Gold moved ahead for a third straight session Friday, padding its weekly increase. Palladium, meanwhile, dropped on the day and from an all-time record close but still soared for the week.
Gold for April delivery on Friday added $7.60, or 0.5%, to settle at $1,586.40 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the highest since Jan. 31.
"The coronavirus scenario is still unclear and the on-off headlines on the situation are making the stock markets volatile, forcing investors to take refuge in safe-haven gold," Reuters quoted George Gero, managing director at RBC Wealth Management.
Gold futures climbed 0.8% this week after sliding 0.9% last week. Before then, the yellow metal logged six straight weekly gains that had boosted prices by a combined $107, or 7.2%.
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 Wall Street survey. Eleven, or 65%, called for gold to rise. There was one vote, or 6%, saying gold would fall, and five, or 29%, calling for a sideways market.
Meanwhile, 726 votes were cast in an online Main Street poll. A total of 472 voters, or 65%, looked for gold to rise in the next week. Another 148, or 20%, said lower, while 106, or 15%, were neutral."
Silver for March gained 11.5 cents, or 0.7%, to close at $17.734 an ounce. Silver futures edged 0.2% higher this week after falling 1.8% last week. They are 1% lower on the year.
In PGM futures on Friday and for the week:
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April platinum declined $5.90, or 0.6%, to finish at $968.80 an ounce, marking a modest loss on the week of 40 cents, or 0.04%.
- Palladium for March delivery fell $34.30, or 1.5%, to $2,316.70 an ounce but still jumped 4.8% on the week. On Thursday, they scored a record settlement of $2,351 an ounce.
For the year so far, platinum is 0.9% lower while palladium is 21.3% higher.
London Precious Metals Prices
London precious metals prices increased on Friday and mostly gained on the week. In comparing their levels from Thursday PM to Friday PM:
- Gold added $6.35, or 0.4%, to $1,581.40 an ounce.
- Silver rose 6.5 cents, or 0.4%, to $17.705 an ounce.
- Platinum added $7, or 0.7%, to $972 an ounce.
- Palladium surged $46, or 1.9%, to $2,458 an ounce.
In LBMA weekly results, prices advanced 0.6% for gold, 0.1% for platinum and 7% for palladium while they declined 0.4% for silver.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2020
United States Mint bullion sales were unchanged this week according to available figures from the Mint’s website. 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) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| This Week / February | November | December | 2020 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 8,000 | 2,000 | 38,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 5,000 | 0 | 23,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 2,000 | 0 | 18,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 60,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 5,000 | 1,500 | 21,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 463,000 | 0 | 3,846,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 463,000 | 0 | 14,500 |
