Gold fell modestly Friday while silver, platinum and palladium dropped sharply. Gold’s loss was its first in seven sessions but it still recorded its third straight weekly increase.
Gold for June delivery shed $5.20, or 0.3%, to settle at $1,876.70 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Gold futures rose 2.1% this week following gains of 0.4% last week and 3.6% in the week ended May 7. On Thursday, they logged their highest settlement since Jan. 7. Gold prices are 1% lower 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, 15 analysts participated in Kitco News’ gold survey. Of those, 11 analysts, or 73%, said they were bullish on gold; at the same time, three analysts, or 20%, said they were bearish on prices next week. One analyst, or 7%, said they see gold prices trading sideways.
Meanwhile, a total of 1037 votes were cast in online Main Street surveys. Of these, 716 respondents, or 69%, looked for gold to rise next week. Another 154 respondents, or 15%, said lower, while 167 voters, or 16%, were neutral."
Elsewhere, silver for May delivery tumbled 58.1 cents, or 2.1%, to close at $27.486 an ounce. Silver futures climbed 0.4% this week after sliding exactly opposite, 0.4%, last week. On Tuesday, they finished at their best price since Feb. 1. Silver prices are 4.1% higher on the year.
In other precious metals futures on Friday and for the week:
-
July platinum fell $35.60, or 3%, to end at $1,169.40 an ounce, for a 4.4% weekly decline.
- Palladium for June delivery dropped $95.20, or 3.3%, to close at $2,775 an ounce, for a 4.1% weekly loss.
The two are still higher on the year so far with gains of 8.4% for platinum and 13.1% for palladium.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2021
The U.S. Mint reported bullion sales gains this week following two straight weeks of silence. 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 | Last Week | This Week / May | February Sales | March Sales | April Sales | 2021 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 18,500 | 121,000 | 55,500 | 38,500 | 424,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9,000 | 0 | 0 | 31,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,000 | 0 | 56,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 55,000 | 0 | 150,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 31,000 | 16,000 | 33,500 | 11,000 | 153,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3,191,500 | 4,087,000 | 1,053,000 | 13,106,500 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 26,400 | N/A | 35,000 | 0 | 61,400 |
| Tuskegee Airmen 5 oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 2,900 | N/A | N/A | 50,000 | 52,900 |
