Market Recap 01/15/10

The stock market saw significant losses this week as multiple companies reported fourth-quarter losses for 2009, including earnings bellwether Alcoa. “The aluminum giant posted a narrower loss but missed expectations, sending jitters through the market,” according to MSN Money.

In a report released this week by the U.S. Department of Labor, there were nearly 6.4 unemployed workers, on average, for each available job at the end of November. That number is a record high and it is up from 6.1 unemployed workers per job reported in October. When the recession began in December 2007, there were only 1.7 people without jobs for every opening, according to the Associated Press.

This week, the Fed said demand for loans either continued to decline or weakened further in much of the United States. Also, credit quality was still deteriorating and financial institutions in districts including New York, Philadelphia and Cleveland said loan delinquencies were on the rise.

This week, APMEX received very favorable reviews and high marks on the National Inflation Association’s website (http://inflation.us/), where a number of online precious metals dealers were rated. This unbiased review was launched by the NIA at the request of NIA Members seeking reputable online precious metals dealers.

Since the release of the APMEX “Gold Silver” iPhone application last week, over 6,000 iPhone and iPod Touch users have downloaded and installed the app. Ratings have been high and consumers have been reviewing the app with great positive comments. “This application is cutting edge,” said Mike Garofalo, Vice President of APMEX. “Mobile applications and hand-held computing is the wave of the future. APMEX is positioning itself to be the precious metals leader of the 21st Century.” The APMEX “Gold Silver” app not only provides live precious metal spot prices, but also displays up-to-the-minute BUY and SELL pricing on 40+ of the most popular bullion products at www.APMEX.com.

Gold:
Spot gold prices opened this week at $1,139.00. The high during the week was on Monday, January 11th, at $1,163.00, while the low for the week occurred on Wednesday, January 13th, at $1,118.50. Gold ended the week down $7.50 at $1,131.50. This week, Gold American Eagles, 2009 1/10 oz. Gold Krugerrands and 2009 1/10 oz. Gold Canadian Maple Leafs remain in the forefront of investor’s minds.

Silver:
Spot silver prices opened this week at $18.50. Silver reached a high of $18.85 on Monday, January 11th, while the low for silver occurred on Tuesday, January 12th, at $18.22. Silver ended the week down $0.04 at $18.46. This week, the most popular silver items included 1 oz. Silver American Eagles, 2010 1 oz. Silver Canadian Maple Leafs and 1 oz. APMEX .999 Fine Silver Rounds.

Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,577.50 and ended the week up $21.60 at $1,599.10. 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars, 1 oz. Credit Suisse Platinum Bars and 1/2 oz. Platinum American Eagles were popular this week.

Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $428.00 and ended the week up $22.80 at $450.80. Popular palladium products this week included 1 oz. .999 Fine Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars, 1 oz. Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs and 10 oz. Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars.


Featured Bullion Product:
Each week, APMEX will review a different bullion product for the benefit of our readers. This week, we will look at the Silver Canadian Maple Leaf coin. Silver Maple Leaf coins are some of the world’s most recognizable silver bullion coins. First minted in 1988 and struck every year since, the Silver Canadian Maple Leaf coins contain one troy ounce of pure silver. They are minted in .9999 fine silver, making them one of the purest of all silver dollar-sized coins. These Maple Leaf coins are magnificently designed, with attention to every intricate detail. This has made the Silver Maple Leaf coin highly desirable by investors and collectors alike.

On the obverse, or front, there is a depiction of Great Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II. The reverse, or back, depicts the national symbol of Canada – the Maple Leaf. These stunning coins are backed by the Royal Canadian Mint for their purity, content and fineness.

APMEX offers a superb selection of Silver Canadian Maple Leaf coins in a variety of dates and special designs as produced by the Mint. Current dated coins purchased in quantities of 25 or more will be delivered in special mint tubes and quantities of 500 or more coins are shipped in the special Royal Canadian Mint boxes.