Once again on Thursday, there was a decline in precious metals, with palladium among the leading losers by hitting a fresh low that has not been seen in four and a half years. Additionally, for the second consecutive day, gold experienced the smallest decrease in terms of percentage, but it also reached a low point that has not been seen in just over three and a half months.
On Thursday, gold for August delivery gave back $4.30, or 0.2%, to settle at $1,917.90 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the weakest since March 14.
"Bears have the overall near-term technical advantage. Prices are in a seven-week-old downtrend on the daily bar chart. Bulls’ next upside price objective is to produce a close above solid resistance at $2,000.00. Bears’ next near-term downside price objective is pushing futures prices below solid technical support at the February low of $1,846.80," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Inc, said in a daily research note.
Gold futures on the day traded between $1,900.60 and $1,921.30, after inching 0.08% lower on Wednesday, sliding by 0.5% on Tuesday, and rising by 0.2% on Monday.
Meanwhile, silver for September delivery — the now, most-active contract — fell by 28.6 cents, or 1.2%, to end at $22.798 an ounce. Silver prices ranged from $22.48 to $23.11, after declining 0.3% on Wednesday, gaining 0.6% on Tuesday and rising 2.1% on Monday. Last Friday, silver ended at $22.354 an ounce for its lowest settlement since March 16.
In other precious metals futures prices on Thursday:
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October platinum declined by $18.10, or 2%, to $906.80 an ounce, trading between $897 and $930.30.
- Palladium for September delivery lost $19.50, or 1.6%, to $1,227.40 an ounce, ranging from $1,214 to $1,260.50. The settlement was the lowest since Jan. 3, 2019.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2023
The U.S. Mint reported no bullion sales increases on Thursday. On Monday, the Mint reported gains for only the second time this month, following additions made on June 13.
The table below presents a breakdown of U.S. Mint bullion products sold, with columns indicating the number of coins sold (not total ounces) during different time periods.
| US Mint Bullion Sales (# of coins) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday | Last Week | This Week | March | April | May | June | 2023 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 13,500 | 211,000 | 159,500 | 60,500 | 29,500 | 620,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1,000 | 8,000 | 18,000 | 1,000 | 73,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10,000 | 12,000 | 32,000 | 4,000 | 132,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 45,000 | 10,000 | 35,000 | 80,000 | 60,000 | 385,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 7,000 | 73,000 | 61,000 | 47,000 | 14,000 | 273,500 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 530,000 | 900,000 | 900,000 | 1,593,000 | 1,25,500 | 9,497,000 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7,500 | 500 | 1,200 | 3,500 | 12,700 |
