Prices for precious metals split on Friday and for the week. Silver was alone with both gains on the day and week. Gold, meanwhile, rose slightly on Friday and closed the week nearly flat.
Ending higher for a third straight session following five consecutive losses, gold for December tacked on $8.40, or 0.5%. to $1,754 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Gold prices dipped 0.02% this week after slipping 0.9% last week. They are 4.1% lower on the year to date. In looking ahead to next week, Kitco News offers the following forecasts via their Wall Street & Main Street surveys:
"This week, 16 Wall Street analysts participated in the Kitco News Gold Survey. Among the participants, seven analysts, or 44%, were neutral on gold in the near term. At the same time, six analysts, or 38%, were bullish for next week, and three analysts, or 19%, were bearish on prices.
Meanwhile, 1,054 votes were cast in an online Main Street poll. Of these, 667 respondents, or 63%, looked for gold to rise next week. Another 253, or 24%, said it would be lower, while 134 voters, or 13%, were neutral in the near term."
Elsewhere, silver for December delivery climbed 6.3 cents, or 0.3%, to settle at $21.43 an ounce. Silver prices advanced 2.1% this week after falling 3.1% last week. They are 8.2% lower on the year.
In PGM prices on Friday and for the week:
-
January platinum declined $9, or 0.9%, to end at $987.80 an ounce, but edged 0.4% higher on the week.
- Palladium for December delivery dropped $54.40, or 2.9%, to end at $1,821.50 an ounce, for a 6.1% weekly loss.
The two are split on the year so far with platinum 2.2% higher and palladium 4.7% lower.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2022
Published United States Mint bullion sales were unchanged Tuesday through Friday. On Monday, they showed the first gains for the month. 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) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Friday | July | August | September | October | November / This Week | 2022 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 59,500 | 47,500 | 47,500 | 59,500 | 6,000 | 846,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 5,000 | 2,000 | 0 | 2,000 | 0 | 75,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 2,000 | 4,000 | 4,000 | 2,000 | 0 | 140,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 20,000 | 20,000 | 15,000 | 15,000 | 0 | 575,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 39,500 | 22,500 | 44,500 | 39,500 | 4,500 | 410,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 850,000 | 850,000 | 833,000 | 1,258,000 | 1,407,000 | 15,904,500 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 15,500 | 1,000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 80,000 |
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