News Bites
LBMA: Gold Ounces Transferred Daily Declines In Oct.; Silver Volume Up
(Kitco News) -The amount of gold transferred between accounts of London Bullion Market Association members fell during October, while silver volume rose, the organization reported Thursday.
The LBMA releases clearing statistics each month showing the net volume of gold and silver transferred between accounts of members, essentially providing a snapshot of the amount of trading activity.
After an increase in September activity, the average volume of gold ounces transferred daily in October fell by 10.3% to 19.8 million ounces, the LBMA said. Still, the organization added, the average for the first 10 months of 2017 was comparable to the corresponding period in recent years.
The average price of gold in October was $1,279.5 an ounce, a month-on-month fall of 2.7%, although 1% higher year-on-year. The value of gold ounces transferred in October decreased by 12.7% to $25.3 billion daily. In October, the number of transfers was 2,476, with the clearers settling on average 7,933 ounces per transfer, which was 18% higher than in September.
Meanwhile, in silver, the volume of ounces transferred daily was 15.6% higher at 260.6 million.
The average price of silver in October decreased by 2.9% to $16.94 an ounce. The value of silver ounces transferred daily increased by 12.2% to $4.41 billion. The number of transfers in October was 772, with the clearers settling on average 337,468 ounces per transfer, a 28% increase month-on-month.
The average gold-silver price ratio in October was 75.5, in line with September, the LBMA reported.
The 19.8 million ounces of gold transferred daily last month was up year-on-year, as the October 2016 total was 18.6 million. Silver transfers of 260.6 million ounces daily were also up year-on-year from 193.6 million.