Gold, silver and platinum scored solid gains on Friday, driving gold to a weekly win and a one-month high while paring the others’ weekly losses. Palladium, meanwhile, edged lower on the day and near another, more than three-and-a-half year low.
On Friday, gold for April delivery advanced $32.60, or 1.8%, to settle at $1,867.20 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settlement was the highest since Feb. 10.
“I think the main focal point is yields and with yields dropping today, that is a boost for the gold market," Reuters quoted David Meger, director of metals trading at High Ridge Futures.
Gold prices increased 0.7% this week after surging 2.1% last week. Before then, the yellow metal had posted four straight weekly losses which had cut prices by a combined $112.30, or 5.8%. Gold prices are 2.3% higher 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, 21 Wall Street analysts participated in the Kitco News Gold Survey. Among the participants, 16 analysts, or 76%, were bullish on gold in the near term. At the same time, three analysts, or 14%, were bearish for next week and two analysts, or 10%, saw prices trading sideways.
Meanwhile, 571 votes were cast in online polls. Of these, 340 respondents, or 60%, looked for gold to rise next week. Another 146, or 26%, said it would be lower, while 85 voters, or 15%, were neutral in the near term."
Elsewhere, silver for May delivery rose 34.1 cents, or 1.7%, to close at $20.506 an ounce. Silver prices fell 3.5% on the week after rising 2.1% last week. Before then, the precious metal had notched six consecutive weekly losses which had reduced prices by a combined $3.56, or 14.6%. Silver prices are 14.7% lower on the year.
In PGM prices on Friday and for the week:
-
April platinum tacked on $12.90, or 1.4%, to end at $962.20 an ounce, trimming its weekly loss to 1.8%.
- Palladium for June delivery declined $12.40, or 0.9%, to end at $1,362.30 an ounce — 20 cents higher than Wednesday when it logged its lowest settlement since June 7, 2019. Palladium prices plunged 6% on the week.
The pair is lower on the year so far with losses of 11.2% for platinum and 24.2% for palladium.
US Mint Bullion Sales in 2023
United States Mint bullion sales this week slowed for gold coins and remained steady for silver coins. In week-over-week comparisons:
- American Gold Eagles: 12,500 ounces against 40,500 ounces,
- American Gold Buffalos: 4,500 ounces compared to 14,500 ounces, and
- American Silver Eagles: 450,000 ounces for a second week in a row.
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 | Last Week | This Week / March | January Sales | February | 2023 Sales | |
| $50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 32,500 | 10,500 | 118,000 | 41,500 | 170,000 |
| $25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 7,000 | 1,000 | 37,000 | 8,000 | 46,000 |
| $10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 10,000 | 2,000 | 62,000 | 12,000 | 76,000 |
| $5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 20,000 | 10,000 | 115,000 | 85,000 | 210,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin | 0 | 14,500 | 4,500 | 59,000 | 19,500 | 83,000 |
| $1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin | 0 | 450,000 | 450,000 | 3,949,000 | 900,000 | 5,299,000 |
Palladium carries on with its shrinking act as it has now lost almost a quarter of its value since the beginning of the year. Gold, in contrast, continues to widen its spread on the positive side of the value difference between the two precious metals.
But who has money to buy it? I stopped buying gold years ago. The return just wasn’t worth it any more. Glad I bought when I did. It’s a dead issue for me today.
I’ve only owned two gold coins, at 1/10 ounce each, in my life, and they’re both relatively recent issues from the US Mint. One is 24 and the other 22 karat gold. That’s plenty for me, Antonio, because as you said it’s too pricey.
Kaiser, I hate to disagree with you, but you can never have too many gold coins. I know I still don’t!
Once again I have apparently not expressed myself clearly enough here, Craig. The real issue is not that I don’t especially care for gold so I therefore purposely keep my ownership of it to a minimum. The actual determining factor is none other than possessing insufficient discretionary resources to regularly pursue the acquisition of gold for my collection. This year the Mint’s higher price for silver coins is putting constraints on what I am able to buy, so I’ve decided to skip the ASEs to get the Morgan and Peace dollars.
Kaiser, We are in sync, except for the 1/10th ounce AGE, with regard to our planned purchases from the Mint this year. The Peace and Morgans and the 1/10th ounce AGE(unless they price it “to the moon,Alice”) coins are all I’d like. Here we are into March and I haven’t bought a thing from the Mint. Let them tell us “Price doesn’t matter.”
Talk about “in sync” (and here I don’t mean the boy band), I haven’t yet purchased a single item from the Mint this year either. Ordinarily by now I would at least have gotten the Proof ASE-W and the Congratulations Set, but with those gorgeous Morgan and Peace Dollars on the horizon I knew I had to save my funds for when those beauties arrive on the scene.
I love gold and gold coins. I’ve collected them since I was in my 20’s and still have every single one of them. They have been great investments as well. I agree buying gold coins from the Mint, at least in the last 5-6 years, has been a fool’s bet due to their exorbitant premium they demand to mint one. Paying $2600 and up for an ounce of gold seem extreme to me, unless it’s a very limited special item. Like the V75 AGE…and No I wasn’t able to secure one. Do you guys remember the commercial for cryptocurrency that… Read more »
It’s my belief, Craig, that cryptocurrency will go the way of the Edsel, the hula hoop and laser discs. Gold will be good as gold as long as there are people.
I know, Kaiser, and was thinking when I watched that commercial how I wished I was there to do the clean up of all that gold…lol.
The funny thing about India, Craig, is that while that country is the #2 consumer of gold in the world (after only China), the Indian people use their gold for jewelry rather than for coins.
No, Kaiser. Digital currency will overtake and make physical currency obsolete- once the US government goes all in and stops printing and minting (it’s just a matter of time).
Major D, the problem with a currency that exists only in the etherverse is that it will still be an exceedingly long time until that incredibly large percentage of the earth’s population that is for all practical purposes permanently underprivileged will even begin to have anything resembling access to the requisite technology.
From the Big Brother perspective, the problem with currency is that you can’t track who’s using it and when, and for what purpose, and who’s the recipient- it’s all under the radar (another archaic term). Already, when I go to buy, sell or exchange coin rolls from the bank using cash, I must provide my bank card and/or ID. The banks are required by the Gov to record all cash transactions regardless of amount, under the guise of combating money laundering.
Once again, I will go with “each to his own”. There are those of us who like cash, some others opt for credit cards, still others prefer crypto. I think there’s room for everyone in our great country.