Silver’s Slide Ends in January, 2010

Silver prices can head no lower in January, but only because the trading days ended for the month on Friday. Silver tumbled during the first month in 2010, falling 4.1 percent in London and 3.9 percent in New York.

The strength of the US dollar and worries over industrial demand were commonly cited for silver (and platinum) declines.

The enormous surge in prices during the first week of the year helped to lesson the impact of a mostly declining trend seen in the remaining days and weeks. Last week prices decline the most in January, but this week was no bed of roses for the metal either.

New York silver futures for March delivery ended at $16.190 an ounce, falling 74 cents or 4.4 percent this week. London silver was fixed at $16.29 an ounce, dropping 99 cents or 5.7 percent since last Friday. Prices continually slid through each succeeding day of the week.

"The strength in the dollar is pushing back a lot of the metals" Tom Hartmann, an analyst at Altavest Worldwide Trading LLC in Mission Viejo, California, said on Bloomberg. "You would think that a stronger economy would improve demand for commodities, but right now it’s helping the dollar."

London precious metal weekly prices follow:

London Fix Precious Metal Prices
	Gold		Silver	Platinum		Palladium
	AM	PM		AM	PM	AM	PM
1/22/2010	1096.50	1084.00	17.28	1556.00	1540.00	435.00	432.00
1/29/2010	1082.75	1078.50	16.29	1514.00	1512.00	419.00	419.00

 

Weekly Bullion Prices
	Up	Down	% Change	Gain/Loss
Silver		X	-5.7%	-$0.99
Gold		X	-0.5%	-$5.50
Platinum		X	-1.8%	-$28.00
Palladium		X	-3.0%	-$13.00

 

These articles offer precious metals and silver coin news: In related silver and gold news, interesting or quick-read articles from the week include:

• Gold retreats as dollar rallies on back of stronger U.S. data – MarketWatch
  Gold futures fell slightly on Friday, as the dollar rallied on the back of strong U.S. economic-growth and consumer-sentiment reports, reducing the value of the precious metal as a hedge against weak currencies …

• Gold Falls for Second Month as Dollar’s Advance Erodes Demand – Bloomberg
  Gold fell, capping a second straight monthly decline, as a stronger dollar curbed the metal’s appeal as an alternative investment. The dollar climbed to a six-month high against the euro after a report showed the U.S. economy last quarter expanded …

• G(reat) Domestic Product. Not So Great Fundamentals – Jon Nadler, Kitco
  Gold was still headed for its second monthly drop this morning, as the US dollar’s robust gains kept a lid on the enthusiasm (and manifest bets) that were all the rage in the opening week of this year. The greenback took out the 79 level on the trade-weighted index this morning and albeit some of its latest gains may appear overdone for the moment, the lack of firmness in its rivals continues to make for attractive bets for currency and commodity market speculators …

• US Mint 2009 Annual Report: Bullion Coin Revenue Record – CoinNews.net
  Fiscal year 2009 was filled with bittersweet coin news according to the recently released United States Mint 2009 Annual Report. Even with total sales of the organization responsible for American coinage at a recent high, net income and total seigniorage fell drastically in comparison. The economic recession is directly responsible for a majority of the newsworthy financial figures that were present in the report. Most notably, the record sales of bullion coins …

• 2010 American Silver Eagles Break Record – SilverCoinsToday.com
  Demand during the last several days has declined for all United States Mint silver products, according to the latest sales stats. Still, investors and collectors this month have given more than enough attention to the newly released bullion 2010 American Silver Eagle coins. January sales are at an all-time, record-smashing high. 3,225,000 of the 2010-dated bullion silver coins have been sold as of today …

For silver news and prices, see Bullion Prices Today.