Gold Extends Winning Streak

On Thursday, gold (NYSEARCA:GLD) futures for August delivery edged 20 cents higher to settle at $1,619.60 per ounce, while silver (NYSEARCA:SLV) futures fell 53 cents to close at $28.41. Gold has now closed higher the past five trading days.

Conditions continue to set the tone for more quantitative easing to be announced by central banks. The Labor Department reported that more Americans “unexpectedly” applied for jobless benefits. Claims for unemployment insurance increased 6,000 to 386,000 in the week ended June 9. Economists projected the number of claims to decrease to around 375,000.

Don’t Miss: Patience Pays with Gold and Silver

“The data shows that there is skepticism on the part of companies that are hiring,” said Peter Cardillo, an economist at Rockwell Global Capital in New York. Claims for unemployment benefits have now increased five of the past six weeks.

In afternoon trading, the SPDR Gold Trust (NYSEARCA:GLD) gained .40 percent, while the iShares Silver Trust (NYSEARCA:SLV) dropped .68 percent. Gold miners (NYSEARCA:GDX) such as Goldcorp Inc. (NYSE:GG) and Newmont Mining (NYSE:NEM) half a percent, while Barrick Gold (NYSE:ABX) jumped nearly 1 percent. Silver miners (NYSEARCA:SIL) Coeur d’Alene Mines (NYSE:CDE) and Endeavour Silver (NYSE:EXK) increased .80 percent and 1.16 percent, respectively.

Investor Insight: Are Gold and Silver Your Hedge Against Centrally-Planned Economies?

If you would like to receive professional analysis on equity miners and other precious metal investments, we invite you to try our premium service free for 14 days.

Disclosure: Long EXK, AG, HL, PHYS