April 13, 2026

2009 Proof Gold Eagles Canceled

October 8, 2009 by Leave a Comment

The United States Mint has offered proof versions of the American Gold Eagle since 1986. These collectible versions of the popular bullion coins are minted using a special process where the coin is struck multiple times with specialized dies. The resulting coins feature sharp details and a cameo contrast of frosted raised elements and mirrored fields. Typically, the proof coins have been offered in 1 oz, 1/2 ounce, 1/4 ounce, and 1/10 ounce sizes, with a complete 4 Coin Set also offered. According to an announcement from the US Mint released this week, Proof Gold Eagles will not be minted during 2009.

The coins were canceled as a consequence of the high worldwide demand for precious metal bullion coins. The US Mint is required to produce Gold bullion coins for collectors in quantities sufficient to meet the public demand. During the last year, they have struggled in this task. Sales of the gold coins have been periodically rationed and even completely suspended for brief periods of time.

Because the US Mint cannot meet the full public demand, they have been allocating all available precious metal blanks for the production of bullion coins in lieu of collector coins. The production of proof gold eagles for collectors has been suspended. On October 6, 2009, they finally announced that 2009 Proof Gold Eagles were officially canceled.

This comes as a severe disappointment to collectors who have been buying the series for the past twenty two years. While the US Mint does not sell nearly the amount of coins through its collector coin programs as the bullion programs, the proof coins still generated a fair amount of sales. During 2008, the US Mint has sold 29,399 1 oz coins, 27,864 1/2 oz coins, 28,301 1/4 oz coins, and 29,155 1/10 oz coins. The highest sales for a proof gold eagle occurred in 1986 when 446,290 coins were sold by the US Mint.

Filed Under: Gold, US Mint Tagged With: ,

2009-W Uncirculated Silver Eagles Canceled

October 7, 2009 by Leave a Comment

Continuing coverage of the fallout from yesterday’s US Mint announcement, the 2009-W Uncirculated Silver Eagle has been canceled. The 2009 Annual Uncirculated Dollar Coin Set, which would have contained this coin has similarly been canceled.

These represent coins which are typically produced for collectors as opposed to the bullion coins produced primarily for precious metals investors. The uncirculated collector versions of the coin have been produced since 2006, when similar offerings were also introduced for Gold Eagles and Platinum Eagles. The coins can most easily be differentiated from the bullion coins by the “W” mint mark on the reverse of the coins. Bullion coins do not have a mint mark. The collector coins are sometimes referred to as “Burnished Silver Eagles” since they are struck on specially burnished blanks.

The collector coins are also sold directly by the United States Mint in special packaging at fixed prices which represented a generally higher premium above the value of the silver content. By contrast, the bullion coins are sold through the US Mint’s network of authorized bullion dealers. These dealers can purchase the coins for the spot value of silver plus a small mark up, and then resell the coins to other precious metals dealers or the public.

While not as popular as the Proof Silver Eagles, the Uncirculated Silver Eagles did sell a fair amount of coins and had begun to acquire a collector base. According to Silver Eagle Guide, the US Mint sold approximately 470,000 of the coins in 2006, followed by 653,878 in 2007, and 517,967 in 2008. The 2008 Uncirculated Silver Eagles still remain available for sale at the US Mint as part of the 2007 Annual Uncirculated Dollar Coin Set.

The US Mint had actually offered the coins through their subscription program, which automatically ships and charges customers for the coins when they are released. The US Mint sent the following message to subscribers to inform them that they would not receive the coins for 2009:

Dear United States Mint Customer,

Production of the United States Mint American Eagle Silver Proof and Uncirculated Coins was suspended this year because of unprecedented demand for American Eagle Silver Bullion Coins. All available silver bullion blanks are being allocated to the American Eagle Silver Bullion Coin Program, as the United States Mint is required by Public Law 99-61 to produce these coins “in quantities sufficient to meet public demand …”

The United States Mint will resume the American Eagle Silver Proof and Uncirculated Coin Programs once sufficient inventories of silver bullion blanks can be acquired to meet market demand for all three American Eagle Silver Coin products. However, due to the continued, sustained demand for American Eagle Silver Bullion Coins, 2009-dated American Eagle Silver Proof and Uncirculated Coins will not be produced.

You do not need to re-subscribe to the 2010 American Eagle Silver Proof and Uncirculated Coin Programs. Prices may change during the course of your subscription. Should the price change for the 2010 coins, the new prices will be listed on your 30-day pre-fulfillment notification.

Please review your notification carefully.

Based on the US Mint’s statements, they will attempt to revive the offering with the 2010 Silver Eagle, but collectors will be left with an unfortunate gap in their collections.

Filed Under: Silver, US Mint Tagged With: ,

2009 Proof Silver Eagle Canceled

October 7, 2009 by Leave a Comment

Yesterday, some very significant news broke which put to rest long standing speculation about the status of some of the United States Mint’s bullion and collector coin product offerings. Essentially, the United States Mint canceled all collectible 2009 Gold and Silver Eagle Coins, but announced the limited production of collectible proof 2009 Platinum Eagles and Gold Buffalo Coins, as well as bullion fractional Gold Eagles and one ounce Gold Buffalo coins. I will be breaking this announcement down into several posts over the next few days.

The United States Mint has offered Proof Silver Eagles since their bullion counterparts were first released in 1986. This coin has become a modern favorite for collectors and has been one of the US Mint’s core numismatic product offerings.

Last year, the US Mint was forced to end sales of the 2008 Proof Silver Eagle coin around August 2008. The coins are typically available through the end of the year and have been a highlight of the US Mint’s holiday gift offerings. The unannounced and unexplained unavailability of the coins was later revealed to be related to the “unprecedented demand” for silver bullion products.

Under law the United States Mint is required to produce American Silver Eagle bullion coins in quantities sufficient to meet public demand. During 2008, higher demand taxed the resources of the US Mint and they had been forced to briefly suspend sales and subsequently impose a rationing program which limited coin sales at the dealer level.

As long as the US Mint was unable to meet full public demand for bullion coins, they believed it was their requirement by law to source all incoming silver blanks to the production of bullion coins and suspend production of collector coins.

The situation continued into the following year, but seemed to be abating when the US Mint finally lifted bullion coin rationing programs in June. Since this time, the US Mint has apparently been unable to build up enough inventory of silver blanks to produce collector coins.

The announcement marks a tremendous disappointment for collectors who have been assembling the Proof Silver Eagle series since 1986. There will now be a gap in the collection of at least one year. The US Mint states that they will attempt to obtain a greater supply of silver bullion blanks so production of collector coins can resume with the 2010 Silver Eagles.

Filed Under: Silver, US Mint Tagged With: ,

Where are the 2009 American Platinum Eagles?

August 19, 2009 by 1 Comment

The year is nearly three-quarters of the way completed, and there have been no 2009 American Platinum Eagle coins available from the United States Mint in any form.

Last year on October 25, 2008, the US Mint had announced the sale of the final inventory of 2008 Platinum Eagle bullion coins. They later announced on November 24, 2008 that their inventory had been depleted and the release of 2009 dated platinum bullion coins would be delayed. Since this date, I am not aware of any communication or update issued by the US Mint with regards to their platinum coin offerings.

During this ten month time period, the price of platinum has recovered from its lows and posted more than a 50% gain. The price of platinum hit its low right around the time the US Mint stopped selling it.

Chart- Kitco.com

This is not the only bullion or collectible bullion coin that the US Mint has delayed this year. Among the list of expected 2009 precious metals coins expected, but still not issued are: fractional Gold Eagle bullion coins, 24 karat Gold Buffalo bullion coins, collectible proof and uncirculated Gold Eagles, collectible proof Gold Buffaloes, collectible proof and uncirculated Silver Eagles, and collectible proof Platinum Eagles. For the missing gold and silver coins, the US Mint has offered blanket explanations about a tight supply of precious metals blanks. (These explanations were posted earlier in the year, when the arguments actually made sense.) There has been no explanation offered for the missing platinum coins.

Incidentally, the Royal Canadian Mint has been selling their platinum coin, the Platinum Maple Leaf, for most of the year. This coin program had actually been suspended after 2002 amidst a lack of demand. The RCM revived the program this year amidst strong demand . Incidentally, this was a coin program that had been suspended since 2002. It was revived in 2009, amidst strong demand from distributors.

Filed Under: Platinum Tagged With: ,

US Mint Gold and Silver Bullion Sales July 2009

August 6, 2009 by Leave a Comment

During the month of July, sales of physical bullion at the United States Mint were somewhat split. In the case of silver, sales as measured by the number of ounces sold reached the second highest level of the year. In the case of gold, sales as measured in ounces marked the second lowest total for the year.

The table below displays the number of ounces of gold bullion sold by the United States Mint during the month of July. As the case has been all year, sales were limited to one ounce American Gold Eagles and one ounce American Silver Eagles. Platinum bullion and fractional gold bullion coins were not offered.

July 2009 US Mint Bullion Sales
1 oz. 1/2 oz. 1/4 oz. 1/10 oz. Total oz. YTD Total oz.
Gold Eagle 86,000 – – – 86,000 756,500
Silver Eagle 2,810,000 2,810,000 16,634,500
Platinum Eagle – – – – –

Sales of the Gold Eagle reached 86,000 ounces. As mentioned, this represented the second lowest monthly sales total this year. The low of 65,000 took place in May. It should be noted that the level of sales still remains above the monthly total reach one year ago in July 2008 when 50,000 ounces were sold. Although the furious pace of gold sales has slowed, it remains historically high.

Sales of 2009 Silver Eagle bullion coins reached 2,810,000, marking the second highest monthly total of the year. The highest level was reached in March when 3,132,000 ounces were sold. This month’s total represents a hefty125% increase over the sales levels from the year ago period. Notably, the number of ounces of silver sold year to date is now approaching the total number of ounces sold during the entire year of 2008, which was 19,583,500. One more month of strong sales would push this year’s total above the mark.

Filed Under: Bullion Sales Tagged With: ,

Silver ETF Anomalies, National Gold Exchange, Regan Gold and Silver Coins

July 31, 2009 by Leave a Comment

I’m still catching up after a vacation in Europe. For now here are links to some recommended articles about gold, silver, and precious metals from around the net.

Multiple Anomalies Detected in Silver ETFs

A recently released working paper on statistical and factual anomalies in silver ETFs including internal duplicates, weight duplicates, statistical clustering, and cross-reference duplicates. From the conclusions section: “The only way for all of these anomalies to occur together as noted in this paper, is via systemic fraud or gross accounting error bordering on jaw-dropping incompetence.”

Greenlight Holds Bullion

A $5 billion hedge-fund firm switched its entire holding in the Gold ETF to physical gold bullion. During the first quarter the firm held 4.2 million shares of the SPDR Gold Trust.

New law boosts gold bar sale in South Africa

Until recently it was illegal for South Africans to hold unwrought gold, such as gold in bar form. The law change has sparked a surge in new bullion demand.

National Gold Exchange Inc of Tampa

National Gold Exchange, one of the world’s largest coin wholesalers, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The company has more than $50 million in debts.

Catching the Gold Bug

From a few weeks ago. The Wall Street Journal ran this high profile piece on gold investing. Someone interviewed for the article said: “When you’re in uncharted economic waters, people buy gold.”

Ronald Regan Gold and Silver Coins Proposed

Should Ronald Reagan appear on gold and silver commemorative coins? Over the years there have apparently been several proposals to put his likeness on a coin, but none ever gained sufficient support to become law.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: , , ,

Gold Investment Report – 2009 Second Quarter

July 24, 2009 by Leave a Comment

The World Gold Council is out with their latest Gold Investment Digest, providing an analysis of gold for the second quarter. The most notable aspect of the report is the incredible slow down in investment demand experienced during the quarter.

During the second quarter, the price of gold rose from $916.50 per ounce to $934.50. This slight gain compared to much larger gains in major world stock markets and the Dow Jones Commodity Index. Gold had reached a peak price of $981.75 during the quarter before moving lower.

Investment demand for gold showed a big decline from the previous levels, but remained positive. For the second quarter, Gold ETFs showed inflows of 46 tonnes. This compared to inflows of 459 tonnes during the first quarter.

Sales of coins and bars started the second quarter very strong before tapering from May onwards. The report also notes the decline in margins on coins and bars as availability constraints eased. As I have noted in some of the monthly bullion sales reports, although sales have shown month to month declines, levels remain far above year ago levels.

While some have pointed to the recent slow down in investment demand as evidence that the so-called “new gold rush” is over, I think this call is premature. During the quarter world stock markets and sentiment about the economy rebounded from the depths of despair to the current “don’t worry be happy” mentality. Despite the shift, gold investors have remained patient and continued overall accumulation of the metal. The allure of an investment which has delivered positive annual returns for eight consecutive years, compared to the perpetual boom and bust of other asset classes, seems to have an enduring appeal.

Filed Under: Gold Tagged With:

Gold and Silver Eagle Bullion Sales June 2009

July 8, 2009 by Leave a Comment

The US Mint’s sales of gold and silver bullion coins during June 2009 showed increases from both the prior month and year ago levels. The increases came amidst two interesting developments for the US Mint’s bullion coin programs.

In the middle of the month, the US Mint announced that their long standing rationing programs would be lifted. Authorized purchasers of bullion coins had been limited in the total number of coins that they could order. This had been cited by many as a sign of the high physical demand for precious metals which would eventually drive prices higher.

Later in the month, the US Mint made the seemingly contradictory announcement that the American Gold Buffalo bullion coin offering would be canceled for 2009. This had been the US Mint’s 24 karat gold bullion coin, launched in 2006 as a way of competing with other world mints that produced gold coins with greater fineness than the 22 karat Gold Eagle.

Here’s a look at the US Mint’s gold, silver, and platinum bullion sales during the month of June 2009. A year to date total appears in the last column.

June 2009 US Mint Bullion Sales
1 oz. 1/2 oz. 1/4 oz. 1/10 oz. Total oz. YTD Total oz.
Gold Eagle 116,000 – – – 116,000 670,000
Silver Eagle 2,245,000 2,245,000 13,824,500
Platinum Eagle – – – – –

Sales of the Gold Eagle were still confined to only the one ounce bullion coin. A total of 116,000 ounces were sold, which was close to double the prior month’s sales of 65,000 ounces. This also marks a huge increase from the year ago period when only 15,500 ounces of gold were sold. It’s interesting to note that the sales increase comes amidst a down month for gold. Physical gold buyers have tended to increase purchases during period of price decline and curtail purchases during periods of price appreciation.

Sales of the Silver Eagle reached 2,245,000 ounces. This was an increase from the prior month when 1,904,500 ounces were sold and an increase from the year ago period when 1,735,500. With the year now half completed, the American Silver Eagle remains on pace to exceed last year’s record sales of 19,583,500 ounces.

Once again, the US Mint did not offer the Platinum Eagle bullion coin in any size.

Filed Under: Bullion Sales Tagged With: , ,

Gold, Silver & Platinum 2009 Second Quarter Performance

July 3, 2009 by Leave a Comment

With the second quarter behind us, let’s take a look at the performance of gold, silver, and platinum for the second quarter of 2009 and year to date.

All of the metals posted gains, but at single digit levels. The best performer for the second quarter was silver with a gain of 6.33%, followed by platinum with a gain of 5.52%, and then gold with a gain of 1.96%. The closing numbers don’t tell the full story. At the beginning of June, precious metals prices had spiked. At this recent peak, silver had been up as much as 22% for the quarter. Platinum and gold were also showing heftier gains at this time.

2009 Second Quarter Gold, Silver, and Platinum Performance
31-Mar-09 30-Jun-09 Change Percent
Gold 916.5 934.50 18.00 1.96%
Silver 13.11 13.94 0.83 6.33%
Platinum 1,124.00 1186.00 62.00 5.52%

On a year to date basis, the top precious metal performer remains as platinum with a gain of 32.07% on the year. This is followed by silver with a gain of 29.19% and gold with a gain of 7.44%. The performance of the metals had lined up in the same manner at the close of the first quarter.

2009 YTD Gold, Silver, and Platinum Performance
30-Dec-08 30-Jun-09 Change Percent
Gold 869.75 934.50 64.75 7.44%
Silver 10.79 13.94 3.15 29.19%
Platinum 898.00 1186.00 288 32.07%
Filed Under: Gold, Platinum, Silver Tagged With: , , ,

Precious Metals Investment Tax Rates

July 1, 2009 by 2 Comments

Gains from the sale of investments in precious metals are currently subject to a tax rate of 28%. This compares to the current long term capital gains rate of 15%, which applies to other investment classes such as stocks and bonds. A bill has been introduced which seeks to tax precious metals investors at the same preferential rates afforded to other investors.

Precious metals investments are considered “collectibles” under the current tax code. Gold, silver, and other precious metals are lumped into the same classification as works of art, rugs, antiques, and stamps. The tax rate for “collectibles gains” is currently 28% regardless of whether the assets were held for more than one year.

The classification as collectibles comes from the section of the Tax Code which describes the capital gains tax rates which apply to different asset classes. This section references a definition of collectibles found in another section of the code, which interestingly provides an exception for certain precious metals. This exception is curiously disregarded for the purposes of capital gains taxation.

The bill S. 1367 Fair Treatment for Precious Metals Investors Act seeks to rectify the disadvantageous tax rates imposed on precious metals investors. The bill would amend the Tax Code to preserve the exception created for certain coins and bullion. After the amendment, common precious metals investments such as American Eagle bullion coins would no longer be classified as “collectibles” and would be eligible for lower long term capital gains rates.

In order to become law, the bill would need to be approved in the House of Representatives, the Senate, and signed by the President. A similar bill was introduced in 2007, but it never gained the support necessary to become law. You can following the progress of the current bill on GovTrack.

Filed Under: Other Precious Metals Tagged With: ,