Let’s see, this week’s news included existing home sales down 27%, new home sales down 12% and the economic growth for second quarter down to 1.6%. Earlier it was projected to be 2.4%, but at 1.6%, that’s more than a two percent drop from the first quarter’s 3.7% economy.
With the bad economic news, how did the metals fare this week? Well, they did some climbing.
First, there’s gold:
Next is silver:
Then, there’s platinum:
Last is palladium:
Interesting. For most of the metals, Monday dropped to a low point from Friday, and their values climbed from there. Palladium performed differently in that it grew on Monday to higher than its Friday values.
Both silver and palladium had the steepest growth spurts for the week.
Let’s look at the performance numbers.
First, the 30 day low and high values in comparison to the Friday close figures:
| 30 day high | 30 day low | Aug 27 Last | Difference between High and Low |
|
| Gold | $1,240.25 | $1,157.00 | $1,238.10 | 6.7% |
| Silver | $19.11 | $17.47 | $19.11 | 8.6% |
| Platinum | $1,597.00 | $1,494.00 | $1,531.00 | 6.4% |
| Palladium | $514.00 | $464.00 | $503.00 | 9.7% |
Next, let’s take a look at this Friday’s end-of-week numbers in comparison to a week ago:
| Aug 20 Last | Aug 27 Last | Percent Change | Dollar Change |
|
| Gold | $1,228.00 | $1,238.10 | 0.8% | $10.10 |
| Silver | $18.02 | $19.11 | 6.0% | $1.09 |
| Platinum | $1,508.00 | $1,531.00 | 1.5% | $23.00 |
| Palladium | $474.00 | $503.00 | 6.1% | $29.00 |
The metals continue to be interesting to follow along with the economic and political news of the day. Some pundits think the metals will continue to climb from here with a few dips along the way but with continued growth being dominant.
Yes, history does prove that tough political and economic times make the metals increase. But, circumstances are never exactly the same as history. Today’s politics and economics are more on a global scale than in past times. Plus, the internet does play a large role in business and politics as well.
Whose crystal ball is correct about the metals’ future performance? Only time will tell whose “guess” is right.