Most precious metals declined on Wednesday, driving losses for palladium to six straight sessions and those for gold and silver to four sessions in a row. Platinum, meanwhile, snapped its five-session losing streak.
Gold for April delivery fell $20.50, or 1.1%, to settle at $1,909.20 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The close was gold’s lowest since Feb. 28.
"Gold and silver prices are lower in afternoon U.S. trading Wednesday. Trader/investor risk appetite is keener at mid-week on some positive news reports on the Russia-Ukraine war front that includes a potential 15-point peace plan. However, reports also say Ukraine has rejected the plan as it presently stands. Also, recent big drop in crude oil prices is bearish for the metals markets,” Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Inc, said in a daily research note.
Gold futures traded between $1,895.20 and $1,928.70. They shed 1.6% on Tuesday and they gave back 1.2% on Monday.
Silver for May delivery dropped 44.8 cents, or 1.8% to settle at $24.710 an ounce. The finish was silver’s weakest since Feb. 28. Silver futures ranged from a low of $24.55 to a high of $25.19. They slipped 0.6% on Tuesday and they fell 3.3% on Monday.
In after-hour dealings, gold and silver were trading above their settlements after the Federal Reserve’s notice on raising the benchmark U.S. interest rate by 0.25% — the first increase since 2018.
In PGM futures on Wednesday:
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April platinum rose $5.60, or 0.6%, to end at $1,008.10 an ounce, trading between $983.70 and $1,023.10. Platinum plunged 4.7% on Tuesday and lost 3.3% on Monday.
- Palladium for June delivery fell $44.70, or 1.9%, to end at $2,367.30 an ounce, ranging from $2,355 and $2,489.50. Palladium dipped 0.2% on Tuesday and sank 13.6% on Monday.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2022
Published United States Mint bullion sales were unchanged on Wednesday. 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) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday / This Week | Last Week | January | February | March | 2022 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 60,500 | 123,500 | 86,000 | 69,000 | 278,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 1,000 | 45,000 | 0 | 1,000 | 46,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 12,000 | 64,000 | 4,000 | 12,000 | 80,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 45,000 | 195,000 | 25,000 | 45,000 | 265,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 22,000 | 61,500 | 28,500 | 27,000 | 117,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 600,000 | 5,001,000 | 1,500,000 | 600,000 | 7,101,000 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 6,500 | N/A | 25,800 | 11,200 | 37,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1 Oz Palladium Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tuskegee Airmen 5 oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
It appears that all that the precious metals needed for them to be subjected to a rather substantial devaluation was an unexpectedly massive drop in the price of oil. Oh, well.