Precious Metals Weekly Round-Up: Gold Up on Weaker US Dollar

After hitting a four month low on Thursday (May 2), the gold price jumped on Friday (May 3), shaking off a strong US jobs report and seeing support from weakness in the dollar.

The yellow metal is still on track for a weekly decline and was under pressure after the US Federal Reserve made it clear that it sees no compelling reason to consider an interest rate cut any time soon.

“People expected the next move from the Fed to be a rate cut, but it doesn’t look like there would be a rate cut anytime soon and the risk of another hike on the table increased after his statement,” Quantitative Commodity Research Analyst Peter Fertig said.

“(Right now) people are holding back and are waiting for the US non-farm payrolls data … the dollar is heading higher, which is negative for the precious metals complex.”

Investors are now turning their attention to US-China trade talks, with expectations of a resolution to the tariff war. As of 1:00 p.m. EDT, gold was trading at US$1,280.40 per ounce.

Looking over to silver, the white metal gained 1.88 percent on Friday and was on track for a weekly gain. As of 1:00 p.m. EDT, silver was trading at US$14.90 per ounce.

Meanwhile, platinum inched up 2.3 percent to US$868.50 per ounce and palladium declined to US$1,342 per ounce on Friday.

Precious metals top news stories

Our top precious metals news stories this week are a round-up of the Investing News Network’s (INN) coverage at this year’s Mines and Money New York event, and an overview of five silver mining stocks that pay dividends.

1. Notes from the Floor: Mines and Money New York 2019

This year’s Mines and Money New York event just wrapped up, and INN kept busy by engaging with companies, attending panel discussions and interviewing industry experts.

The two day event was a must-attend North American conference and a key meeting place for mining companies as well as potential and current investors interested or invested in the resource space. 

The INN editorial team covered panel discussions and keynote presentations and conducted interviews with industry experts and CEOs. If you were unable to make it to the convention or just want a recap of what happened, click above for an overview of what happened.

2. 5 Silver Stocks that Pay Dividends

As of mid-April, the silver price was down close to 3 percent year-to-date. While market watchers had been hoping to see the white metal trend upward for the year, it still has a long way to go to reach the highs seen in 2011.

Even so, some investors are looking at silver stocks that pay dividends. A dividend is a sum of money that is paid regularly by a company to a class of its shareholders out of its earnings. Dividends are often issued as cash payments, but can also be issued as stock or other property.

With that in mind, INN has put together a brief overview of five silver stocks that pay a dividend. The list includes Fresnillo (LSE:FRES,OTC Pink:FNLPF), Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL), Pan American Silver (TSX:PAAS,NASDAQ:PAAS), Silvercorp Metals (TSX:SVM,NYSEAMERICAN:SVM) and Wheaton Precious Metals (TSX:WPM,NYSE:WPM).

In other precious metals news

In other precious metals news this week, the World Gold Council (WGC) released its overview of gold demand trends for Q1, reporting a 7 percent year-on-year increase in gold demand thanks to continued growth in central bank buying and growth in gold-backed exchange-traded funds. According to the WGC, global gold demand reached 1,053.3 tonnes for the first three months of the year.

It is also quarterly reports season, with Australian gold miner Newcrest Mining (ASX:NCM,OTC Pink:NCMGF) reporting a slight drop in output but maintaining full year production guidance. Meanwhile, Roxgold (TSX:ROXG) reported solid production results supported by its Yaramoko mine operation in Burkina Faso.

Looking over to platinum miners, Sibanye-Stillwater (NYSE:SBGL,JSE:SGL) said it has restarted operations at its Thembelani shaft in Rustenburg after an incident that resulted in 1,800 workers being held underground on Tuesday (April 30).

Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time updates!

Securities Disclosure: I, Priscila Barrera, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.