Most precious metals advanced Friday, padding their weekly gains. Gold marked a more than two-week high and silver scored a more than one-month high. Palladium was the exception on the day, edging lower from its prior-session record settlement.
Gold for December delivery inched up 60 cents, or 0.04%, to close at $1,505.30 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the highest since Oct. 9.
Gold futures traded 0.8% higher this week, doubling their performance last week. They have soared 17.5% on the year to date.
In looking ahead to next week, Kitco News offers the following forecasts via their Wall Street & Main Street surveys:
"This week, 18 market professionals took part in the Wall Street survey. Fourteen analysts or 78% said they see higher prices next week. One analysts, or 6%, predicted that gold will fall. The remaining three voters, or 17%, saw a sideways market or else were neutral.
Meanwhile, 890 respondents took part in an online Main Street poll. A total of 583 voters, or 60%, called for gold to rise. Another 193, or 22%, predicted gold will fall. The remaining 159 voters, or 18%, saw a sideways market."
Elsewhere, silver for December delivery rose 12.2 cents, or 0.7%, to settle at $17.926 an ounce. The close was the best since Sept. 25.
Silver futures jumped 2% this week after edging 0.2% higher last week when they posted their first weekly increase in four weeks. They are up 15.4% on the year so far.
In PGM futures on Friday and for the week:
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January platinum added $8.20, or 0.9%, to finish at $933.30 an ounce, for a 4.2% weekly gain.
- Palladium for December delivery declined $3.70, or 0.2%, to end at $1,744.20 an ounce, trimming its weekly advance to 1.6%. On Thursday, palladium logged an all-time settlement high of $1,747.90 an ounce.
Both metals are ahead on the year with increases of 16.6% for platinum and 45.7% for palladium.
London Precious Metals Prices
London precious metals prices ended higher on Friday and for the week. In comparing their latest day-over-day PM prices:
- Gold rose $16.90, or 1.1%, to $1,513.45 an ounce.
- Silver soared 59.5 cents, or 3.4%, to $18.125 an ounce.
- Platinum added $4, or 0.4%, to $931 an ounce.
In LBMA weekly results, increases reached 1.6% for gold, 4% for silver, and 5.1% for platinum.
US Mint 2019 Bullion Sales
United States Mint bullion sales were flat this week based on data from the agency’s website. Last week:
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Gold bullion sales rose 8,500 ounces with splits of 5,500 ounces in American Gold Eagles and 3,000 ounces in American Gold Buffalos.
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American Silver Eagles rose by 408,500 ounces.
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Five-ounce America the Beautiful silver coin sales increased by 500 units, or 2,500 ounces.
Below is a sales breakdown of U.S. Mint 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) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Friday / This Week | Last Week | September | October | 2019 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 4,500 | 3,500 | 8,000 | 98,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 25,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 2,000 | 4,000 | 34,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 5,000 | 10,000 | 20,000 | 190,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 3,000 | 2,500 | 3,000 | 55,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 408,500 | 1,021,000 | 943,500 | 14,233,500 |
| San Antonio Missions 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 500 | 37,700 | 17,500 | 55,200 |
| War in the Pacific 5 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 2,500 | 500 | 72,500 |
| American Memorial Park 5 Oz Silver Coin* | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 80,000 |
| Lowell 5 Oz Silver Coin* | N/A | 80,000 | |||
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin* | N/A | 40,000 | |||
