Precious metals rebounded Thursday from their heavy, prior-day losses, trimming a bit away from their monthly and third quarter declines.
Gold for December delivery bounced $34.10, or 2%, to settle at $1,757 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"Gold has lost a lot of friends this month," Ross Norman, chief executive officer at Metals Daily, told MarketWatch. Still, "on paper it has much going for it: incipient inflation, a stagnating economic recovery and equities valuations at nose-bleed levels. Then there’s the debt ceiling and an emerging energy crisis."
On Wednesday, gold futures ended at their lowest price since March 31. In headline changes, they registered losses of 3.4% in September and 0.8% in the third quarter. Gold prices have fallen 7.3% on the year to date.
Meanwhile, silver for December delivery surged 56.2 cents, or 2.6%, to finish at $22.047 an ounce. The precious metal on Wednesday logged its worst close since July 20, 2020.
Silver posted declines of 8.2% for the month and 15.8% for the quarter. They are 16.5% lower on the year.
In PGM futures on Thursday, in September, and for the third quarter:
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January platinum added $15.40, or 1.6%, to $962.40 an ounce, marking respective monthly and quarterly losses of 5.1% and 10.3%.
- Palladium for December delivery tacked on $69.50, or 3.8%, to $1,899.80 an ounce, posting losses of 23.1% in September and 31.6% for the quarter. The metal ended Wednesday at its weakest point since May 14, 2020.
Both are down on the year so far — platinum by 10.8% and palladium by 22.6%.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2021
United States Mint American Eagle and Buffalo bullion coins moved slower in September than in August, but their year-to-date sales continued to track sharply higher than they did in 2020. In headline comparisons:
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American Eagle gold coins increased in September by 75,000 ounces, falling 44.9% from 136,000 ounces in August but rising 240.9% from 22,000 ounces in September 2020. For the year to date, sales of American Gold Eagles at 922,500 ounces are 44.7% higher than the 637,500 ounces sold during the first nine months of last year.
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American Eagle silver coins advanced by 2,735,000 ounces, marking declines of 30.4% from 3,930,000 ounces in August and 7.6% from 2,958,500 ounces in September 2020. Sales of American Silver Eagles for the year at 25,675,500 coins are 21.5% higher than the 21,136,500 coins sold through the same time in 2020.
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American Buffalo gold coins increased in September by 24,000 ounces, down 12.7% from 27,500 ounces in August but 433.3% higher than 4,500 ounces in September 2020. American Gold Buffalo sales for the year so far at 259,500 ounces are 37.7% higher than the 188,500 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) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday / This Week | Last Week | August | September | 2021 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 18,500 | 112,000 | 67,500 | 813,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 1,000 | 21,000 | 4,000 | 81,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 2,000 | 34,000 | 8,000 | 128,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 25,000 | 50,000 | 35,000 | 365,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 8,500 | 27,500 | 24,000 | 259,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 485,000 | 3,930,000 | 2,735,000 | 25,675,500 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 75,000 |
| Tuskegee Airmen 5 oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 52,900 |
This tumbling must stop
Seems like we already have the important ones _ I’ll wait for the AI on the 12th – thinking about the 7th but would prefer a 10th or 1/4 OZ.