Precious metals moved exactly opposite on Tuesday compared to Monday with palladium ending lower and gold, silver and platinum finishing higher. Gold was alone among metals in scoring a monthly gain, as slight as it was.
Gold for December delivery added $5.90, or 0.3%, to settle at $1,818.10 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"Gold and silver have traded both sides of unchanged today in choppy price action. Both metals have seen their near-term chart postures improved recently and that’s inviting the technical-based speculators to the long side of the futures markets," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Inc, said in a daily research note.
Gold prices ranged from a low of $1,803.40 to a high of $1,821.90. They edged 0.05% higher in August, trimming their loss on the year to date to 4.1%.
Meanwhile, silver for December delivery ended unchanged at $24.006 an ounce. Silver futures traded between $23.83 and $24.27. They posted a 6% monthly loss and are 9.1% lower on the year
In other precious metals futures prices on Tuesday and for August:
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October platinum added $12, or 1.2%, to $1,014.10 an ounce, but still registered a 3.3% monthly decline.
- Palladium for December delivery gave back $8.10, or 0.3%, to $2,471 an ounce, for a 7% monthly drop.
The two are divided on the year so far with platinum 6% lower and palladium 0.7% higher.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2021
Published United States Mint bullion sales increased Tuesday by 125,000 ounces in American Silver Eagles and a combined 3,500 ounces in American Gold Eagles.
As for the longer term, American Eagle and Buffalo bullion coins moved much quicker in August than in July. Their 2021 sales are also tracking markedly higher than they did in 2020. In headline comparisons:
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American Eagle gold coins increased by 136,000 ounces, posting increases of 132.5% from 58,500 ounces in July and 12.4% from 121,000 ounces in August 2020. For the year to date, sales of Gold Eagles at 847,500 ounces are 37.7% higher than the 615,500 ounces sold during the first eight months of last year.
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American Eagle silver coins advanced by 3,930,000 ounces, climbing 26.6% from 3,104,000 ounces in July and retreating 12.2% from 4,477,000 ounces in August 2020. Silver Eagle sales for the year at 22,940,500 coins are 26.2% higher than the 18,178,000 coins sold through the same time in 2020.
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American Buffalo gold coins increased in August by 27,500 ounces, up 89.7% from 14,500 ounces in July but 1.8% lower than 28,000 ounces in August 2020. American Gold Buffalo sales for the year so far at 235,500 ounces are 28% higher than the 184,000 ounces delivered in the same period last year.
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) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday | Last Week | This Week | June | July | August | 2021 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 2,000 | 17,000 | 11,500 | 158,000 | 49,500 | 112,000 | 746,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15,000 | 10,000 | 21,000 | 77,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 6,000 | 6,000 | 28,000 | 30,000 | 0 | 34,000 | 120,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 10,000 | 0 | 90,000 | 40,000 | 50,000 | 330,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 4,500 | 4,500 | 27,500 | 14,500 | 27,500 | 235,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 125,000 | 775,000 | 750,000 | 2,800,000 | 3,104,000 | 3,930,000 | 22,940,500 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 75,000 |
| Tuskegee Airmen 5 oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 52,900 |
