Precious metals declined Tuesday, logging losses that ranged from 0.9% for gold to 3.1% for palladium. Gold ended near a two-week low.
Gold for February delivery declined $16 to settle at $1,772.30 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the lowest since Dec. 2 when gold ended at $1,762.70 an ounce.
“Producer prices were higher than expected, indicating continued inflation, and gold is viewed as an inflation hedge. But in reality, we’re seeing the opposite where hot inflation could mean faster interest rate hikes," Reuters quoted David Meger, director of metals trading at High Ridge Futures.
The U.S. Labor Department reported Tuesday that producer prices increased 0.8% in November from 0.6% in October, while jumping 9.6% year-on-year — the largest increase since 12-month data was started in November 2010. On Friday, the government agency reported that consumer prices rose 0.8% in November from 0.9% in October, while year-on-year inflation soared 6.8% — the most since June 1982.
Gold futures on the day ranged from a low of $1,766.10 to a high of $1,789.80. They climbed 0.2% on Monday.
Silver for March delivery fell 40.4 cents, or 1.8%, to settle at $21.924 an ounce. Silver futures traded between $21.67 and $22.36. The settlement was the lowest since Sept. 29 when silver finished at $21.485 an ounce. They rose 0.6% on Monday.
In other precious metals futures prices Tuesday:
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January platinum gave back $13.70, or 1.5%, to $910.90 an ounce, ranging from $903.50 to $930.10.
- Palladium for March delivery declined $52 to $1,622.70 an ounce, trading between $1,578 and $1,693.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2021
Published United States Mint bullion sales were unchanged Tuesday.
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 | October | November | December | 2021 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 24,500 | 14,500 | 135,500 | 125,500 | 41,000 | 1,115,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 1,000 | 7,000 | 6,000 | 1,000 | 95,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 2,000 | 0 | 22,000 | 10,000 | 2,000 | 162,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 85,000 | 40,000 | 0 | 490,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 7,000 | 2,500 | 41,000 | 39,500 | 10,500 | 350,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1,076,000 | 1,523,500 | 0 | 28,275,000 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 75,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1 Oz Palladium Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8,700 | 0 | 8,700 |
| Tuskegee Airmen 5 oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 52,900 |
