Aside from palladium, precious metals kicked off the new trading week on Monday with losses, led by gold, which shed 1% to end the day near a three-week low.
Gold for February delivery fell by $20.80 to settle at $1,993.70 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the weakest since Nov. 22.
"A firmer U.S. dollar index and a slight rise in U.S. Treasury yields to start the trading week are bearish outside market forces for the metals markets. Both metals have also seen their near-term chart postures deteriorate recently, especially in silver. That’s inviting fresh technical selling," Jim Wyckoff, a senior analyst at Kitco Inc, said in a daily research note.
Gold futures traded between $1,991.20 and $2,023.70. They moved down last week by 3.6%, in contrast to a week earlier when they reached at an all-time high of $2,089.70 an ounce.
Down for a sixth day following six consecutive gains, silver for March delivery shed 21.8 cents, or 0.9%, ending at $23.058 an ounce. The settlement was the lowest since Nov. 13. Silver futures ranged from $23.01 to $23.40. They tumbled by 10% last week.
In other precious metals prices on Monday:
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January platinum dipped by $4.10, or 0.5%, to $915.70 an ounce, trading between $914.20 and $931.80.
- Palladium for March delivery rose by $13.20, or 1.4%, to $964.80 an ounce, with prices ranging from $939.50 to $974.
Last week, platinum declined by 1.7%, while palladium sank by 5.8%.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2023
U.S. Mint bullion sales last changed on Wednesday, Nov. 29, and those gains were the third for this month. Advances included 15,500 ounces in American Gold Eagles, 939,000 ounces in American Silver Eagles, and 1,500 ounces in American Gold Buffalos.
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) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | Last Week | August | September | October | November | 2023 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 78,000 | 27,500 | 97,000 | 35,000 | 904,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 2,000 | 13,000 | 7,000 | 6,000 | 101,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 2,000 | 30,000 | 18,000 | 14,000 | 196,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 150,000 | 40,000 | 30,000 | 55,000 | 660,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 0 | 19,500 | 18,500 | 36,500 | 11,500 | 379,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 0 | 3,124,000 | 2,970,000 | 3,938,000 | 2,378,000 | 24,225,000 |
| $100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12,700 |
