The U.S. economy shed an additional 36,000 jobs in February. Although fewer jobs were lost than expected, the unemployment rate remained at 9.7%, according to The Wall Street Journal. An industry report said the U.S. manufacturing sector grew in February but at a slower rate than was expected.
The Commerce Department said on Monday that spending rose 0.5%, increasing for the fourth straight month, reported Reuters. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected consumer spending, which normally accounts for over two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, to increase 0.4% in January. “The message is continuing progress for the economy, if not as fast as hoped,” said Pierre Ellis, a senior economist at Decision Economics in New York.
MSN Money warned this week that the Federal Reserve’s recent increase in the discount rate may mean that higher interest rates are coming. Although the move came sooner than many had expected, it was a step toward more-normal conditions. The Fed stressed that the move doesn’t mean an imminent rise in the more-important federal funds rate. But despite those words, it’s a clear warning from the Fed that near-zero interest rates won’t last forever. This action has led some to speculate that U.S. consumers may begin to feel the pinch of inflation very soon, making precious metals all the more attractive as a hard asset.
Gold:
Spot gold prices opened this week at $1,119.00. The high during the week was on Wednesday, March 3rd, at $1,145.80, while the low for the week occurred on Monday, March 1st, at $1,112.10. Gold ended the week up $17.20 at $1,136.20. This week, Gold American Eagles, Canadian Gold Maple Leafs, and 1 oz. .9999 Pamp Suisse Gold Bars remained popular with investors.
Silver:
Spot silver prices opened this week at $16.62. Silver reached a high of $17.52 on Friday, March 5th, while the low for silver occurred on Tuesday, March 2nd, at $16.42. Silver ended the week up $0.80 at $17.42. This week, the most popular silver items included 1 oz. APMEX .999 Fine Silver Rounds, Silver American Eagles, and 1 oz. Silver Buffalo Rounds.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,540.00 and ended the week up $41.90 at $1,581.90. 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars, Platinum American Eagles, and 1 gram Credit Suisse Platinum Bars were popular with platinum investors this week.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $433.90 and ended the week up $48.50 at $482.40. Popular palladium products this week included 2009 Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs MS-69 NGC and 1 oz. .999 Fine Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars.
Featured Bullion Product:
Each week, APMEX features a different bullion product for the benefit of our readers. This week’s featured product is the Australian Gold Kangaroo from the Perth Mint.
Founded in 1899, the Perth Mint is a world leader in the innovative design and minting of precious metal products. The Perth Mint introduced the Australian Gold Kangaroo/Nugget series of bullion coins in 1987. From its beginning, this issue of coins had two unique features: these coins featured a 'two-tone' frosted design effect, and each coin was sealed in an individual hard plastic case. Issued as Australian legal tender, gold Kangaroos are a favorite with investors worldwide.
At first, the reverse of these coins displayed an Australian gold nugget. Then in 1989, the design was changed to feature a more world-recognized symbol of Australia — the kangaroo. The Australian Kangaroo designs vary every year, making these bullion coins highly sought after as collectibles. Struck from .9999 pure gold, Australian Kangaroos make a great addition to anyone's bullion position.
APMEX offers Australian Gold Kangaroo/Nugget coins in a variety of sizes, including 1 ounce gold coins and fractional gold coins in 1/2, 1/4, 1/10 and 1/20 ounce weights.
Showing posts with label APMEX. Show all posts
Showing posts with label APMEX. Show all posts
APMEX - Watch Less, Plan More With Market Alerts
Free personalized APMEX Market Alerts give you exclusive VIP information – delivered by text message or email!
As an APMEX Customer, you can take advantage of this FREE service – only available at APMEX! We understand that you are busy and we value your time. The market moves quickly and that can be incredibly frustrating at times, especially when you have missed your target prices.
You don’t need to spend your valuable time watching spot metal price movements. We’ll watch the market movements minute by minute for you! When any of your target prices are met, we will immediately text message or email you. This tool helps you uncover those great buying and selling opportunities. With APMEX at your side 24/7, you can buy or sell EXACTLY when the price is right for you.
What are the advantages of APMEX Market Alerts?
APMEX Market Alerts are simple to set up and manage. You may create a free account at APMEX or login to your existing account. While on your “My Account” page, click the tab at the top of the page labeled “Market Alerts”. You may then use the drop down menus to select the metal type for your alert, whether you are interested in a price rise or a price fall, and then enter a specific dollar amount in the field.
For example, if you are interested in receiving an APMEX Market Alert email when the price of Gold dips below $1,200.00 per ounce, you should set your Market Alert for Gold: Ask Falls Below: $1,200.00. If you want to know when the price of silver moves up to $16.00, simply set your Market Alert to Silver: Ask Rises Above: $16.00.
It’s that easy! Once you have successfully set up your Market Alerts, we will automatically email you when the precious metal’s spot price meets your specific criteria. This will allow you to make informed decisions about your precious metals trades.
Create your FREE Market Alerts now to start buying low and selling high!
As an APMEX Customer, you can take advantage of this FREE service – only available at APMEX! We understand that you are busy and we value your time. The market moves quickly and that can be incredibly frustrating at times, especially when you have missed your target prices.
You don’t need to spend your valuable time watching spot metal price movements. We’ll watch the market movements minute by minute for you! When any of your target prices are met, we will immediately text message or email you. This tool helps you uncover those great buying and selling opportunities. With APMEX at your side 24/7, you can buy or sell EXACTLY when the price is right for you.
What are the advantages of APMEX Market Alerts?
- Sends you text messages or emails when metals reach your target price
- Helps you maximize your buy-in position
- Helps you maximize your sell or exit strategy
- Keeps you on track with your investment goals
- Allows you to react faster to changes in the market
APMEX Market Alerts are simple to set up and manage. You may create a free account at APMEX or login to your existing account. While on your “My Account” page, click the tab at the top of the page labeled “Market Alerts”. You may then use the drop down menus to select the metal type for your alert, whether you are interested in a price rise or a price fall, and then enter a specific dollar amount in the field.
For example, if you are interested in receiving an APMEX Market Alert email when the price of Gold dips below $1,200.00 per ounce, you should set your Market Alert for Gold: Ask Falls Below: $1,200.00. If you want to know when the price of silver moves up to $16.00, simply set your Market Alert to Silver: Ask Rises Above: $16.00.
It’s that easy! Once you have successfully set up your Market Alerts, we will automatically email you when the precious metal’s spot price meets your specific criteria. This will allow you to make informed decisions about your precious metals trades.
Create your FREE Market Alerts now to start buying low and selling high!
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Market Recap 2/26/10
The Commerce Department reported on Wednesday, that sales of new single-family homes in the U.S. sank 11% in January to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 309,000. It was an unexpected tumble that sent sales to their lowest level since these records began in 1963 and this loss wiped out much of the progress made in the last year, according to The Wall Street Journal. Existing-home sales fell 7.2% in January to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $5.05 million, the lowest in seven months, said the National Association of Realtors.
The Fed is keeping interest rates near zero to encourage lending to businesses and consumers in order to stimulate growth, reported Reuters, which also means there is little money to be made by investors holding cash or bonds. “This is a little different from when you have a robust economy where you can buy the market and everything goes up because you believe in the economy,” said Keith Springer, President of Capital Financial Advisory Services in Sacramento, California.
“American International Group (AIG) warned that it may need more assistance from the U.S. Government, but the insurer said it will have adequate liquidity to ‘finance and operate AIG’s businesses and continue as a going concern for at least the next twelve months,” reported MSN Money. This plethora of weak economic news may bode well for investments in precious metals, which historically are considered a hedge against inflation.
APMEX was able to secure a limited allotment of Scruffy Random-Year Gold Canadian Maple Leaf bullion coins this week, and we are excited to be able to offer them at the very low premium of only $24.95 over spot in any quantity. If you are looking to add gold to your position or portfolio, you will be hard pressed to find a lower premium than this on gold bullion.
Gold:
Spot gold prices opened this week at $1,121.20. The high during the week was on Monday, February 22nd, at $1,130.40, while the low for the week occurred on Thursday, February 25th, at $1,088.50. Gold ended the week down $1.80 at $1,119.40. This week, investors concentrated their interest in Gold American Eagles, Canadian Gold Maple Leafs and 1 gram .9999 Sunshine Minting Gold Bars.
Silver:
Spot silver prices opened this week at $16.37. Silver reached a high of $16.56 on Monday and Friday this week, while the low for silver occurred on Wednesday, February 24th, at $15.62. Silver ended the week up $0.17 at $16.54. Silver American Eagles, 1 oz. APMEX .999 Fine Silver Rounds and Canadian Silver Maple Leafs remained popular with silver investors this week.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,543.90 and ended the week up $4.10 at $1,548.00. This week, Canadian Platinum Maple Leafs, 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars and Platinum American Eagles continued to be popular with investors.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $443.50 and ended the week down $6.70 at $436.80. This week, the most popular palladium items included Random Year 1 oz. Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs and 1 oz. .999 Fine Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars.
Featured Bullion Product:
Each week, APMEX will feature a different bullion product for the benefit of our readers. This week’s featured product is the United States silver dollar.
The U.S. Mint produced these coins from 1794 until 1935. APMEX carries a wide selection of Early, Trade, Morgan and Peace Dollars in many different die and mint varieties. Each silver dollar contains .77344 ounces of pure silver, making these silver dollars the most popular silver coins ever produced by the U.S. Mint. The Morgan Dollar, which was minted between 1878 and 1921, is considered by many to be the most widely collected silver coin in U.S. history.
Silver dollars are a favorite among collectors because of their size, beauty and availability, and APMEX is proud to offer a vast selection of silver dollars in all conditions, in both certified and uncertified states.
The Fed is keeping interest rates near zero to encourage lending to businesses and consumers in order to stimulate growth, reported Reuters, which also means there is little money to be made by investors holding cash or bonds. “This is a little different from when you have a robust economy where you can buy the market and everything goes up because you believe in the economy,” said Keith Springer, President of Capital Financial Advisory Services in Sacramento, California.
“American International Group (AIG) warned that it may need more assistance from the U.S. Government, but the insurer said it will have adequate liquidity to ‘finance and operate AIG’s businesses and continue as a going concern for at least the next twelve months,” reported MSN Money. This plethora of weak economic news may bode well for investments in precious metals, which historically are considered a hedge against inflation.
APMEX was able to secure a limited allotment of Scruffy Random-Year Gold Canadian Maple Leaf bullion coins this week, and we are excited to be able to offer them at the very low premium of only $24.95 over spot in any quantity. If you are looking to add gold to your position or portfolio, you will be hard pressed to find a lower premium than this on gold bullion.
Gold:
Spot gold prices opened this week at $1,121.20. The high during the week was on Monday, February 22nd, at $1,130.40, while the low for the week occurred on Thursday, February 25th, at $1,088.50. Gold ended the week down $1.80 at $1,119.40. This week, investors concentrated their interest in Gold American Eagles, Canadian Gold Maple Leafs and 1 gram .9999 Sunshine Minting Gold Bars.
Silver:
Spot silver prices opened this week at $16.37. Silver reached a high of $16.56 on Monday and Friday this week, while the low for silver occurred on Wednesday, February 24th, at $15.62. Silver ended the week up $0.17 at $16.54. Silver American Eagles, 1 oz. APMEX .999 Fine Silver Rounds and Canadian Silver Maple Leafs remained popular with silver investors this week.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,543.90 and ended the week up $4.10 at $1,548.00. This week, Canadian Platinum Maple Leafs, 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars and Platinum American Eagles continued to be popular with investors.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $443.50 and ended the week down $6.70 at $436.80. This week, the most popular palladium items included Random Year 1 oz. Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs and 1 oz. .999 Fine Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars.
Featured Bullion Product:
Each week, APMEX will feature a different bullion product for the benefit of our readers. This week’s featured product is the United States silver dollar.
The U.S. Mint produced these coins from 1794 until 1935. APMEX carries a wide selection of Early, Trade, Morgan and Peace Dollars in many different die and mint varieties. Each silver dollar contains .77344 ounces of pure silver, making these silver dollars the most popular silver coins ever produced by the U.S. Mint. The Morgan Dollar, which was minted between 1878 and 1921, is considered by many to be the most widely collected silver coin in U.S. history.
Silver dollars are a favorite among collectors because of their size, beauty and availability, and APMEX is proud to offer a vast selection of silver dollars in all conditions, in both certified and uncertified states.
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Physical Gold vs. Exchange-Traded Funds
A lot of investors are confused about the differences between owning physical gold and owning a gold Exchange-Traded Fund (ex: GLD ETF). Hopefully the following points from the traders here at APMEX will help to clear things up:
- Universally traded: Gold and silver are highly recognized and can easily be traded for goods and services anywhere in the world.
- Less credit risk: Actually owning the metals significantly minimizes investors’ exposure to credit risk.
- Not the same: Investing in the GLD ETF is not the same as investing in physical gold. This is partly because the GLD ETF fails to accurately reflect the price of gold. The premiums on physical gold products have grown from 10% to 40% over the spot price of gold over the past five years. This is not reflected in the price of the GLD ETF.
- Deviation from spot values: ETFs that track gold prices using futures contracts will track the spot price of bullion, but may deviate occasionally.
- ETF can drop to zero: Like stocks, bonds and mutual funds, GLD allows for unsuspecting investors to potentially lose all of their money. Actual physical gold price has never gone down to zero.
- No promise: The GLD ETF does not promise that any physical gold is actually held within the ETF Trust.
- No physical possession: A Gold ETF shareholder can never take physical possession of any of the gold, unless the shareholder owns 100,000 or more shares.
- No actual gold: Owning GLD is not an investment in actual gold; it is an investment in a paper security.
- Counterfeit risk: 400-ounce gold bars are the only gold bars purchased by ETFs. Because they are rarely inspected by experts for authenticity, counterfeit bars can end up in the fund. If one or more are found to be counterfeit, the value is deducted from the fund, effectively decreasing the value of individual shares.
We hope this provides some insight into the major differences between physical and paper gold. If you have any other questions, please feel free to contact our trading department at (800) 375-9006 or visit www.APMEX.com.
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Market Recap 2/12/10
Stock prices were weak in the U.S. on Friday, after a surprise move by China to restrict bank lending to cool its surging economy. This action by the Chinese government “weighed down many commodity prices,” reported Reuters. Markets were also pressured by weaker-than-expected reads on U.S. consumer sentiment and business inventories, brushing aside a higher-than-forecast figure on January U.S. retail sales, which rose 0.5 percent. Also this week, The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed below 10,000 for the first time since November 2009.
The Wall Street Journal reported this week that, “Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke will begin laying the groundwork for credit tightening later in the year, bringing to a close a period of historically low interest rates that have made it easier for ailing banks to book big profits.” Market participants also kept a close eye on financial instability in Europe, where issues surrounding the creditworthiness of several countries, particularly Greece, have recently surfaced.
“More than 2 million of the jobs that were erased from the economy over the past two years are probably gone for good,” says MSN Money. Does all of this economic uncertainty bode well for the Precious Metals markets over the next few months? Some analysts, like Scotiabank’s Patricia Mohr, seem to think so as she continues to believe that gold will test the $1,300.00 per ounce price level again.
The “I Heart APMEX” Video Contest remained popular this week and brought in dozens more entries from around the country. APMEX fans have submitted some great videos, garnering a large number of views, comments and ratings. Entrants have a chance to win a 1 oz. APMEX Gold Bar, an APMEX Silver Kilo (32.15 ounces) Bar, a 10 oz. APMEX Silver Round or one of several 1 oz. APMEX Silver Rounds. You have until 11:59PM on this Sunday (February 14th) to submit your entry. Winners will be announced next week.
Gold:
Spot gold prices opened this week at $1,068.00. The high during the week was on Friday, February 12th, at $1,097.80, while the low for the week was $1,061.70 on Monday, February 8th. Gold ended the week up $23.00 at $1,091.00. Extremely popular items this week included Gold American Eagles, 2010 Vancouver Olympic Gold Maple Leafs and 1 oz. .9999 Pamp Suisse Gold Bars.
Silver:
Spot silver prices opened this week at $15.16. Silver reached a high of $15.73 on Thursday, February 11th, while the low for silver occurred on Monday, February 8th, at $14.95. Silver ended the week up $0.32 at $15.48. Silver American Eagles, 1 oz. Silver Buffalo Rounds, 2010 Vancouver Silver Maple Leafs and 5 oz. .999 Sunshine Mint Silver Bars were the focus of silver investors at www.APMEX.com this week.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,474.40 and ended the week up $39.70 at $1,514.10. Some of the most sought after platinum products this week included Platinum American Eagles, Platinum Canadian Maple Leafs and 1 oz. Pamp Suisse .999 Fine Platinum Bars.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $396.00 and ended the week up $25.10 at $421.10. This week, 1 oz. .999 Fine Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars, 2009 Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs MS-69 NGC and Random Year 1 oz. Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs were popular with palladium investors.
Featured Bullion Product:
Each week, APMEX will review a different bullion product for the benefit of our readers. This week, in honor of the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, Canada, we take a look at the Canadian Gold Maple Leaf coin.
As the second oldest gold bullion coin, the Canadian Maple Leaf became the alternative to the South African Krugerrand. The Royal Canadian Mint began striking these coins in 1979 and that minting continues through today. These artistic coins are struck in beautiful 24-karat pure gold and each weighs 1 Troy ounce.
On the obverse, or front, of these coins is a depiction of Great Britain’s Queen Elizabeth the Second. The reverse, or back, of this coin 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.
The Royal Canadian Mint also manufactures specially designed coins such as the 2010 Vancouver Olympics Gold and Silver Maple Leaf coins for important historical events. These coins are destined to become collectors’ items as well as retain their bullion value.
APMEX offers a superb selection of Canadian Gold Maple Leaf coins in a variety of dates and special designs as produced by the Mint. Coins purchased in quantities of 25 or more will be delivered in special tubes and quantities of 500 or more coins are shipped in the special Royal Canadian Mint boxes.
The Wall Street Journal reported this week that, “Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke will begin laying the groundwork for credit tightening later in the year, bringing to a close a period of historically low interest rates that have made it easier for ailing banks to book big profits.” Market participants also kept a close eye on financial instability in Europe, where issues surrounding the creditworthiness of several countries, particularly Greece, have recently surfaced.
“More than 2 million of the jobs that were erased from the economy over the past two years are probably gone for good,” says MSN Money. Does all of this economic uncertainty bode well for the Precious Metals markets over the next few months? Some analysts, like Scotiabank’s Patricia Mohr, seem to think so as she continues to believe that gold will test the $1,300.00 per ounce price level again.
The “I Heart APMEX” Video Contest remained popular this week and brought in dozens more entries from around the country. APMEX fans have submitted some great videos, garnering a large number of views, comments and ratings. Entrants have a chance to win a 1 oz. APMEX Gold Bar, an APMEX Silver Kilo (32.15 ounces) Bar, a 10 oz. APMEX Silver Round or one of several 1 oz. APMEX Silver Rounds. You have until 11:59PM on this Sunday (February 14th) to submit your entry. Winners will be announced next week.
Gold:
Spot gold prices opened this week at $1,068.00. The high during the week was on Friday, February 12th, at $1,097.80, while the low for the week was $1,061.70 on Monday, February 8th. Gold ended the week up $23.00 at $1,091.00. Extremely popular items this week included Gold American Eagles, 2010 Vancouver Olympic Gold Maple Leafs and 1 oz. .9999 Pamp Suisse Gold Bars.
Silver:
Spot silver prices opened this week at $15.16. Silver reached a high of $15.73 on Thursday, February 11th, while the low for silver occurred on Monday, February 8th, at $14.95. Silver ended the week up $0.32 at $15.48. Silver American Eagles, 1 oz. Silver Buffalo Rounds, 2010 Vancouver Silver Maple Leafs and 5 oz. .999 Sunshine Mint Silver Bars were the focus of silver investors at www.APMEX.com this week.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,474.40 and ended the week up $39.70 at $1,514.10. Some of the most sought after platinum products this week included Platinum American Eagles, Platinum Canadian Maple Leafs and 1 oz. Pamp Suisse .999 Fine Platinum Bars.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $396.00 and ended the week up $25.10 at $421.10. This week, 1 oz. .999 Fine Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars, 2009 Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs MS-69 NGC and Random Year 1 oz. Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs were popular with palladium investors.
Featured Bullion Product:
Each week, APMEX will review a different bullion product for the benefit of our readers. This week, in honor of the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, Canada, we take a look at the Canadian Gold Maple Leaf coin.
As the second oldest gold bullion coin, the Canadian Maple Leaf became the alternative to the South African Krugerrand. The Royal Canadian Mint began striking these coins in 1979 and that minting continues through today. These artistic coins are struck in beautiful 24-karat pure gold and each weighs 1 Troy ounce.
On the obverse, or front, of these coins is a depiction of Great Britain’s Queen Elizabeth the Second. The reverse, or back, of this coin 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.
The Royal Canadian Mint also manufactures specially designed coins such as the 2010 Vancouver Olympics Gold and Silver Maple Leaf coins for important historical events. These coins are destined to become collectors’ items as well as retain their bullion value.
APMEX offers a superb selection of Canadian Gold Maple Leaf coins in a variety of dates and special designs as produced by the Mint. Coins purchased in quantities of 25 or more will be delivered in special tubes and quantities of 500 or more coins are shipped in the special Royal Canadian Mint boxes.
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Market Recap 2/5/10
The U. S. economy has continued to shed jobs, which has cast doubts over the labor market's strength, according to the Wall Street Journal. United States employers cut 20,000 jobs in January, while December's number of job losses was revised from 85,000 to a drop of 150,000! The jobless rate, calculated using a household survey, fell to 9.7% last month from an unrevised 10% in December.
MSN Money stated Thursday that stocks plunged following the report that showed an unexpected rise in initial jobless claims. This caused the Dow Jones Industrial Index to drop below the 10,000 point mark for a short time. The precious metals market dipped as well, causing APMEX customers to take advantage of low spot prices as they scrambled to add to their gold, silver, platinum and palladium positions. Many customers may have viewed this retrenchment in prices as a short-term buying opportunity as they aggressively purchased all types of precious metal products.
The “I Heart APMEX” Video Contest kicked off this week and brought in dozens of video entries from the U.S. and Canada. APMEX fans rushed to get their entries in, some coming in within hours of the contest’s launch. Entrants are eligible for a chance to win a 1 oz. APMEX Gold Bar, an APMEX Silver Kilo (32.15 ounces) Bar, a 10 oz. APMEX Silver Round or one of several 1 oz. APMEX Silver Rounds. Check out the contest rules and submit your video today! You have until 11:59PM (CST) on Valentine’s Day (February 14th) to submit your entry.
Gold:
Spot gold prices opened this week at $1,081.10. The high during the week was on Wednesday, February 3rd, at $1,125.80, while the low for the week was $1,042.50 and it occurred on Friday, February 5th. Gold ended the week down $13.30 at $1,067.80. This week, the most popular gold items included Gold American Eagles, 1 oz. .9999 APMEX Gold Bars and Gold Canadian Maple Leafs.
Silver:
Spot silver prices opened this week at $16.17. Silver reached a high of $16.95 on Wednesday, February 3rd, while the low for silver occurred on Friday, February 5th, at $14.62. Silver ended the week down $0.97 at $15.20. 2010 Silver American Eagles, 1 oz. Silver Buffalo Rounds and 2010 Silver Canadian Maple Leafs were some of the most popular silver items sold by http://www.apmex.com/.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,507.50 and ended the week down $27.50 at $1,480.00. Some of the most highly sought platinum products this week included 1 oz. Pamp Suisse .999 Fine Platinum Bars, Platinum American Eagles and 1 oz. Scotia Bank .999 Fine Platinum Bars.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $418.00 and ended the week down $16.70 at $401.30. This week, 10 oz. .999 Fine Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars, 2009 Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs MS-69 NGC and Random Year 1 oz. Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs were popular with palladium investors.
Featured Bullion Product:
Each week, APMEX will review a different bullion product for the benefit of our readers. This week, we look at the Silver Austrian Philharmonic coins.
First minted by the 800-year-old Austrian Mint in 2008, the silver Austrian Philharmonic coin is the first silver bullion coin denominated in Euros, the legal tender of the European Union.
Elegant is the perfect word to describe this lovely and unusual silver bullion coin. These exquisite coins were created as a tribute to the world-renowned Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, one of the finest musical ensembles in the world.
Almost identical to the popular gold Austrian Philharmonic coins, a harmonious design of musical instruments represents the world famous orchestra on the reverse of this silver coin. The obverse depicts the Great Organ of the Golden Hall in Vienna's concert hall.
APMEX offers silver Austrian Philharmonic coins dated during the current year and in prior years in Brilliant Uncirculated condition. Coins purchased in quantities of 10 or more will be delivered in mint tubes, and orders of 500 or more come in sealed mint boxes when available.
MSN Money stated Thursday that stocks plunged following the report that showed an unexpected rise in initial jobless claims. This caused the Dow Jones Industrial Index to drop below the 10,000 point mark for a short time. The precious metals market dipped as well, causing APMEX customers to take advantage of low spot prices as they scrambled to add to their gold, silver, platinum and palladium positions. Many customers may have viewed this retrenchment in prices as a short-term buying opportunity as they aggressively purchased all types of precious metal products.
The “I Heart APMEX” Video Contest kicked off this week and brought in dozens of video entries from the U.S. and Canada. APMEX fans rushed to get their entries in, some coming in within hours of the contest’s launch. Entrants are eligible for a chance to win a 1 oz. APMEX Gold Bar, an APMEX Silver Kilo (32.15 ounces) Bar, a 10 oz. APMEX Silver Round or one of several 1 oz. APMEX Silver Rounds. Check out the contest rules and submit your video today! You have until 11:59PM (CST) on Valentine’s Day (February 14th) to submit your entry.
Gold:
Spot gold prices opened this week at $1,081.10. The high during the week was on Wednesday, February 3rd, at $1,125.80, while the low for the week was $1,042.50 and it occurred on Friday, February 5th. Gold ended the week down $13.30 at $1,067.80. This week, the most popular gold items included Gold American Eagles, 1 oz. .9999 APMEX Gold Bars and Gold Canadian Maple Leafs.
Silver:
Spot silver prices opened this week at $16.17. Silver reached a high of $16.95 on Wednesday, February 3rd, while the low for silver occurred on Friday, February 5th, at $14.62. Silver ended the week down $0.97 at $15.20. 2010 Silver American Eagles, 1 oz. Silver Buffalo Rounds and 2010 Silver Canadian Maple Leafs were some of the most popular silver items sold by http://www.apmex.com/.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,507.50 and ended the week down $27.50 at $1,480.00. Some of the most highly sought platinum products this week included 1 oz. Pamp Suisse .999 Fine Platinum Bars, Platinum American Eagles and 1 oz. Scotia Bank .999 Fine Platinum Bars.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $418.00 and ended the week down $16.70 at $401.30. This week, 10 oz. .999 Fine Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars, 2009 Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs MS-69 NGC and Random Year 1 oz. Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs were popular with palladium investors.
Featured Bullion Product:
Each week, APMEX will review a different bullion product for the benefit of our readers. This week, we look at the Silver Austrian Philharmonic coins.
First minted by the 800-year-old Austrian Mint in 2008, the silver Austrian Philharmonic coin is the first silver bullion coin denominated in Euros, the legal tender of the European Union.
Elegant is the perfect word to describe this lovely and unusual silver bullion coin. These exquisite coins were created as a tribute to the world-renowned Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, one of the finest musical ensembles in the world.
Almost identical to the popular gold Austrian Philharmonic coins, a harmonious design of musical instruments represents the world famous orchestra on the reverse of this silver coin. The obverse depicts the Great Organ of the Golden Hall in Vienna's concert hall.
APMEX offers silver Austrian Philharmonic coins dated during the current year and in prior years in Brilliant Uncirculated condition. Coins purchased in quantities of 10 or more will be delivered in mint tubes, and orders of 500 or more come in sealed mint boxes when available.
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Market Recap 1/29/10
Home sales took another significant hit in December, raising worries about the housing market's ability to recover once government support begins to wane. Single-family home sales fell 7.6%, following a 9.3% plunge in November, according to an article by Jeff Bader and Sara Murray in the Wall Street Journal. “The new-home market continued to wilt late in 2009,” said Mike Larson, an analyst at Weiss Research Inc. “The buyers who are willing and able to buy are flocking to cheaper, distressed, ‘used’ homes.”
This week, the Senate voted for a second four-year term for Ben Bernake, as Chairman of the Federal Reserve. This vote came on the heels of weeks of continued criticism of the Fed Chairman by certain Members of Congress.
“The intense scrutiny of Mr. Bernanke's record underscored risks to the Fed's cherished independence to change interest rates without political interference,” according to the Wall Street Journal. The Federal Reserve insisted this week that the economy is starting to recover, but it is still fragile enough that the Fed decided to leave interest rates at record low levels. As a result, the dollar saw gains, causing the stock markets to rally. This activity in the stock market caused the consolidation in precious metals and other commodity prices. Many investors, not convinced that the recession is over, are taking advantage of this consolidation, buying gold at much lower prices compared to recent highs.
Also this week, APMEX featured an unheard of “Gold at Spot” sale. Perth Mint colorized fractional gold coins were offered at spot through an email to APMEX customers. “People really responded to the rare opportunity to buy gold coins at spot. No other precious metals company is in the position to successfully do this kind of sale. We sold out of a huge supply of fractional gold coins in about 6 hours,” remarked Mike Garofalo, Vice President of APMEX.
Gold:
Spot gold prices opened this week at $1,093.50. The high during the week was on Monday, January 25th, at $1,104.00, while the low for the week was $1,072.90 and it occurred on Friday, January 29th. Gold ended the week down $10.70 at $1,082.80. This week, the most popular gold items included Australian Gold Lunar Coins, Gold American Eagles and 1 oz. .9999 Pamp Suisse Gold Bars.
Silver:
Spot silver prices opened this week at $17.06. Silver reached a high of $17.23 on Monday, January 25th, while the low for silver occurred on Thursday, January 28th, at $16.01. Silver ended the week down $0.80 at $16.26. 2010 Silver American Eagles, 1 oz. APMEX .999 Fine Silver Rounds and 2010 1 oz. Silver Maple Leafs were the most popular silver items for sale at www. APMEX.com.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,543.40 and ended the week down $40.40 at $1,503.00. Popular platinum products this week included 1 oz. Scotia Bank .999 Fine Platinum Bars, 1 oz. Pamp Suisse .999 Fine Platinum Bars and Platinum American Eagles.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $430.00 and ended the week down $14.40 at $415.60. 1 oz. .999 Fine Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars, 2009 Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs MS-69 NGC and Random Year 1 oz. Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs remain popular with palladium investors.
Featured Bullion Product:
Each week, APMEX will review a different bullion product for the benefit of our readers. This week, we will examine the American Gold Buffalo coin.
The United States Mint introduced the American Gold Buffalo coin in 2006. The coin’s design is borrowed from the famous Buffalo Nickel created by famed American sculptor, James Earle Fraser. The obverse depicts the iconic Native American Indian Head design, while the reverse features the classic buffalo design with inscriptions of the weight, denomination and gold content.
American Gold Buffalo Coins are the first .9999 fine, 24-karat gold coins ever struck by the United States Mint. They are available to investors seeking to invest in a 24-karat gold coin that has its fineness and purity guaranteed by the United States Government.
APMEX offers a great selection of American Gold Buffalo coins dated during the current year and in several prior years in brilliant uncirculated and proof condition. Coins purchased in quantities of 20 or more will be delivered in mint sealed protective plastic sheets.
This week, the Senate voted for a second four-year term for Ben Bernake, as Chairman of the Federal Reserve. This vote came on the heels of weeks of continued criticism of the Fed Chairman by certain Members of Congress.
“The intense scrutiny of Mr. Bernanke's record underscored risks to the Fed's cherished independence to change interest rates without political interference,” according to the Wall Street Journal. The Federal Reserve insisted this week that the economy is starting to recover, but it is still fragile enough that the Fed decided to leave interest rates at record low levels. As a result, the dollar saw gains, causing the stock markets to rally. This activity in the stock market caused the consolidation in precious metals and other commodity prices. Many investors, not convinced that the recession is over, are taking advantage of this consolidation, buying gold at much lower prices compared to recent highs.
Also this week, APMEX featured an unheard of “Gold at Spot” sale. Perth Mint colorized fractional gold coins were offered at spot through an email to APMEX customers. “People really responded to the rare opportunity to buy gold coins at spot. No other precious metals company is in the position to successfully do this kind of sale. We sold out of a huge supply of fractional gold coins in about 6 hours,” remarked Mike Garofalo, Vice President of APMEX.
Gold:
Spot gold prices opened this week at $1,093.50. The high during the week was on Monday, January 25th, at $1,104.00, while the low for the week was $1,072.90 and it occurred on Friday, January 29th. Gold ended the week down $10.70 at $1,082.80. This week, the most popular gold items included Australian Gold Lunar Coins, Gold American Eagles and 1 oz. .9999 Pamp Suisse Gold Bars.
Silver:
Spot silver prices opened this week at $17.06. Silver reached a high of $17.23 on Monday, January 25th, while the low for silver occurred on Thursday, January 28th, at $16.01. Silver ended the week down $0.80 at $16.26. 2010 Silver American Eagles, 1 oz. APMEX .999 Fine Silver Rounds and 2010 1 oz. Silver Maple Leafs were the most popular silver items for sale at www. APMEX.com.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,543.40 and ended the week down $40.40 at $1,503.00. Popular platinum products this week included 1 oz. Scotia Bank .999 Fine Platinum Bars, 1 oz. Pamp Suisse .999 Fine Platinum Bars and Platinum American Eagles.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $430.00 and ended the week down $14.40 at $415.60. 1 oz. .999 Fine Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars, 2009 Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs MS-69 NGC and Random Year 1 oz. Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs remain popular with palladium investors.
Featured Bullion Product:
Each week, APMEX will review a different bullion product for the benefit of our readers. This week, we will examine the American Gold Buffalo coin.
The United States Mint introduced the American Gold Buffalo coin in 2006. The coin’s design is borrowed from the famous Buffalo Nickel created by famed American sculptor, James Earle Fraser. The obverse depicts the iconic Native American Indian Head design, while the reverse features the classic buffalo design with inscriptions of the weight, denomination and gold content.
American Gold Buffalo Coins are the first .9999 fine, 24-karat gold coins ever struck by the United States Mint. They are available to investors seeking to invest in a 24-karat gold coin that has its fineness and purity guaranteed by the United States Government.
APMEX offers a great selection of American Gold Buffalo coins dated during the current year and in several prior years in brilliant uncirculated and proof condition. Coins purchased in quantities of 20 or more will be delivered in mint sealed protective plastic sheets.
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Market Recap 1/22/10
This week was a shortened trading week for the U.S. markets, due to a federal holiday on Monday.
Stocks slid for the third straight day Friday based on dissatisfaction over companies’ earnings and uncertainty about the President’s plans to limit the size of big banks and to end some of their risky trading practices. The Dow Jones industrial average also saw its largest two-day drop since June.
Rep. Barney Frank, D-Ma., chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, suggested that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac should be done away with.
“This committee will be recommending abolishing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in their current form and coming up with a whole new system of housing finance, that’s the approach rather than the piecemeal one,” Frank said.
The government released unemployment figures for December, showing an increase in unemployment rates in 43 states. The rise in job losses was a quick change from November, when 36 states reported falling unemployment rates. “A lot of states that had started to add jobs (in November) gave up those gains in December,” said Sophia Koropeckyj, managing director at Moody’s Economy.com. Delaware, Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina reported record highs for jobless rates in December.
APMEX sales were very strong this week, due to the retreat in the price of gold. “Customers have taken advantage of the corrections in the price of gold, seeing the opportunity to buy low,” said Mike Garofalo, Vice President of APMEX.
Gold:
Spot Gold prices opened this week at $1,130.70. The high during the week was on Tuesday, January 19th, at $1,140.50, while the low for the week occurred on Friday, January 22nd, at $1,080.90. Gold ended the week down $37.20 at $1,093.50. This week, Gold American Eagles, Perth Mint Fractional Gold and 2009 1/10 oz. South African Gold Krugerrands remain in the forefront of investor’s minds.
Silver:
Spot Silver prices opened this week at $18.46. Silver reached a high of $18.80 on Tuesday, January 19th while the low for silver occurred on Friday, January 22nd, at $16.86. Silver ended the week down $1,41 at $17.05. This week, the most popular silver items included 1 oz. Silver American Eagles, 2010 1 oz. Silver Maple Leafs and 1 oz. APMEX .999 Fine Silver Rounds.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,621.50 and ended the week down $69.00 at $1,552.50. Platinum American Eagles, 1 oz. Credit Suisse Platinum Bars and 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars were popular with platinum investors this week.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $451.00 and ended the week down $17.80 at $433.20. Popular palladium products this week included 2009 Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs MS-69 NGC, 1 oz. .999 Fine Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars and Random Year 1 oz. Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs.
Featured Bullion Product:
Each week, APMEX will review a different bullion product for the benefit of our readers. This week, we will examine the Austrian Philharmonic Gold coin.
First minted in 1989, the Austrian Philharmonic Gold coin was the most popular selling gold coin in the entire world during 1992, 1995 and 1996, according to the World Gold Council. Elegant is the perfect word to encompass this lovely and unusual coin. These exquisite coins were created as a tribute to the renowned Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, one of the finest musical ensembles in the world.
A harmonious design of musical instruments represents the world famous orchestra on the reverse of this gold coin. The obverse depicts the Great Organ of the Golden Hall in Vienna's concert hall. Many collectors and investors consider this to be one of the most beautiful designs of all gold bullion coins. The Austrian Philharmonic coin is struck in .9999 fine gold and is available in 4 sizes: 1 ounce, ½ ounce, ¼ ounce and 1/10 ounce. There is even a very special limited-edition 20-Ounce Philharmonic Gold coin available in very small quantities worldwide.
APMEX offers a great selection of Austrian Philharmonic Gold coins dated during the current year and in several prior years in Brilliant Uncirculated condition. Coins purchased in quantities of 10 or more will be delivered in mint tubes, and orders of 500 or more come in sealed mint boxes when available.
Stocks slid for the third straight day Friday based on dissatisfaction over companies’ earnings and uncertainty about the President’s plans to limit the size of big banks and to end some of their risky trading practices. The Dow Jones industrial average also saw its largest two-day drop since June.
Rep. Barney Frank, D-Ma., chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, suggested that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac should be done away with.
“This committee will be recommending abolishing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in their current form and coming up with a whole new system of housing finance, that’s the approach rather than the piecemeal one,” Frank said.
The government released unemployment figures for December, showing an increase in unemployment rates in 43 states. The rise in job losses was a quick change from November, when 36 states reported falling unemployment rates. “A lot of states that had started to add jobs (in November) gave up those gains in December,” said Sophia Koropeckyj, managing director at Moody’s Economy.com. Delaware, Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina reported record highs for jobless rates in December.
APMEX sales were very strong this week, due to the retreat in the price of gold. “Customers have taken advantage of the corrections in the price of gold, seeing the opportunity to buy low,” said Mike Garofalo, Vice President of APMEX.
Gold:
Spot Gold prices opened this week at $1,130.70. The high during the week was on Tuesday, January 19th, at $1,140.50, while the low for the week occurred on Friday, January 22nd, at $1,080.90. Gold ended the week down $37.20 at $1,093.50. This week, Gold American Eagles, Perth Mint Fractional Gold and 2009 1/10 oz. South African Gold Krugerrands remain in the forefront of investor’s minds.
Silver:
Spot Silver prices opened this week at $18.46. Silver reached a high of $18.80 on Tuesday, January 19th while the low for silver occurred on Friday, January 22nd, at $16.86. Silver ended the week down $1,41 at $17.05. This week, the most popular silver items included 1 oz. Silver American Eagles, 2010 1 oz. Silver Maple Leafs and 1 oz. APMEX .999 Fine Silver Rounds.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,621.50 and ended the week down $69.00 at $1,552.50. Platinum American Eagles, 1 oz. Credit Suisse Platinum Bars and 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars were popular with platinum investors this week.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $451.00 and ended the week down $17.80 at $433.20. Popular palladium products this week included 2009 Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs MS-69 NGC, 1 oz. .999 Fine Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars and Random Year 1 oz. Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs.
Featured Bullion Product:
Each week, APMEX will review a different bullion product for the benefit of our readers. This week, we will examine the Austrian Philharmonic Gold coin.
First minted in 1989, the Austrian Philharmonic Gold coin was the most popular selling gold coin in the entire world during 1992, 1995 and 1996, according to the World Gold Council. Elegant is the perfect word to encompass this lovely and unusual coin. These exquisite coins were created as a tribute to the renowned Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, one of the finest musical ensembles in the world.
A harmonious design of musical instruments represents the world famous orchestra on the reverse of this gold coin. The obverse depicts the Great Organ of the Golden Hall in Vienna's concert hall. Many collectors and investors consider this to be one of the most beautiful designs of all gold bullion coins. The Austrian Philharmonic coin is struck in .9999 fine gold and is available in 4 sizes: 1 ounce, ½ ounce, ¼ ounce and 1/10 ounce. There is even a very special limited-edition 20-Ounce Philharmonic Gold coin available in very small quantities worldwide.
APMEX offers a great selection of Austrian Philharmonic Gold coins dated during the current year and in several prior years in Brilliant Uncirculated condition. Coins purchased in quantities of 10 or more will be delivered in mint tubes, and orders of 500 or more come in sealed mint boxes when available.
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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.
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.
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Market Recap 01/08/10
The stock market opened this week with a rally due to manufacturing gains in China and the United States. The market finished the day at its highest level since October 1, 2008, according to MSN Money. While precious metal prices and energy stocks led the way the rally was very broad.
But the market rally was short-lived, as the Labor Department issued a report showing the economy lost 85,000 jobs in December. The number of job losses was higher than expected and rekindled worries about the reality of an economic recovery. The overall unemployment rate was unchanged at 10% and according to David Katz, chief investment officer at Matrix Asset Advisors, “the economy continues to take three steps forward and two steps back.”
In a speech to the American Economic Association in Atlanta, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke defended Fed moves during the recession and continued by saying, “the central bank has to be open to increasing interest rates to prevent future bubbles.” Due to this uncertainty, gold ended higher as it snapped a string of five weeks of losses. Nervousness about the possible economic recovery and the possible timing of interest rate increases “boosted the appeal of the metal as an alternative asset,” according to DailyWealth.com.
APMEX is very excited to start the New Year off with the release of its FREE iPhone Application. This new application not only provides live precious metal spot prices, it displays up-to-the-minute BUY and SELL pricing on 40+ of the most popular bullion products at APMEX.com. You can hold all of this information in the palm of your hand, and it comes from one of the most trusted online precious metal dealers in the nation.
Gold:
Spot gold prices opened this week at $1,099.00. The high during the week was on Wednesday, January 6th, at $1,141.00, while the low for the week occurred on Monday, January 4th, at $1,093.80. Gold ended the week up $40.00 at $1,139.00. This week, 1 oz. Gold American Eagles, 2009 1 oz. Gold Buffalo Coins and Random Year 1 oz. Gold Maple Leafs saw significant sales volume.
Silver:
Spot silver prices opened this week at $16.96. Silver reached a high of $18.53 on Friday, January 8th, while the low for silver occurred on Monday, January 4th, at $16.90. Silver ended the week up $1.54 at $18.50. This week, the most popular silver items included 1 oz. Silver American Eagles, 1 oz. APMEX Silver Rounds and 2010 1 oz. Silver Maple Leafs.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,477.20 and ended the week up $105.80 at $1,583.00. 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars, 1 oz. Scotiabank Platinum Bars and ½ oz. Platinum American Eagles were popular with platinum investors this week.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $409.85 and ended the week up $22.55 at $432.40. 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 examine the South African Gold Krugerrand. It was the first gold bullion coin ever struck by any nation. These coins were originally minted in 1967 to help South Africa sell some of its vast gold reserves to investors around the world. The Krugerrand was also the world’s first gold coin that weighed exactly 1 Troy ounce and many worldwide investors purchased them to add a precious metal investment to their portfolios. These beautiful coins are struck in 22-karat gold and weigh just over one ounce. The additional metal is a copper alloy that was used to make the coins harder and more resistant to scratches. They have been minted continuously since 1967.
On the obverse, or front, of these coins is a portrait of Paul Kruger, the last President of the Republic of South Africa. The reverse, or back, of this coin depicts a Springbok Antelope, a beautiful creature that is one of South Africa’s national symbols. The name "Krugerrand" is a combination of Paul Kruger’s name and the word "rand" which is one of the monetary units of South Africa. These attractive coins are backed by the government of South Africa for their purity, content and fineness.
APMEX offers a great selection of South African Krugerrands dated the current year and in several prior years in Brilliant Uncirculated condition. Coins purchased in quantities of 20 or more will be delivered in special tubes.
But the market rally was short-lived, as the Labor Department issued a report showing the economy lost 85,000 jobs in December. The number of job losses was higher than expected and rekindled worries about the reality of an economic recovery. The overall unemployment rate was unchanged at 10% and according to David Katz, chief investment officer at Matrix Asset Advisors, “the economy continues to take three steps forward and two steps back.”
In a speech to the American Economic Association in Atlanta, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke defended Fed moves during the recession and continued by saying, “the central bank has to be open to increasing interest rates to prevent future bubbles.” Due to this uncertainty, gold ended higher as it snapped a string of five weeks of losses. Nervousness about the possible economic recovery and the possible timing of interest rate increases “boosted the appeal of the metal as an alternative asset,” according to DailyWealth.com.
APMEX is very excited to start the New Year off with the release of its FREE iPhone Application. This new application not only provides live precious metal spot prices, it displays up-to-the-minute BUY and SELL pricing on 40+ of the most popular bullion products at APMEX.com. You can hold all of this information in the palm of your hand, and it comes from one of the most trusted online precious metal dealers in the nation.
Gold:
Spot gold prices opened this week at $1,099.00. The high during the week was on Wednesday, January 6th, at $1,141.00, while the low for the week occurred on Monday, January 4th, at $1,093.80. Gold ended the week up $40.00 at $1,139.00. This week, 1 oz. Gold American Eagles, 2009 1 oz. Gold Buffalo Coins and Random Year 1 oz. Gold Maple Leafs saw significant sales volume.
Silver:
Spot silver prices opened this week at $16.96. Silver reached a high of $18.53 on Friday, January 8th, while the low for silver occurred on Monday, January 4th, at $16.90. Silver ended the week up $1.54 at $18.50. This week, the most popular silver items included 1 oz. Silver American Eagles, 1 oz. APMEX Silver Rounds and 2010 1 oz. Silver Maple Leafs.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,477.20 and ended the week up $105.80 at $1,583.00. 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars, 1 oz. Scotiabank Platinum Bars and ½ oz. Platinum American Eagles were popular with platinum investors this week.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $409.85 and ended the week up $22.55 at $432.40. 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 examine the South African Gold Krugerrand. It was the first gold bullion coin ever struck by any nation. These coins were originally minted in 1967 to help South Africa sell some of its vast gold reserves to investors around the world. The Krugerrand was also the world’s first gold coin that weighed exactly 1 Troy ounce and many worldwide investors purchased them to add a precious metal investment to their portfolios. These beautiful coins are struck in 22-karat gold and weigh just over one ounce. The additional metal is a copper alloy that was used to make the coins harder and more resistant to scratches. They have been minted continuously since 1967.
On the obverse, or front, of these coins is a portrait of Paul Kruger, the last President of the Republic of South Africa. The reverse, or back, of this coin depicts a Springbok Antelope, a beautiful creature that is one of South Africa’s national symbols. The name "Krugerrand" is a combination of Paul Kruger’s name and the word "rand" which is one of the monetary units of South Africa. These attractive coins are backed by the government of South Africa for their purity, content and fineness.
APMEX offers a great selection of South African Krugerrands dated the current year and in several prior years in Brilliant Uncirculated condition. Coins purchased in quantities of 20 or more will be delivered in special tubes.
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Market Recap 12/31/09
The U.S. Stock Market traded in a narrow range during the year’s final week, further shortened by the New Year holiday on Friday. Few major reports were released this week, which kept volume in the market light. However, stocks did trend slightly lower on Tuesday, breaking six days of consecutive gains, which was the result of a Housing Report that showed continued struggles moving into the new year, according to MSN Money.
These housing struggles were partially confirmed late in the week, as Reuters reported that GMAC Financial Services received $3.8 Billion in additional government aid on top of the $12.5 Billion of taxpayer money it had already received. This infusion of government bailout money refueled concerns about the general health of the lenders and “will boost the federal government’s ownership in GMAC to 56 percent, from 35 percent,” according to the Huffington Post.
With continued housing woes, increasing government bailouts and much concern over the Health Care Reform legislation, many investors are cautious as 2010 approaches. Many continue to look to gold as a respite from encroaching inflation and the lingering uncertainty of economic recovery. Gold ended the year up 25 percent, according to Reuters.com, with the “biggest absolute annual gain in three decades with a small advance on Thursday, rising for an unprecedented ninth year in a row.”
APMEX wants to wish all our customers a safe and prosperous New Year. We look forward to helping you achieve your precious metal investment goals in 2010. Over the New Year’s holiday, we hope that you are able to take advantage of 2010 Gold and Silver American Eagles pre-sale, going on now at www.APMEX.com.
Gold:
Spot Gold prices opened this week at $1,108.80. The high during the week was on Monday, December 28th, at $1,113.50, while the low for the week occurred on Wednesday, December 30, at $1,086.60. Gold ended the week down $10.70 at $1,098.10. This week, 2009 1 oz. Gold American Eagles, 1 gram Sunshine Minting Gold Bars and Random Year 1 oz. Gold Maple Leafs were popular with gold investors.
Silver:
Spot Silver prices opened this week at $17.54. Silver reached a high of $17.61 on Monday, December 28th, while the low for silver occurred on Wednesday, December 30th, at $16.79. Silver ended the week down $0.60 at $16.94 This week, investors purchased 2009 1 oz. Silver American Eagles, 2010 1 oz. Silver Maple Leafs, and 1 oz. Sunshine Minting Silver Rounds.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,471.00 and ended the week down $9.00 at $1,462.00. The most popular platinum products this week were 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars, 1/4 oz. Platinum American Eagles and 1 oz. Scotiabank Platinum Bars.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $386.85 and ended the week up $23.95 at $410.80. 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 review the most popular U.S. silver bullion coin.
The American Silver Eagle coins are backed by the United States Government for their purity, content and fineness. These beautiful coins were the first silver bullion coins ever struck by the United States. The minting of these coins began in 1986 and continues through today. These coins are struck in .999 fine silver and each weighs 1 Troy ounce.
A depiction of a walking Miss Libery graces the obverse, or front, of these silver bullion coins. This design was the same one created by famed sculptor Adolph Weinman that was used on U.S. Half Dollar coins from 1916 until 1947. The reverse, or back, of this coin depicts a Bald Eagle with a shield and 13 stars above it.
APMEX offers a complete selection of American Silver Eagle coins in virtually all years, in both Brilliant Uncirculated condition and in collector’s quality Proof condition. Coins purchased in quantities of 20 or more will be delivered in the same special tubes as used by the United States Mint. Quantities of 500 or more coins are shipped in the special green United States Mint boxes.
These housing struggles were partially confirmed late in the week, as Reuters reported that GMAC Financial Services received $3.8 Billion in additional government aid on top of the $12.5 Billion of taxpayer money it had already received. This infusion of government bailout money refueled concerns about the general health of the lenders and “will boost the federal government’s ownership in GMAC to 56 percent, from 35 percent,” according to the Huffington Post.
With continued housing woes, increasing government bailouts and much concern over the Health Care Reform legislation, many investors are cautious as 2010 approaches. Many continue to look to gold as a respite from encroaching inflation and the lingering uncertainty of economic recovery. Gold ended the year up 25 percent, according to Reuters.com, with the “biggest absolute annual gain in three decades with a small advance on Thursday, rising for an unprecedented ninth year in a row.”
APMEX wants to wish all our customers a safe and prosperous New Year. We look forward to helping you achieve your precious metal investment goals in 2010. Over the New Year’s holiday, we hope that you are able to take advantage of 2010 Gold and Silver American Eagles pre-sale, going on now at www.APMEX.com.
Gold:
Spot Gold prices opened this week at $1,108.80. The high during the week was on Monday, December 28th, at $1,113.50, while the low for the week occurred on Wednesday, December 30, at $1,086.60. Gold ended the week down $10.70 at $1,098.10. This week, 2009 1 oz. Gold American Eagles, 1 gram Sunshine Minting Gold Bars and Random Year 1 oz. Gold Maple Leafs were popular with gold investors.
Silver:
Spot Silver prices opened this week at $17.54. Silver reached a high of $17.61 on Monday, December 28th, while the low for silver occurred on Wednesday, December 30th, at $16.79. Silver ended the week down $0.60 at $16.94 This week, investors purchased 2009 1 oz. Silver American Eagles, 2010 1 oz. Silver Maple Leafs, and 1 oz. Sunshine Minting Silver Rounds.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,471.00 and ended the week down $9.00 at $1,462.00. The most popular platinum products this week were 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars, 1/4 oz. Platinum American Eagles and 1 oz. Scotiabank Platinum Bars.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $386.85 and ended the week up $23.95 at $410.80. 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 review the most popular U.S. silver bullion coin.
The American Silver Eagle coins are backed by the United States Government for their purity, content and fineness. These beautiful coins were the first silver bullion coins ever struck by the United States. The minting of these coins began in 1986 and continues through today. These coins are struck in .999 fine silver and each weighs 1 Troy ounce.
A depiction of a walking Miss Libery graces the obverse, or front, of these silver bullion coins. This design was the same one created by famed sculptor Adolph Weinman that was used on U.S. Half Dollar coins from 1916 until 1947. The reverse, or back, of this coin depicts a Bald Eagle with a shield and 13 stars above it.
APMEX offers a complete selection of American Silver Eagle coins in virtually all years, in both Brilliant Uncirculated condition and in collector’s quality Proof condition. Coins purchased in quantities of 20 or more will be delivered in the same special tubes as used by the United States Mint. Quantities of 500 or more coins are shipped in the special green United States Mint boxes.
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Market Recap 12/24/09
While little news happened during this shortened holiday week, on Thursday, December 24th, Americans were welcomed with a Christmas surprise – and not the good kind.
CNN reported today that the U.S. Senate passed a $290 Billion increase to the legal debt limit allowed for the U.S. Treasury. Jeanne Sahadi, Senior Writer for CNNMoney.com stated, “If the Senate hadn't raised the debt ceiling before Dec. 31, the Treasury would likely have had to employ extraordinary measures to keep the debt below the ceiling to stave off default.” Having raised the debt ceiling to $12.394 Trillion, the U.S. has now witnessed the doubling of its national debt since 2000.
To default on that debt would unleash a chain of events that could devalue U.S. bonds and seriously harm the nation's reputation with creditors around the world. In a related article, Sahadi went on to say, “If the ceiling is ever breached, the country would effectively be in default. In the universe of financial things to avoid, it ranks as a ‘no good, very bad’ event.”
If this news wasn’t enough, Americans found a lump of coal in their Christmas stockings with the announcement that taxpayer backed mortgage companies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, could award their top 10 executives with up to $40 Million in compensation according to CNNMoney.com.
With news like this, it’s no wonder that many Americans are turning to gold and silver to defend their portfolios against the strong probability of rising inflation for the New Year. Precious metals continue to witness significant buying activity fueled by declining optimism for a speedy U.S. economic recovery.
To end the year with some holiday cheer, APMEX launched its Annual I.R.S. – “Inventory Reduction Sale” on December 23rd. Many popular bullion items have undergone significant price reductions. We have clearly marked selected products throughout the website with a special “IRS Stamp” icon, so you can easily locate them. Buy your precious metals today at www.APMEX.com and have a very Happy New Year!
Gold:
Spot Gold prices opened this week at $1,113.90. The high during the week was on Monday, December 21st, at $1,119.00, while the low for the week occurred on Tuesday, December 22nd, at $1,074.70. Gold ended the week down $7.00 at $1,106.90. This week, 2009 1 oz. Gold American Eagles, 2009 1/10 oz. Gold American Eagles and 2009 1 oz. Gold American Buffalos saw significant sales volume.
Silver:
Spot Silver prices opened this week at $17.31. Silver reached a high of $17.55 on Thursday, December 24th while the low for silver occurred on Tuesday, December 22nd, at $16.77. Silver ended the week up $0.24 at $17.55. This week, the most popular silver items included 2009 1 oz. Silver American Eagles, 1 oz. Sunshine Minting .999 Fine Silver Rounds, 1 oz. .999 Fine Silver Buffalo Rounds and 1 oz. APMEX .999 Fine Silver Rounds.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,433.90 and ended the week up $35.30 at $1,469.20. 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars, 1/10 oz. Platinum American Eagles and 1 oz. Credit Suisse Platinum Bars were popular with platinum investors this week.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $370.90 and ended the week up $20.50 at $391.40. 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 review the most popular U.S. gold bullion coin. The Gold American Eagle coin was the first gold bullion coin ever struck by the United States. The minting of these coins began in 1986 and continues through today. These Gold American Eagle coins are issued in $50, $25, $10 and $5 denominations and they contain 1 Troy ounce of gold, 1/2 ounce of gold, 1/4 ounce of gold, and 1/10 ounce of gold, respectively.
On the obverse, or front, of the coin, Miss Liberty is depicted holding a torch and an olive branch with the U.S. Capitol in the background. This design was very slightly modified from the famous one created by renowned sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens. That design was first used on the $20 Double Eagle gold coins minted from 1907 until 1933. On the reverse, there is a depiction of a family of American Bald Eagles, which give the coins their name. These beautiful coins are backed by the United States Mint for their purity, content and fineness.
APMEX offers a complete selection of American Gold Eagle coins in a variety of denominations, in both Brilliant Uncirculated condition and in collector’s quality Proof condition. Coins purchased in quantities of 20 or more will be delivered in the special tubes that are used by the United States Mint. Quantities of 500 or more coins are shipped in the special red United States Mint boxes.
CNN reported today that the U.S. Senate passed a $290 Billion increase to the legal debt limit allowed for the U.S. Treasury. Jeanne Sahadi, Senior Writer for CNNMoney.com stated, “If the Senate hadn't raised the debt ceiling before Dec. 31, the Treasury would likely have had to employ extraordinary measures to keep the debt below the ceiling to stave off default.” Having raised the debt ceiling to $12.394 Trillion, the U.S. has now witnessed the doubling of its national debt since 2000.
To default on that debt would unleash a chain of events that could devalue U.S. bonds and seriously harm the nation's reputation with creditors around the world. In a related article, Sahadi went on to say, “If the ceiling is ever breached, the country would effectively be in default. In the universe of financial things to avoid, it ranks as a ‘no good, very bad’ event.”
If this news wasn’t enough, Americans found a lump of coal in their Christmas stockings with the announcement that taxpayer backed mortgage companies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, could award their top 10 executives with up to $40 Million in compensation according to CNNMoney.com.
With news like this, it’s no wonder that many Americans are turning to gold and silver to defend their portfolios against the strong probability of rising inflation for the New Year. Precious metals continue to witness significant buying activity fueled by declining optimism for a speedy U.S. economic recovery.
To end the year with some holiday cheer, APMEX launched its Annual I.R.S. – “Inventory Reduction Sale” on December 23rd. Many popular bullion items have undergone significant price reductions. We have clearly marked selected products throughout the website with a special “IRS Stamp” icon, so you can easily locate them. Buy your precious metals today at www.APMEX.com and have a very Happy New Year!
Gold:
Spot Gold prices opened this week at $1,113.90. The high during the week was on Monday, December 21st, at $1,119.00, while the low for the week occurred on Tuesday, December 22nd, at $1,074.70. Gold ended the week down $7.00 at $1,106.90. This week, 2009 1 oz. Gold American Eagles, 2009 1/10 oz. Gold American Eagles and 2009 1 oz. Gold American Buffalos saw significant sales volume.
Silver:
Spot Silver prices opened this week at $17.31. Silver reached a high of $17.55 on Thursday, December 24th while the low for silver occurred on Tuesday, December 22nd, at $16.77. Silver ended the week up $0.24 at $17.55. This week, the most popular silver items included 2009 1 oz. Silver American Eagles, 1 oz. Sunshine Minting .999 Fine Silver Rounds, 1 oz. .999 Fine Silver Buffalo Rounds and 1 oz. APMEX .999 Fine Silver Rounds.
Platinum:
Spot platinum prices opened this week at $1,433.90 and ended the week up $35.30 at $1,469.20. 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars, 1/10 oz. Platinum American Eagles and 1 oz. Credit Suisse Platinum Bars were popular with platinum investors this week.
Palladium:
Spot palladium prices opened this week at $370.90 and ended the week up $20.50 at $391.40. 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 review the most popular U.S. gold bullion coin. The Gold American Eagle coin was the first gold bullion coin ever struck by the United States. The minting of these coins began in 1986 and continues through today. These Gold American Eagle coins are issued in $50, $25, $10 and $5 denominations and they contain 1 Troy ounce of gold, 1/2 ounce of gold, 1/4 ounce of gold, and 1/10 ounce of gold, respectively.
On the obverse, or front, of the coin, Miss Liberty is depicted holding a torch and an olive branch with the U.S. Capitol in the background. This design was very slightly modified from the famous one created by renowned sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens. That design was first used on the $20 Double Eagle gold coins minted from 1907 until 1933. On the reverse, there is a depiction of a family of American Bald Eagles, which give the coins their name. These beautiful coins are backed by the United States Mint for their purity, content and fineness.
APMEX offers a complete selection of American Gold Eagle coins in a variety of denominations, in both Brilliant Uncirculated condition and in collector’s quality Proof condition. Coins purchased in quantities of 20 or more will be delivered in the special tubes that are used by the United States Mint. Quantities of 500 or more coins are shipped in the special red United States Mint boxes.
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Market Recap 12/18/09
Despite skepticism about the stock market’s strength, precious metal and energy stocks led the way for a brief early-week rally. This short rally helped the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the NASDAQ Composite Index to reach new highs for the year, though worries continue about the stability of the global financial system. Prolonged U.S. housing market woes and continued high unemployment remain at the forefront of most recovery doubts for investors. According to MarketWatch, The Labor Department released reports midweek showing a second consecutive week of rising unemployment claims. Initial claims jumped 7,000 to 480,000, which was more than analysts had expected.
The Federal Reserve decided, yet again, to leave key interest rates unchanged at record low levels. The Fed’s rate-making body, the Federal Open Market Committee, left the target for its key federal funds rate at zero to 0.25%. However, the Central Bank did hint of expectations that interest rates will move up though no timetable for this action was given. The short early week stock market rally faded quickly after this announcement from the Fed.
A recent poll of 34 analysts, conducted by Reuters earlier this month, predicts Gold prices to stay firm in 2010. HSBC and Bank of America Merrill Lynch lifted their Gold forecasts this week. Daniel Major with RBS Global Banking & Markets said, “There are still fears of a spike in inflation in the background, as well as further uncertainty over the state of the economic recovery.”
As we move towards the end of the year, the demand for precious metals seems to be heating up as many investors are still highly concerned about inflation and the general state of the economy. Visit www.APMEX.com today and let us assist you in securing hard assets for your portfolio.
Gold:
Spot Gold prices opened this week at $1,114.40. The high during the week was on Thursday, December 17th, at $1,142.10, while the low for the week occurred on the same day, at $1,095.30. Gold ended the week down $0.80 at $1,113.60. This week, 2009 1/10 oz. American Gold Eagles, 2009 1 oz. BU Gold American Eagles and APMEX .9999+ Fine 1 gram Gold Bars were quite popular.
Silver:
Spot Silver prices opened this week at $17.18. Silver reached a high of $17.78 on Wednesday, December 16th while the low for Silver occurred on Friday, December 18th, at $17.05. Silver ended the week up $0.14 at $17.32. This week, 2009 1 oz. Silver American Eagles, 2010 1 oz. Canadian Silver Maple Leafs and 2010 1 oz. Silver Vancouver Canadian Maple Leafs were very popular with investors and collectors alike.
Platinum:
Spot Platinum prices opened this week at $1,432.00 and ended the week up $0.70 at $1,432.70. Investors continue to purchase 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars, 1 oz. Platinum American Eagles and 1/10 oz. Platinum American Eagles, though quantities of these products are becoming quite scarce.
Palladium:
Spot Palladium prices opened this week at $366.15 and ended the week up $4.75 at $370.90. Popular Palladium products this week included 1 oz. Random Year Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs and 10 oz. Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars.
Numismatics:
After weeks of rising Gold prices, the momentum has slowed and seems to have leveled off as it is now hovering around the $1,100 per ounce mark. APMEX is continually adding to its inventory in order to meet the steady demand. The desire for all Gold products as well as Pre-1933 U.S. Gold has intensified. For more information on Pre-1933 U.S. Gold or the Gold American Eagle please watch our videos for those products posted on our website at www.APMEX.com.
APMEX continues to feature Silver Dollars and this week we will look at a coin that is sometimes forgotten. The 1894-O Morgan Silver Dollar was not struck until July 1894; however, once started, production was steady through December. With a mintage of 1.7 million pieces, this coin is relatively common, except in higher grades. These coins come with an above average strike and above average luster. Finding a mint state example with few bag marks, a strong strike, and above average luster is certainly a rare and rewarding find. Because of its generally dull appearance, the 1894-O is often overlooked.
The Treasury released bags of 1894-O Silver Dollars beginning in the 1950’s and continued those releases all the way up to 1964. Although there were multiple obverse and reverse dies used to produce these silver dollars, no major die varieties are attributed to this particular date and mintmark. Nonetheless, the 1894-O Morgan Silver Dollar is still a coin worth considering for your collection.
The Federal Reserve decided, yet again, to leave key interest rates unchanged at record low levels. The Fed’s rate-making body, the Federal Open Market Committee, left the target for its key federal funds rate at zero to 0.25%. However, the Central Bank did hint of expectations that interest rates will move up though no timetable for this action was given. The short early week stock market rally faded quickly after this announcement from the Fed.
A recent poll of 34 analysts, conducted by Reuters earlier this month, predicts Gold prices to stay firm in 2010. HSBC and Bank of America Merrill Lynch lifted their Gold forecasts this week. Daniel Major with RBS Global Banking & Markets said, “There are still fears of a spike in inflation in the background, as well as further uncertainty over the state of the economic recovery.”
As we move towards the end of the year, the demand for precious metals seems to be heating up as many investors are still highly concerned about inflation and the general state of the economy. Visit www.APMEX.com today and let us assist you in securing hard assets for your portfolio.
Gold:
Spot Gold prices opened this week at $1,114.40. The high during the week was on Thursday, December 17th, at $1,142.10, while the low for the week occurred on the same day, at $1,095.30. Gold ended the week down $0.80 at $1,113.60. This week, 2009 1/10 oz. American Gold Eagles, 2009 1 oz. BU Gold American Eagles and APMEX .9999+ Fine 1 gram Gold Bars were quite popular.
Silver:
Spot Silver prices opened this week at $17.18. Silver reached a high of $17.78 on Wednesday, December 16th while the low for Silver occurred on Friday, December 18th, at $17.05. Silver ended the week up $0.14 at $17.32. This week, 2009 1 oz. Silver American Eagles, 2010 1 oz. Canadian Silver Maple Leafs and 2010 1 oz. Silver Vancouver Canadian Maple Leafs were very popular with investors and collectors alike.
Platinum:
Spot Platinum prices opened this week at $1,432.00 and ended the week up $0.70 at $1,432.70. Investors continue to purchase 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars, 1 oz. Platinum American Eagles and 1/10 oz. Platinum American Eagles, though quantities of these products are becoming quite scarce.
Palladium:
Spot Palladium prices opened this week at $366.15 and ended the week up $4.75 at $370.90. Popular Palladium products this week included 1 oz. Random Year Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs and 10 oz. Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars.
Numismatics:
After weeks of rising Gold prices, the momentum has slowed and seems to have leveled off as it is now hovering around the $1,100 per ounce mark. APMEX is continually adding to its inventory in order to meet the steady demand. The desire for all Gold products as well as Pre-1933 U.S. Gold has intensified. For more information on Pre-1933 U.S. Gold or the Gold American Eagle please watch our videos for those products posted on our website at www.APMEX.com.
APMEX continues to feature Silver Dollars and this week we will look at a coin that is sometimes forgotten. The 1894-O Morgan Silver Dollar was not struck until July 1894; however, once started, production was steady through December. With a mintage of 1.7 million pieces, this coin is relatively common, except in higher grades. These coins come with an above average strike and above average luster. Finding a mint state example with few bag marks, a strong strike, and above average luster is certainly a rare and rewarding find. Because of its generally dull appearance, the 1894-O is often overlooked.
The Treasury released bags of 1894-O Silver Dollars beginning in the 1950’s and continued those releases all the way up to 1964. Although there were multiple obverse and reverse dies used to produce these silver dollars, no major die varieties are attributed to this particular date and mintmark. Nonetheless, the 1894-O Morgan Silver Dollar is still a coin worth considering for your collection.
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Market Recap 12/11/09
The U.S. Dollar showed some improvement early in the week as the Dollar Index was up by 0.07%. That was the major catalyst that pushed both oil and precious metal prices down for the first time in recent weeks.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke spoke at the Economic Club of Washington late Monday, stating that we will see modest economic growth next year but at a pace slower than we would like. Giving few concrete details, he went on to discuss the careful thought going into the Fed’s exit strategy for withdrawing the unprecedented monetary stimulus dollars from the economy. Well-informed investors will keep a close watch for developments on this topic, as it will help shape market trends in 2010.
In telling remarks this week, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner extended the government’s $700 Billion bailout fund to October 2010, saying the economy still faces “significant challenges.” “This extension is necessary to assist American families and stabilize financial markets because it will, among other things, enable us to continue to implement programs that address housing markets, the needs of small businesses, and to maintain the capacity to respond to unforeseen threats,” Geithner said. He also warned that withdrawing programs too early could prolong the economic downturn. These statements concerning the “continued programs” and “unforeseen threats” have many investors quite nervous, anticipating the inevitable inflation that comes with such government spending.
The recent pullback in precious metal prices provides a great opportunity to add to your precious metal positions. APMEX announced this week that 2009 Fractional American Gold Eagles are now in stock and ready to ship. Visit www.APMEX.com today and stock up on gold and silver before the next rally!
Gold:
Spot Gold prices opened this week at $1,159.70. The high during the week was on Tuesday, December 8th, at $1,169.30, while the low for the week was on Friday, December 11th, at $1,108.30. Gold ended the week down $44.10 to $1,115.60. This week, 2009 1/10 oz. American Gold Eagles, 2009 1 oz. BU Gold American Eagles and 2009 ¼ oz. Gold Australian Kangaroos saw significant traffic on the APMEX.com website.
Gold:
Spot Gold prices opened this week at $1,159.70. The high during the week was on Tuesday, December 8th, at $1,169.30, while the low for the week was on Friday, December 11th, at $1,108.30. Gold ended the week down $44.10 to $1,115.60. This week, 2009 1/10 oz. American Gold Eagles, 2009 1 oz. BU Gold American Eagles and 2009 ¼ oz. Gold Australian Kangaroos saw significant traffic on the APMEX.com website.
Silver:
Spot Silver prices opened this week at $18.47. Silver reached a high of $18.50 on Monday, December 7th. The low for Silver occurred on Friday, December 11th, at $16.87. Silver ended the week down $1.28 to $17.19. This week, 2009 1 oz. Silver American Eagles, 2010 1 oz. Canadian Silver Maple Leafs, 1 oz. .999 Fine Silver Sunshine Mint Rounds, and 2010 1 oz. Silver Vancouver Canadian Maple Leafs were very popular due to APMEX's Annual 12 Days of Christmas Sales Event.Platinum:
Spot Platinum prices opened this week at $1,458.90 and ended the week down $22.00 to $1,436.90. Investors continue to snap up 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars, 1 oz. Platinum American Eagles and 1/10 oz. Platinum American Eagles.Palladium:
Spot Palladium prices opened this week at $372.05 and ended the week down $8.05 to $364.00. Popular Palladium products this week included 1 oz. Random Year Palladium Canadian Maple Leafs, 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars and 10 oz. Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars.Numismatics:
Since our last post, the spot price of gold has been ever-changing - driven by various world news and the strength of the U.S. Dollar. But even with all the interest from customers, APMEX continues to have a good supply of products available. But, these products are moving quickly in spite of the recent market fluctuations.
Since our last post, the spot price of gold has been ever-changing - driven by various world news and the strength of the U.S. Dollar. But even with all the interest from customers, APMEX continues to have a good supply of products available. But, these products are moving quickly in spite of the recent market fluctuations.
APMEX is proud to be one of the first precious metals dealers to deliver 2009 Fractional American Gold Eagle coins to our customers, as we just received them this week! In addition, the herd of Gold American Buffalo coins is currently plentiful, but the numbers are dwindling as the spot price of gold has dropped. As always, Pre-1933 U.S. Gold is very popular, especially $2.50 Quarter Eagle coins and $20 Saint-Gaudens gold coins.
The spot price of Silver has also readjusted, though not as dramatically as gold. Opportunists are taking full advantage by stocking up on their favorite bullion and numismatic items, such as the Silver American Eagles, Very Good to Very Fine Morgan Silver Dollars and Peace Silver Dollars. Holiday Silver Rounds and Bars are also very popular as gift items.
This week, as APMEX continues its series on Silver Dollars, we will be highlighting the 1895-S. This particular year and San Francisco mintmarked issue is notorious for being extensively bag-marked. As a result, high-grade examples are always in high demand, carry a premium, and are almost always found in the lower mint state range. Circulated specimens are equally hard to find, as the mintage is very low with only 400,000 pieces struck. Sometimes, lower grade examples such as an AU-55 or AU-58, may be more attractive than even an MS-60 or MS-61. If you are lucky enough to find a high-end example, be sure that it carries tremendous eye appeal and is well struck, as most mint state 1895-S’s bear these qualities. The large majority of 1895-S coins were paid out within years of their production, yet there were a few bags that were held back as late as the 1950’s. On the other hand, many higher-grade 1895-S’s are either Proof-Like or Semi-Proof-Like. Often these coins are found without toning. There are no major VAM varieties to be found for this particular year, however, the few varieties that can be located carry a small additional premium.
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Market Recap 12/04/09
Early in the week, Wall Street closely watched sales results from the first official shopping weekend of the holiday season. The National Retail Federation reported that on average, consumers spent 8% less than a year ago, confirming the fact that the recession is still affecting consumer confidence. Reuters.com reported, “Consumer spending makes up roughly 70% of the U.S. economy and (that) will determine how quickly the country can recover from a recession,” said Torsten Slok, an economist at Deutsche Bank. Additionally, the ABC News Consumer Comfort Index came in at -45 on a scale of +100 to –100, which puts the index on track for the worst year in its 23-year history. During this week, gold surged upward, hitting a new all-time high of $1,227.00 per ounce.
Late in the week, however, all precious metals prices saw an unexpected pull back, likely driven by better than expected jobless rates and a rally in the Dollar Index, according to Bloomberg. This consolidation provides a unique buying opportunity as investors look to add more gold to their positions. Many investors remain very bullish on gold due to the continued threat of significant inflation.
MarketWatch.com reported early this week, “Gold prices could hit $1,500 as global plans to rescue the financial industry are set to increase inflation pressure.” This statement was according to analysts at Merrill Lynch. "The unintended consequence of the ongoing financial bailout will be a return of inflationary pressures to the commodity markets," wrote the analysts in a note released Monday.
The APMEX “12 Days of Christmas” began on Cyber Monday, November 30, 2009. Customers are able to take advantage of great pricing and low premiums on some of APMEX’s most popular bullion products. Pay close attention to your inbox and don’t miss out on this great opportunity to save.
Gold:
Spot Gold prices opened this week at $1,178.80. The high during the week was on Thursday, December 3rd, at $1,227.00, while the low for the week was on Friday, December 4th, at $1,147.40. Gold ended the week down $16.80 at $1,162.00. This week, 2009 1/10 oz. Gold American Eagles, 2009 1 oz. BU Gold American Eagles and 2009 1 oz. Gold Buffalos sold en masse, as gold fever heated up!
Spot Gold prices opened this week at $1,178.80. The high during the week was on Thursday, December 3rd, at $1,227.00, while the low for the week was on Friday, December 4th, at $1,147.40. Gold ended the week down $16.80 at $1,162.00. This week, 2009 1/10 oz. Gold American Eagles, 2009 1 oz. BU Gold American Eagles and 2009 1 oz. Gold Buffalos sold en masse, as gold fever heated up!
Silver:
Spot Silver prices opened this week at $18.40. Silver reached a high of $19.48 on Thursday, December 3rd. The low for silver occurred on Monday, November 30th, at $18.12. Silver ended the week up $0.10 at $18.50. This week, 2009 1 oz. Silver American Eagles, 2010 1 oz. Canadian Silver Maple Leafs, and 1 oz. .999 Fine Silver Buffalo Rounds followed in the footsteps of gold, as the silver market heated up too.Platinum:
Spot Platinum prices opened this week at $1,453.90 and ended the week down slightly at $1,448.00. 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars, 1 oz. BU Platinum American Eagles and 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars remain popular products with investors.
Palladium:
Spot Palladium prices opened this week at $371.00 and ended the week up $5.00 at $376.00. Popular Palladium products this week included 2009 1 oz. Palladium Maple Leafs, 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars and 10 oz. Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars.
Numismatics:
APMEX has a superb selection of Pre-1933 U.S. Gold to accommodate both the investor and collector. Though gold may advance and retreat slightly, it seems it is no longer a far fetched analytical prediction that gold could reach the $1,500.00 per ounce milestone, based on many analysts’ predictions and the recent surge to new all-time highs.
APMEX has a superb selection of Pre-1933 U.S. Gold to accommodate both the investor and collector. Though gold may advance and retreat slightly, it seems it is no longer a far fetched analytical prediction that gold could reach the $1,500.00 per ounce milestone, based on many analysts’ predictions and the recent surge to new all-time highs.
Silver, though it has not garnered as much news coverage, has also seen significant increases in spot price over the past few weeks. APMEX is always buying Silver Dollars in any condition, as demand has generally outweighed supply. Morgan Silver Dollars grading from Very Good to Very Fine are extremely popular, as are Peace Silver Dollars in the same grade range. Virtually any silver coins, including 90% and 40% Silver coins, are moving fast in the current market!
APMEX continues its review of the Silver Dollar series. We will be taking a close look at the 1891-CC variety. The 1891-CC is one of the most common Silver Dollars to be minted at the Carson City Mint, however, all “CC” Silver Dollars are fairly scarce. This coin is usually very lustrous and has great eye appeal. Many choice examples may be found in uncirculated condition. Most coins of this year were immediately released into circulation, so there is a plentiful array of 1891-CC’s in circulated grades. The Silver Dollars that were not released into circulation were bagged up and held by the U.S. Treasury until the 1940’s and 1950’s when they were eventually paid out, yielding a great new supply for numismatists.
Though there are many die varieties attributed to the 1891-CC, one variety demands attention due to its name. The “Spitting Eagle”, or VAM-3 as it is also known, is a very popular variety among Silver Dollar enthusiasts. On the Reverse of this variety there is a tiny die gouge resembling saliva just below the eagle’s beak. This die gouge gives this variety its attention grabbing name. Even though the “Spitting Eagle” is a quite common variety, it remains one of the more popular VAM’s due to its unique name and visual appeal to children and adults alike.
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Market Recap 11/27/09
In this shortened trading week due to the Thanksgiving Holiday, the United States Mint announced that sales of the 2009 Gold and Silver American Eagle One Ounce coins have been temporarily suspended because of the unprecedented demand for bullion. The U.S. Mint plans to resume production and sales of the Gold and Silver American Eagle coin programs once sufficient inventories can be acquired.
The U.S. Dollar came under more pressure this week as the central bank for the tiny island of Mauritius became the third such bank to buy Gold in the past month. Mauritius bought 2 metric tons, worth $71.7 million dollars, from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). This purchase followed in the footsteps of the central banks of India and Sri Lanka. Additionally India’s central bank said it is open to buying more Gold from the IMF. Speculation that even more central banks could buy Gold has helped fuel Gold’s recent surge to almost $1,200.00 per ounce.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday that nearly one in four U.S. borrowers owes more on their mortgage than their home is worth. The newspaper said almost 10.7 million households, or 23% of all mortgage holders, were "under water" in the third quarter. Another 5.3 million homeowners have mortgages that are 20% higher than the value of their homes, as prices have dropped significantly since the start of the recession. This is a bothersome sign that the housing market could be threatened by a new wave of defaults in the near future.
On Friday, Dubai World, the Emirate’s investment vehicle, was looking to suspend repayments on all or part of its $59 Billion debt to various world banks. This news lowered prices in both the precious metals and stock markets the day after the Thanksgiving Holiday, as investors looked to put their cash into safer havens. Historically, the stock market does not slump the day after Thanksgiving. In fact, between 1999 and 2008, the market has seen just two down days on the day after Thanksgiving. This news coupled with continued lower consumer sentiment and a 25-year high in the unemployment rate seemed to discourage talks of economic recovery.
APMEX hopes you had a Happy Thanksgiving and reminds you to keep an eye out for our 2nd Annual “12 Days of Christmas” sales event that begins on Monday, November 30th. You do not want to miss this great opportunity to save money on your favorite bullion and numismatic items this holiday season.
Gold:
Spot Gold prices opened this week at $1,152.00. The high during the week was on Wednesday, November 25th, at $1,192.80, while the low for the week was on Monday, November 23rd, at $1,151.60. Gold ended the week with a gain of $26.80 at $1,178.80. This week, 2009 1/10 oz. Gold American Eagles, 2009 1 oz. BU Gold American Eagles and 1 oz. .9999+ Fine Pamp Suisse Gold Bars were in great demand as Gold reached new all-time highs during the week!
Silver:
Spot Silver prices opened this week at $18.52. Silver reached a high of $18.93, on Monday, November 23rd. The low for Silver occurred on Friday, November 26th, at $17.90. Silver ended the week down $0.12 at $18.40. This week, 2009 1 oz. Silver American Eagles, 2010 1 oz. Canadian Silver Maple Leafs, Sunshine Mint 1 oz. .999 Fine Silver Rounds and 1 oz. .999 Fine Silver Buffalo Rounds remained very popular with Silver investors.
Platinum:
Spot Platinum prices opened this week at $1,445.60 and ended the week up $1.40, at $1,447.00. 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars, 1 oz. Credit Suisse Platinum Bars, 10 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars and 2009 1 oz. Platinum Canadian Maple Leafs were the most popular Platinum products at APMEX.com this week.
Palladium:
Spot Palladium prices opened this week at $365.50 and ended the week down $0.90 to $364.60. Popular Palladium products this week included 2009 1 oz. Palladium Maple Leafs, 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars and 10 oz. Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars.
Numismatics:
This Thanksgiving, precious metal investors certainly have a lot to be thankful for in the market. The spot price of Gold has not only surpassed the old record of $1,033.00 per ounce, it has utterly shattered it. On Wednesday, Gold reached yet another all-time high, surpassing the $1,190.00 mark as investors continue to buy the metal in hopes of hedging their portfolios against a weak U.S. Dollar. As we have said in weeks past, there have been a number of conservative analysts predicting that Gold will go up to $1,200.00, while the more aggressive analysts are predicting a $1,500.00 plateau or beyond. APMEX has seen a tremendous influx of traffic on our website due to this flurry of activity in the metals market. Even beyond bullion items, Pre-1933 U.S. Gold has been very much in demand by both the collector and investor.
We are also thankful for the movement in the spot price of Silver. As it was announced earlier this week, the U.S. Mint has sold out of its supply of 2009 Silver American Eagles. However, APMEX has a very limited supply left of those desirable items, and they will likely sell very quickly. APMEX also has a wide variety of numismatic items from which to choose. Cull Silver Dollars and Morgan Silver Dollars that grade Very Good to Very Fine are also selling very well.
Morgan Silver Dollars are one of the most popular coins of all time and for this, we will give thanks to this series by highlighting the first coin in this series: the 1878 8 Tailfeathers variety. The Mint would go on to create a 7/8 Tailfeather variety later, in error, as they were transitioning to the final die state of 7 Tailfeathers. that was used later in production. These error coins occurred when the master die was not engraved properly, allowing for parts of the 8 Tailfeathers to be visible.
Although this is a popular variety, it is relatively common and premiums are usually only applicable if the tips of all of the 8 Tailfeathers can be boldly seen. As a whole, most 8 Tailfeather coins are extremely well struck with above average luster. Though there is no known mintage, estimates are that nearly 750,000 were minted as they were only struck for a limited time, beginning in mid-March of that year. Many of these coins were stored in canvas bags for decades creating the beautiful toning that often commands high premiums. These coins were eventually paid out by the U.S. Treasury well into the 1950’s and early 1960’s. In fact, many of these coins were paid out by Las Vegas casinos because they loved to use Silver Dollars as payment in many of their slot machines.
Have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving!
The U.S. Dollar came under more pressure this week as the central bank for the tiny island of Mauritius became the third such bank to buy Gold in the past month. Mauritius bought 2 metric tons, worth $71.7 million dollars, from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). This purchase followed in the footsteps of the central banks of India and Sri Lanka. Additionally India’s central bank said it is open to buying more Gold from the IMF. Speculation that even more central banks could buy Gold has helped fuel Gold’s recent surge to almost $1,200.00 per ounce.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday that nearly one in four U.S. borrowers owes more on their mortgage than their home is worth. The newspaper said almost 10.7 million households, or 23% of all mortgage holders, were "under water" in the third quarter. Another 5.3 million homeowners have mortgages that are 20% higher than the value of their homes, as prices have dropped significantly since the start of the recession. This is a bothersome sign that the housing market could be threatened by a new wave of defaults in the near future.
On Friday, Dubai World, the Emirate’s investment vehicle, was looking to suspend repayments on all or part of its $59 Billion debt to various world banks. This news lowered prices in both the precious metals and stock markets the day after the Thanksgiving Holiday, as investors looked to put their cash into safer havens. Historically, the stock market does not slump the day after Thanksgiving. In fact, between 1999 and 2008, the market has seen just two down days on the day after Thanksgiving. This news coupled with continued lower consumer sentiment and a 25-year high in the unemployment rate seemed to discourage talks of economic recovery.
APMEX hopes you had a Happy Thanksgiving and reminds you to keep an eye out for our 2nd Annual “12 Days of Christmas” sales event that begins on Monday, November 30th. You do not want to miss this great opportunity to save money on your favorite bullion and numismatic items this holiday season.
Gold:
Spot Gold prices opened this week at $1,152.00. The high during the week was on Wednesday, November 25th, at $1,192.80, while the low for the week was on Monday, November 23rd, at $1,151.60. Gold ended the week with a gain of $26.80 at $1,178.80. This week, 2009 1/10 oz. Gold American Eagles, 2009 1 oz. BU Gold American Eagles and 1 oz. .9999+ Fine Pamp Suisse Gold Bars were in great demand as Gold reached new all-time highs during the week!
Silver:
Spot Silver prices opened this week at $18.52. Silver reached a high of $18.93, on Monday, November 23rd. The low for Silver occurred on Friday, November 26th, at $17.90. Silver ended the week down $0.12 at $18.40. This week, 2009 1 oz. Silver American Eagles, 2010 1 oz. Canadian Silver Maple Leafs, Sunshine Mint 1 oz. .999 Fine Silver Rounds and 1 oz. .999 Fine Silver Buffalo Rounds remained very popular with Silver investors.
Platinum:
Spot Platinum prices opened this week at $1,445.60 and ended the week up $1.40, at $1,447.00. 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars, 1 oz. Credit Suisse Platinum Bars, 10 oz. Pamp Suisse Platinum Bars and 2009 1 oz. Platinum Canadian Maple Leafs were the most popular Platinum products at APMEX.com this week.
Palladium:
Spot Palladium prices opened this week at $365.50 and ended the week down $0.90 to $364.60. Popular Palladium products this week included 2009 1 oz. Palladium Maple Leafs, 1 oz. Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars and 10 oz. Pamp Suisse Palladium Bars.
Numismatics:
This Thanksgiving, precious metal investors certainly have a lot to be thankful for in the market. The spot price of Gold has not only surpassed the old record of $1,033.00 per ounce, it has utterly shattered it. On Wednesday, Gold reached yet another all-time high, surpassing the $1,190.00 mark as investors continue to buy the metal in hopes of hedging their portfolios against a weak U.S. Dollar. As we have said in weeks past, there have been a number of conservative analysts predicting that Gold will go up to $1,200.00, while the more aggressive analysts are predicting a $1,500.00 plateau or beyond. APMEX has seen a tremendous influx of traffic on our website due to this flurry of activity in the metals market. Even beyond bullion items, Pre-1933 U.S. Gold has been very much in demand by both the collector and investor.
We are also thankful for the movement in the spot price of Silver. As it was announced earlier this week, the U.S. Mint has sold out of its supply of 2009 Silver American Eagles. However, APMEX has a very limited supply left of those desirable items, and they will likely sell very quickly. APMEX also has a wide variety of numismatic items from which to choose. Cull Silver Dollars and Morgan Silver Dollars that grade Very Good to Very Fine are also selling very well.
Morgan Silver Dollars are one of the most popular coins of all time and for this, we will give thanks to this series by highlighting the first coin in this series: the 1878 8 Tailfeathers variety. The Mint would go on to create a 7/8 Tailfeather variety later, in error, as they were transitioning to the final die state of 7 Tailfeathers. that was used later in production. These error coins occurred when the master die was not engraved properly, allowing for parts of the 8 Tailfeathers to be visible.
Although this is a popular variety, it is relatively common and premiums are usually only applicable if the tips of all of the 8 Tailfeathers can be boldly seen. As a whole, most 8 Tailfeather coins are extremely well struck with above average luster. Though there is no known mintage, estimates are that nearly 750,000 were minted as they were only struck for a limited time, beginning in mid-March of that year. Many of these coins were stored in canvas bags for decades creating the beautiful toning that often commands high premiums. These coins were eventually paid out by the U.S. Treasury well into the 1950’s and early 1960’s. In fact, many of these coins were paid out by Las Vegas casinos because they loved to use Silver Dollars as payment in many of their slot machines.
Have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving!
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