Prices for precious metals diverged on Friday and for the week. Palladium was the only winner in both periods, while gold dipped on Friday but marked a modest weekly gain — its second in a row.
Down for a second straight session on Friday, gold for August delivery shed $4.30, or 0.2%, to settle at $1,966.60 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Gold priced edged 0.1% higher this week, after advancing 1.7% last week for the best weekly gain since the one ending on April 6. On Wednesday, gold, at $1,980.80 an ounce, logged its highest settlement since June 6. Year to date, the yellow metal has increased by 7.7%.
Looking forward to the upcoming week, Kitco News offers the following forecasts via their Wall Street vs. Main Street surveys:
"This week, 19 Wall Street analysts participated in the Kitco News Gold Survey. In a tied vote, both bullish and neutral positions garnered eight votes each, or 42%. At the same time, three analysts, or 16%, were bearish on gold for next week.
Meanwhile, 369 votes were cast in online polls. Of these, 221 respondents, or 60%, looked for gold to rise next week. Another 95, or 26%, said it would be lower, while 53 voters, or 14%, were neutral in the near term."
Also falling for a second session, silver for September lost 10.7 cents, or 0.4%, and closed at $24.855 an ounce. Silver prices declined by 1.4% this week following three consecutive weekly gains of 8.2%, 1.2% and 3%. On Wednesday, silver at $25.387 an ounce registered its highest settlement since May 10. Year to date, the precious metal has increased by 3.4%.
In other precious metals, both on Friday and throughout the week:
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October platinum rose by $8.10, or 0.8%, to end at $972.20 an ounce, reducing its weekly loss to 1.2%.
- Palladium for September delivery increased by $11.20, or 0.9%, to finish at $1,286.50 an ounce, padding its weekly gain to 1.6%.
Reviewing their performance since the beginning of the year, platinum has fallen by 10.2%, and palladium has dropped by 28.5%.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2023
Last week, on Tuesday, the U.S. Mint reported the first bullion sales gains for the month and published updated figures for June. Since then, there have been no further reports of bullion sales.
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) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Friday / This Week | Last Week / July | March | April | May | June | 2023 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 12,000 | 211,000 | 159,500 | 60,500 | 35,000 | 637,500 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 1,000 | 8,000 | 18,000 | 1,000 | 73,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 10,000 | 12,000 | 32,000 | 4,000 | 132,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 10,000 | 35,000 | 80,000 | 60,000 | 385,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 2,500 | 73,000 | 61,000 | 47,000 | 17,000 | 279,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 414,000 | 900,000 | 900,000 | 1,593,000 | 1,482,000 | 10,138,000 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 7,500 | 500 | 1,200 | 3,500 | 12,700 |
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