Most precious metals advanced on the first day of the new trading week, padding their monthly gains, which were extraordinary for gold, silver and palladium. Platinum was an exception on the day, falling over 1%, but the metal still climbed nearly 2% in February.
On Monday, gold for April delivery tacked on $13.10, or 0.7%, to settle at $1,900.70 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
"Gold and silver prices are firmer in midday U.S. trading Monday, on safe-haven demand as the Russia-Ukraine geopolitical situation is deteriorating. However, gold is well down from the solid overnight price gains. The metals markets will continue reacting to the latest news headlines on the Russia-Ukraine war," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Inc, said in a daily research note.
Gold scored a February gain of 5.8% after posting a 1.8% loss in January. On Thursday, gold at $1,926.30 an ounce recorded its highest settlement since Jan. 5, 2021. Gold is 3.9% higher on the year to date.
Meanwhile, silver for May delivery rose 34.9 cents, or 1.5%, to end at $24.366 an ounce. Silver prices rallied 8.8% in February after sinking 4.1% in January. On Thursday, silver at $24.687 marked its strongest finish since Jan. 20. The precious metal is 4.3% higher on the year.
In other precious metals prices on Monday and for the month:
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April platinum lost $11.40, or 1.1%, to $1,038.70 an ounce, but logged a February increase of 1.8%.
- Palladium for June delivery soared $138.90, or 5.9%, to $2,504.60 an ounce, for a 6.3% monthly gain.
The two are up on the year so far with advances of 7.5% for platinum and 31% for palladium.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2022
U.S. Mint sales of American Eagle and Buffalo bullion coins slowed significantly in February, taking a larger-than-expected break from their quickened pace in January when the newly 2022-dated editions launched. American Eagle gold and silver sales through the first two months of 2022 are also running slower than a year ago. In headline monthly comparisons:
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American Eagle gold coins advanced 89,500 ounces in February, registering declines of 50.7% from 181,500 ounces in January and 28.7% from 125,500 ounces in February 2021. American Gold Eagle sales for the year to date at 271,000 ounces are 21.7% lower than the 346,000 ounces sold in the first two months of last year.
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American Eagle silver coins increased 1.5 million ounces last month, logging declines of 70% from 5,001,000 ounces in January and 53% from 3,191,500 ounces in February last year. 2022 American Silver Eagles at 6,501,000 ounces are down 18.4% from the 7,966,500 ounces sold during the first two months of 2021.
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American Buffalo gold coins advanced 26,500 ounces in February, falling 56.9% from 61,500 ounces in January but increasing 65.6% from 16,000 ounces in February 2021. American Gold Buffalo sales for the year at 88,000 ounces are 13.6% higher than the 77,500 ounces sold in the first two months of last year.
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American Eagle platinum coins increased 25,800 ounces in February, for their first gains of the year. Last year’s edition did not post any increases until March, rising 35,000 ounces.
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) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | Last Week | January | February | 2022 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 19,000 | 35,500 | 123,500 | 86,000 | 209,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 45,000 | 0 | 45,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 2,000 | 64,000 | 4,000 | 68,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 10,000 | 195,000 | 25,000 | 220,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 4,500 | 10,000 | 61,500 | 26,500 | 88,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 519,500 | 5,001,000 | 1,500,000 | 6,501,000 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 25,800 | N/A | 25,800 | 25,800 |
| $25 American Eagle 1 Oz Palladium Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tuskegee Airmen 5 oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
What would be the price of gold if the federal reserve didn’t play with it’s price??
George and Sir Kaiser, your question is reasonable and fitting since Gold is probably undervalued today. A study from January 2021 analyzed gold’s true valuation based on historical ratios, money supply growth and the strength of the dollar [i.e., dollar strength-adjusted money supply (M2)]. The report conclusions estimated that gold should be priced closer to $2,400 – $3,000 per ounce (as of a year ago). As a baseline for supporting their estimate, they considered the level of gold production and mining cash costs, and based on gold production and mining costs, gold’s value should be $2,100 – $2,200. This helped… Read more »
My precious, my precious.
Numismatics – “Hobby of Kings” & Philately – “King of Hobbies”