Inflation, rates drive metal price volatility

The Perth Mint sold 32,933 oz of gold, 605,408 oz of silver and 1,586 oz of platinum in minted product form during October 2026.

The gold price held above USD 4,100 for much of the month but weakened in the last week, dropping below USD 4,000, and ending the month down 7.2%. The World Gold Council noted selling pressure from leveraged investors whereas gold ETF balances, including The Perth Mint’s PMGOLD, held up.

Gold traded mostly in response to market expectations of inflation and interest rates. US inflation remained elevated, impacted by higher energy costs and booming AI infrastructure spending. The US Federal Open Market Committee held its benchmark federal funds rate steady, shifting the probability of a rate hike to December.

A rising Australian dollar, from 0.6958 to 0.7032 US cents during the month, resulted in a larger drop in Australian gold prices of 8.2% to AUD 5,511.99, back to levels last seen in September 2025.

Silver stayed true to its role as gold’s more volatile cousin, dropping 19.3% to USD 49.12. Unlike gold, it did not find support and continued September’s downward trend through the month. Silver found no support from the Australian dollar and booked a month end silver price of AUD 69.87 for a loss of 20.1%.

The Gold Silver Ratio rose from 68.6 to 78.9 at the end of month as gold outperformed by declining less than silver.

Platinum followed other precious metals down during October to USD 1,432 or a loss of 16.4%. In Australian dollar terms, platinum ended the month at AUD 2,037.12, down 17.2%.

Minted products

The Perth Mint sold 32,933 oz of gold, 605,408 oz of silver and 1,586 oz of platinum in minted product form during October.

The table below highlights how these numbers compare to sales seen one month, three months and one year ago.

OCTOBER 2026 SALES OF GOLD AND SILVER SOLD AS COINS AND MINTED BARS (TROY OUNCES) AND CHANGE (%) RELATIVE TO PRIOR PERIODS.

The Perth Mint’s General Manager Distributors and Product Development, Neil Vance, said gold minted products sales held up well, with strong interest in gold minted bars and gold kangaroo coins.

“There were no new bullion releases in October which affected silver sales volumes, but we are already seeing a positive start to November,” he said.

Please note: The figures stated in this article are for total monthly ounces of gold and silver shipped as minted products by The Perth Mint to wholesale and retail customers worldwide during October 2026. They exclude sales of cast bars and other activities including sales of allocated/unallocated precious metals for storage by The Perth Mint.

Perth Mint Gold Structured Product (ASX:PMGOLD)

Perth Mint Gold Structured Product is a low-cost exchange traded product (ETP) that allows investors to trade in gold via a stockbroking account as they would shares on the ASX. To learn more, visit the PMGOLD web page.

Total holdings in PMGOLD increased during October with holdings up by 5,296 oz (1.31%) even with a decline in the gold price. This brings total holdings in PMGOLD to 409,020 ounces (12.72 tonnes).

MONTHLY CHANGE IN TROY OUNCES HELD BY CLIENTS IN PERTH MINT GOLD STRUCTURED PRODUCT (ASX:PMGOLD) October 2023 to October 2026.

“It is pleasing to see investors have not been dissuaded by gold’s price correction since January and have continued to accumulate PMGOLD holdings,” The Perth Mint’s General Manager Institutional and Business Solutions John O'Donoghue said.

“This is a sign of confidence in our trading product, and in gold as a long-term investment.”