voters, or 47%, called for gold to rise. Another 77, or 29%, predicted gold would fall. The remaining 63 voters, or 24%, see a sideways market."
Elsewhere, silver for March delivery jumped 39.9 cents, or 2.6%, to settle at $15.699 an ounce. The close was the strongest since Jan. 9. Silver futures traded 2% higher this week after losses of 1.6% last week and 0.8% in the week before then. The precious metal is 1% higher on the year.
In PGM futures on Friday and for the week:
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April platinum rose $13.30, or 1.7%, to $818.30 an ounce, for a 2% weekly gain.
- Palladium for March delivery surged $39.10 to $1,319.80 an ounce, but registered a loss on the week of 1.2%. A week ago Thursday, Jan. 17, palladium logged a record settlement at $1,348.20 an ounce.
Both are higher on the year so far with increases of 2.2% for platinum and 10.2% for palladium.
London Precious Metals Prices
London precious metals prices advanced on Friday and were mixed on the week. In comparing their levels from Thursday PM to Friday PM:
- Gold rose $10.20, or 0.8%, to $1,293.90 an ounce.
- Silver added 7.5 cents, or 0.5%, to $15.375 an ounce.
- Platinum rose $17, or 2.1%, to $812 an ounce.
- Palladium added $15, or 1.1%, to $1,331 an ounce.
In LBMA weekly results, silver and palladium declined by 0.6% and 3.2% while gold and platinum climbed by 0.8% and 1.4%.
US Mint 2019 Bullion Sales
United States Mint bullion coins registered lower sales for a second week in a row after surging in the week ended Jan. 11 when the newly 2019-dated editions debuted. In headline week-over-week comparisons:
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Gold bullion coins rose by 4,000 ounces after rising by 14,000 ounces last week. Splits include 2,500 ounces in American Gold Eagles against 11,500 ounces previously and 1,500 ounces in American Gold Buffalos versus 2,500 ounces previously.
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American Silver Eagles climbed by 375,000 ounces after advancing by 710,000 ounces last week.
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American Platinum Eagles were muted after moving up by 2,800 ounces last week.
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 | December | 2018 Sales | 2019 Sales | |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 2,800 | 0 | 0 | 30,000 | 25,600 |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 1,000 | 8,500 | 2,500 | 3,000 | 191,000 | 43,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 1,000 | 0 | 0 | 32,000 | 14,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 4,000 | 0 | 0 | 62,000 | 20,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 15,000 | 0 | 0 | 230,000 | 75,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 2,500 | 1,500 | 1,500 | 121,500 | 22,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 710,000 | 375,000 | 490,000 | 15,700,000 | 3,931,000 |
