Investment Grade Silver Coins

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In a world of ever-changing economic landscapes, investors often seek ways to protect and grow their wealth. One such asset class that has been a cornerstone of wealth preservation for centuries is precious metals, with investment grade silver coins being a popular choice due to affordability and potential for appreciation.

Investment grade silver coins are high-quality, government-minted coins that contain a specified amount of pure silver. These coins are recognized for their silver content, purity, and legal tender status, making them a reliable store of value. Some popular examples of investment grade silver coins include the American Silver Eagle, Canadian Silver Maple Leaf, and the Austrian Silver Philharmonic.

As the purchasing power of fiat currencies erodes, the value of silver can help maintain purchasing power due to its historical role as a hedge against inflation.

For example, the American Silver Eagle was first issued in 1986 when the average silver price was $5.87 per ounce and the average gas price was around 90 cents a gallon. One ounce of silver was roughly the equivalent to 6.5 gallons of gasoline.

By comparison, in 2023 the average silver price was $23.40 per ounce, while the average price of gas was $3.52 per gallon. Which makes one ounce of silver roughly the equivalent of 6.65 gallons of gas.

Unlike stocks, bonds, or cryptocurrencies, investment grade silver coins are physical assets that can be held and stored securely. This tangibility provides a sense of security and control over one’s investments.

While each government mint has its own specifications, bullion investment coins are typically minted with 1 troy ounce of silver of .999 or .9999 fine silver. Though some mints offer coins in both larger and smaller denominations to accommodate the needs of different types of investors.

US Mint American Silver Eagles

The American Silver Eagle is the only investment-grade bullion coin issued by the US Mint. The 1 oz Silver Eagle was introduced as a trusted and reliable store of value of value and wealth in 1986.

Silver Eagles are made of .999 fine silver and carry a legal tender face value of $1. As legal tender, the coins are backed by the U.S. government and are recognized and traded worldwide.

During the 2008 financial crisis and Great Recession, the demand for American Silver Eagle coins surged significantly. In 2008, the U.S. Mint sold 20,583,000 bullion coins, a massive increase from the previous year and nearly doubling the prior record.

This spike in demand was a direct response to the economic uncertainty and the sharp increase in the price of silver at that time. The popularity of these coins among investors as a store of value and a hedge against inflation was evident during this period.

Current year 2024 Silver Eagles are minted based on investor demand and confirmed orders from Authorized Purchasers. Already during the first four months of the year, the US Mint sold more than 10 million American Silver Eagle coins. Some of this can easily be attributed to the availability of American Silver Eagle Tubes at major retailers like Costco, which has helped to increase awareness and demand amongst a larger pool of investors.

Secondary market silver coins can often be a way for investors to find lower premiums. Secondary market Silver Eagles were bought in previous years and have been previous liquidated by selling to a bullion dealer or broker. These coins are then resold by dealers at a reduced premium compared to current year coins.

Royal Canadian Mint Silver Coins

The Canadian Silver Maple Leaf is one of the purest silver coins on the market, with a purity of .9999 fine silver.

The reverse of the coin features the Sugar Maple Leaf design, a national symbol of Canada. The obverse of current coins shows a portrait of King Charles. Secondary market Maple Leaf 1 oz Silver Coins will most often be from previous years that feature one of various portraits of Queen Elizabeth.

The Royal Canadian Mint incorporates several advanced anti-counterfeiting measures in the design of the coin, making it one of the most secure bullion coins in the world. These measures include:

  • Radial Lines: The coin features a unique background of light-refracting radial lines that create a distinctive sparkle, making it difficult to replicate and also makes it appealing from an aesthetic standpoint.
  • Micro-Engraved Maple Leaf: A micro-engraved textured maple leaf, which is visible under magnification, is added to the coin. This feature is also used to mark the coin’s year of issue.
  • Bullion DNA Technology: The Royal Canadian Mint employs its proprietary Bullion DNA anti-counterfeiting technology, which involves laser micro-engraving a small maple leaf on the coin’s surface. Each mark contains an encrypted code unique to each coin, which can be authenticated through a secure database.
  • MINTSHIELD™ Surface Protection: This technology reduces the occurrence of white spot discoloration on the coin’s surface, ensuring the coin retains its visual appeal over time.
  • Serrated Edges: The coin features serrated edges, which not only enhance its aesthetic appeal but also make it harder to counterfeit.

Silver Maple Leaf coins are available only in a 1 troy ounce denomination. These coins are highly liquid and widely traded in the secondary market like other bullion investment coins. Secondary market Maple Leafs can have coins from previous years, including those that may have been issued prior to the RCM solving the milk spot issues. However, these coins are often available at a even deeper discount from those looking for the lowest dollar-cost average.

Austrian Mint Philharmonic Silver Coins

Austrian Silver Philharmonic coins are an excellent, lower premium alternative to American Silver Eagles. They are minted with a purity of .999 fine silver, making them a high-quality option.

One significant aspect of the Philharmonic Silver coins is their lower premium over spot price compared to some other bullion coins. This makes them a more cost-effective choice for those looking to invest in physical silver.

Despite this lower premium, the coins are still widely recognized in the global market, especially in European markets, due to their association with the renowned Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and the Austrian Mint’s reputation for quality.

The coins celebrate the rich cultural heritage of Austria, featuring the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra on the coin’s obverse and the Great Organ of the Golden Hall in Vienna’s Musikverein on the reverse.

Britannia Silver Coins from The Royal Mint

The Silver Britannia coin is minted with .999 fine silver by the Royal Mint, which is known for its high-quality standards and tightly controlled production protocols.

The Britannia Silver coin has a highly detailed design that showcases Britannia, the female personification of Britain, holding a trident and shield on the reverse.

For the 2024 Britannia Silver Coin, the obverse features a portrait of His Majesty, King Charles III. While many secondary market Britannias will be from previous years featuring a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II.

The Royal Mint incorporates several advanced anti-counterfeiting measures into each coin. These include a latent image on the coin’s surface that changes from a padlock to a trident when viewed from different angles. Additionally, the coin features micro-engraved details and a textured background that is difficult to replicate, ensuring its authenticity and integrity.

The Britannia 1 oz Silver Coin is often available at a lower price than other investment coins, making it a top choice for investors looking for the best priced silver coin.

South African Mint Krugerrands

The Krugerrand Silver Coin features the same iconic design as the gold Krugerrand, but is minted with .999 fine silver. The obverse showcases a portrait of Paul Kruger, the first president of the South African Republic, while the reverse depicts the national animal of South Africa, the springbok, against a backdrop of the country’s landscape. This design has been widely recognized and appreciated since the introduction of the gold Krugerrand in 1967.

Perth Mint Silver Coins

The Kangaroo 1 oz silver coin is a bullion coin produced by the Perth Mint in Australia. Since 2016, it has been produced annually with unlimited mintages as legal tender under the Australian Currency Act of 1965. The coin is struck from .9999 fine silver, making it a highly pure silver investment option.

The design of the coin features a bounding red kangaroo surrounded by rays of sunlight, symbolizing Australia’s vast natural beauty. The reverse of the coin also includes the inscription “AUSTRALIAN KANGAROO”, which also contains a micro-laser engraved letter. This security feature allows for easy authentication of the coin’s genuine nature. Also incorporated into the reverse design are the Perth Mint’s “P” mintmark, the year of issue, and the weight and purity of the coin.

Apart from the Kangaroo 1 oz silver coin, the Perth Mint offers several other investment-grade silver coins. These include:

  • Australian Lunar Series: The Perth Mint’s Lunar Series is one of its most popular offerings. Each year features a different animal from the Chinese zodiac, with 2024 showcasing the Year of the Dragon. The coins are available in various sizes, including 1 kg, 10 oz, 5 oz, 2 oz, 1 oz, and even smaller fractional sizes.
  • Koala Silver Coins: Introduced in 2007, the Australian Koala silver coins are another popular series from the Perth Mint. Like the Lunar Series, Koala coins are available in multiple sizes, with the 1 oz version being the most common. The mintage is limited with each year featuring a new design, adding to their collectibility.
  • Kookaburra Silver Coins: The Kookaburra series started in 1990 and features the iconic Australian bird. Similar to the other series, the Kookaburra coins are available in various sizes, with the 1 oz version being the most popular. Each year showcases a new design, making the series appealing to collectors.

Climate Agenda and Consumer Spending Key Drivers of Silver Demand

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The pandemic lockdown of mines, factories and transportation caused a huge plunge in industrial demand in early 2021.

The lockdown also led investors to buy silver bullion coins in record amounts. The last two years have set new sales records for silver and gold bullion coins at both the Royal Mint and Perth Mint.

The use of silver in the manufacturing of consumer electronics, electric vehicles and solar panels has hit record highs.

The solar and electric vehicle industries are largely driven by billions of dollars of government funding and incentives. Even with the economy is a downward spiral it’s likely that subsidies and other funding for solar and green energy projects will continue. Green energy initiatives will continue to drive demand for silver for at least the next decade.

The President’s climate agenda has a goal that 50% of all new car sales by 2030 should electric vehicles.

Conservative estimates place 18 to 26 million new electric vehicles on the roads over the next seven years. With each having slightly more than one troy ounce of silver, that adds up to 20 to 30 million troy ounces or roughly 900 tons of silver needed.

A recent study from Australia believes that new solar panel manufacturing will deplete the world’s current silver stockpile by 2050.

Typical cell phone only small amounts of precious metals, roughly 1/35 gram of gold and a 0.34 gram of silver. Sales of smartphones are projected to reach 1.49 billion units by 2026, which will consume 50.155 tons of pure gold and a whopping 500 tons of silver.

The majority of silver that is pulled from the ground results as a byproduct from mining other metals. As domestic mining of related metals has remained steady over the last decade, domestic silver production typically averages roughly 1,082 tons per year.

Major automakers including Tesla and General Motors have announced large cash investments in mining.

Industry analysts from both industries are speculating this to be a huge strategic advantage given the push to reduce dependence on fossil fuels.

Technology from the Boring Company already exists that could easily be applied to upend operations in the mining industry.

Their latest tunnel boring machine, named PrufRock, is capable of digging a one mile long, 12 foot diameter tunnel about a week.

Applying this to existing mining operations and adopting new methods of mining precious metals could lead to drastically improved operating margins and reduction in fuel consumption in addition to significantly reducing the environmental damage and long term effects caused by the stripping overburden to reach paydirt.

Producing rare earth metals and minerals to meet the needs for EV batteries would be an excellent application of Boring Machine technology to the mining industry. Adapting the machines to dig and sort through deposits is also a way to help eliminate the harsh conditions faced by workers in cobalt mines throughout the world.

Despite record high inflation spot prices have stayed relatively low but volatile.

Consumer Drivers of Silver Demand

Solar panels manufacturing consumes roughly 10 grams of silver per square meter that generate around 200 watts.

Estimates from the Silver Institute show that each hybrid vehicle has 18-34 grams, while a full-electric battery vehicle has 25-50 grams.

Each iPhone has 0.034g of gold (Au), 0.34g of silver (Ag) and 0.015 of palladium (Pl).

Apple sold 240 million units in 2021, consuming:

  • 8 tons of gold,
  • 81.6 tons of silver
  • and 3.6 tons of palladium

Fallout from Euro Pacific Bank Investigation is a Likely Source of Perth Mint’s Troubles

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The latest revelation to arise from the investigators auditing the Perth Mint accuses the mint of diluting the quality of more than 100 tons of gold bullion dating back to 2018 that had been sold to China.

Several scandals have emerged as reports from the investigators are leaked to various media organizations in Australia.

Investigators have previous attempted to link the closure of Puerto Rico based Euro Pacific Bank with an ongoing money laundering investigation at the Perth Mint’s gold certificates program.

Founder of Euro Pacific Bank, Peter Schiff, fervently denies all of the allegations and claims that the news agency is reporting on false and outdated information.

In July last year, Euro Pacific was shut down by authorities in Puerto Rico for having inadequate capital levels and compliance controls.

The shutdown followed an investigation by HRMC, the Revenue and Customs department for the UK government.

Following the investigation, authorities in the UK sent “nudge” letters to Euro Pacific Bank’s customers suspected of wrong doing asking them to come forward. Some reports suggest that threats of “predawn raids” by armed police were included in letters

Up until recently there had been no arrests linked to the investigation. In February, reports began emerging online that police in the UK raided several homes and businesses and arrested two men in the Liverpool area tied to the investigation. The names of those arrested have not yet been made public.

In another recent news report, a financial crime specialist from Australia suggest that a former Hell’s Angel member who paid cash for a 1 kg gold bar should have been identified as a “high risk.”

Even though the buyer has previous criminal convictions for drug trafficking and other crimes, at no time has he been under scrutiny for money laundering or acquiring the cash from illegal activities.

The biggest complaint from the expert quoted in the news is that “Mr Brajkovich says the Perth Mint only asked him for his driver’s licence.”

According to a video posted to YouTube by Bullion Now, a valid driver’s license is the only requirement for a cash purchase is valid identification.

One conspiracy theory that is currently floating around social media concerns that politicians are intending to tarnish the reputation of the Perth Mint as part of a which hunt investigation to expose customer privacy under the guise of fraud investigations.

Perth Mint “Standard Delivery” Bars Fail Shanghai Gold Exchange Specification

The Shanghai Gold Exchange initially uncovered purity discrepancies in 2021. The SGE alleged that two bars contained higher amounts of silver than their specifications allow which triggered an internal investigation by the Mint.

According to the SGE specification, Good Delivery bars labeled as 99.99% pure gold must adhere to strict standards regarding the chemical composition of the remaining 0.01%.

A bar designated as Grade I must have no more than 0.005% Silver (Au) and 0.002% Copper (Cu) with even more minute traces of iron, lead, bismuth and antimony.

Assay tests performed during the investigation found one of the bars contained higher trace amounts of silver than is acceptable for the Exchange.

The reports of the investigation state that the purity of the gold bar was still 99.99%, although the silver content was slightly higher than the specification.

Considering that the gold purity was tested as .9999 pure, at issue is the chemical composition of the 0.01%. If the silver content was higher than 0.005%, then it should follow the logic there were smaller amounts of copper and other trace elements.

The Perth Mint is the largest refiner of newly minted gold in the world. While Good Delivery bars are first sent to commodities exchanges, the 1 kg gold bars are also a frequent purchase for high-net worth investors. The Mint also manufacturers a variety of .9999 fine gold coins such as the 1 oz gold kangaroo.

Perth Mint Being Investigated for Money Laundering

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The financial crimes team in Australia started their investigation into money laundering claims at the Perth Mint in August 2022.

One part of the expansive government mint operates as a custodial depository for individual and institutional investors.

Using a mobile app called GoldPass, anyone can trade gold and silver digital certificates that are backed by physical metals stored in its central bank-grade vaults.

Last year, the Mint reported that it held nearly $6 billion worth of gold and silver bullion on behalf of customers worldwide.

The Mint is accused of failing to properly scrutinize customers, including what some news outlets in Australia are framing as “notorious underworld figures”.

The top government watchdog organization, AUSTRAC, has determined that this could allow suspicious trading activity on the platform and believes that the business breached one of the criminal provisions of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act, by running an unregistered remittance business.

The Australia law loosely defines a remitter as an organization “that moves money or property on behalf of a client.”

“Anonymous accounts in tax havens may also have allowed high-risk individuals to hide the proceeds of crime, by holding gold in the Perth Mint’s vault.”

AUSTRAC ordered an audit of the Perth Mint operations by an external auditor, requiring a full report on the legal compliance of the organization.

News reports from Australia suggest that the government has ZERO proof of wrongdoing by the Mint, other than the auditors noting two missing “key program elements” related to compliance with the law which represent a “greater risk of non-compliance, and money laundering or terrorist financing activity.”

However, the allegations suggest that this is a government witch-hunt pursuant to violate the privacy rights of anyone holding Perth gold certificates.

The Perth Mint has been the source of other scandals in recent years, such as buying gold from a convicted murderer from Papua New Guinea and holding up to $100 million in assets on behalf of customers of Euro Pacific Bank of Puerto Rico, which saw its assets seized by financial regulators last year.

The government suggests that the mint failed its due-diligence requirements on Euro-Pacific customers and suggests the possibility the refiner sold or may be the custodian of precious metal holdings of “tax cheats, kleptocrats and foreign criminals.”

Euro Pacific Bank, owned by economist Peter Schiff, has been under scrutiny by financial regulators worldwide for being a safe-haven for criminal activity. In February, police in the UK arrested two men suspected of using Euro Pacific accounts to launder money to fund purchases of high value assets such as luxury watches, jewelry and designer handbags and clothing.

US Mint Struggles while Perth & the Royal Mint Shine

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Both the Perth Mint and the Royal Mint have announced huge increases in year over year sales of precious metals.

According to the Royal Mint, gold sales increased 25% above 2021, silver demand was up by 29%.

Earlier this month, the Perth Mint reported that gold sales were up 10% for the year, noting that there was a drop in demand during December.

The Perth Mint is owned by the government of Western Australia and it is reported to be the largest refiner of newly mined gold in the world.

Meanwhile, the US Mint has been struggling to keep up with demand from domestic silver investors.

Sales of Silver Eagles slumped in 2022 as demand continues to soar. This led investors to buy silver coins from Australia and England.

Why is the US Mint struggling to keep up with the demand from investors?

The US Mint outsources the production of blank silver planchets to private mints.

The Mint cancelled the commemorative 2022 Morgan & Peace silver $1 coin series due to issues with acquisition of raw materials.

The planchet manufacturers need to adhere to all legal definitions. The main one being that coins be minted from domestically mined sources.

The pandemic exposed a lot of problems with America’s supply chain. Many in the mining industry continue to worsen with inflation and looming recession.

Many of the top silver and gold mining operations in the United States all reported encountering various production delays throughout the last year.

Many of the top miners have reported delays and higher fuel costs associated with the transport of slurry concentrates from remote mine locations to refiners for further upstream processing and smelting.

The US Mint began outsourcing the production of planchets that are used to produce coins.

While the current list of suppliers is not readily available, Sunshine Minting and LeachGarner are two of the private mints that have had previous contracts with the Mint.

Most of the world’s largest and most capable precious metals processing companies are located outside the US, making it more difficult for the Mint supply chain.

Some of the ore extracted from domestic mines is handled by multinational corporations.

Many of the world’s leading refineries such as PAMP Suisse, Metalor, and Valcambi are based in Switzerland.

The Perth Mint and Royal Canadian Mint operate the largest and most advanced refineries in the world.

Why is the US Mint continuing to outsource mining and smelting operations to foreign companies?

The five largest mines in the US:

Greens Creek Mine, Alaska

The Greens Creek Mine is owned by Hecla Mining Company. The mine is located on Admiralty Island in the Alexander Archipelagos Islands, roughly 40 miles south of Juneau.

In 2021, Greens Creek produced 9.2 million ounces of silver and 48,088 ounces of gold.

Projected production outlook for 2022 is expected to be slightly higher, between 9.3 and 9.6 million ounces of silver and from 44,000 to 48,000 ounces of gold.

However, issues with the quality of the base metals, primarily zinc and lead, Hecla had postponed shipments of silver concentrates to upstream refineries.

Red Dog Mine, Alaska

Located 105 miles north of the Arctic Circle near Kotzebue, Alaska. It is one of the largest zinc mines in the world and is operated by Teck Resources (TECK).

The Red Dog Mine is believed to be the largest deposit of zinc in the world. Roughly 4% of all of the zinc is produced from this mine.

Ore concentrates of the mine are trucked over 50 miles where they are stored in port.

Due to the extreme location, the silver slurry can only be transported by ship from the arctic during the months from June through October.

The mine has been operating since 1989. With current production levels, the mine is expected to continue operating only until 2031.

The Red Dog Mine is one of the largest domestic sources of critical minerals.

Zinc has a variety of industrial uses. It is also an essential part of the green economy, component manufacturing for electric vehicle, windmills and solar panels.

Silver, germanium and lead and other minerals are byproducts of the primary operations.

Over 7.7 million ounces of silver was dug out of Red Dog mine in 2017.

Continental Mine, Montana

The Continental Mine is located near Butte, Montana. Also where the World Museum of Mining is located.

The main commodities of the Continental Mine are copper and molybdenum. Molybdenum and copper are also critical metals and minerals needed in the domestic manufacturing of electrical devices, motors for EVs and other electrical components.

Silver and gold are extracted from the copper-molybdenite ore. Recent mine output data is not  publicly available.

Marigold Mine, Nevada

The Marigold Mine is located in northern Nevada. The primary deposit is mineralized gold. The gold is extracted from sedimentary rocks including limestone, siltstone, breccias, meta-basalts and quartzite.

The mine is owned and operated by SSR Mining. The Marigold Mine began operation in 1989. The mine is expected to continue to sustain current production levels through 2032. Exploration and development of other nearby properties is expected to extend operations beyond.

Marigold is an open pit operations where blasted rocks is dumped onto heap leaching pages. A chemical process extracts precious metals and minerals from the ore and stored in carbon columns for later extraction through electrowinning.

Reports from SSR earlier in the year showed signs of delays in production with expectations of producing between 215,000 and 245,000 ounces of gold in 2022.

Rochester Mine, Nevada

The Rochester mine is an open pit, heap leach silver-gold operation in northwestern Nevada.

The silver-gold ore is extracted from sulfide deposits layered during Permian-Triassic period volcanic lava flows.

In 2021, the mining operations produced 3.2 million ounces of silver, while gold output was roughly 27,000 ounces.

Saudi Arabia experimenting with CBDC and alternative currencies to the PetroDollar

During the last year there has been a lot of media speculation regarding trade relations between Saudi Arabia and BRICS countries.

The Chinese central bank has been identified as buying roughly 300 tons of gold bullion in 2022. With Central Banks of other countries doing the same.

China has been wooing Saudi Arabia and making significant investments throughout the Middle East as part of the Belt & Road Initiative.

Saudi Arabia becoming part of BRICS and selling oil in a new basket currency would compete with both the Euro and the Dollar.

It seems pretty logical that China would intend for BRICS launch a CBDC digital currency that is backed by gold resources of the basket currency. Given that many central banks are experimenting with CBDC there will need to be interoperability between local currencies.

Weekly Precious Metals News and Gold Prices

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Gold, Silver and Platinum began trading higher in the lead up to the midterm elections.

There continues to be controversy surrounding the counting of votes in some states and precincts. Most mainstream media outlets have confirmed that the balance of power in the House of Representatives will shift across the aisle to the Republican party.

Gold prices surged leading into the midterm elections resulting from the state of the economy and the Biden administrations ongoing support for the war in the Ukraine.

Millions of Americans were already facing difficult economic times resulting from the lasting effects of problems caused by forced shutdowns and additional failed government policies during the pandemic.

The Biden Administration’s handling of the pandemic response is one of the leading factors that the mainstream media has blamed for the shift in control of congress to the Republican party following tabulation of election results.

The Federal Reserve and the Treasury continue their strategy of increasing interest rates in an attempt to bring down the rate of inflation.

Global commodities markets, particularly those involved in the trading of precious metals such as gold and silver, and those involved in petroleum, oil and natural gas, have been a lot of unexpected price swings and short selling as traders look for opportunities among the market chaos.

The latest CPI from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) shows that inflation and stagnant wage growth are two of the biggest ongoing problem for most working Americans.

October 2022 data released last week shows that all items index prices increased more than 7.7%, with the sharpest increases in food, housing, gasoline and fuel oil.

The price of fuel oil has surged to the highest peak since the 2008 Housing Crisis, leaving millions of underpaid Americans with concerns about how to pay for heat this winter.

The problems for the US economy continue to get worse as major companies announce mass layoffs to reduce their employee headcounts now that the midterm elections have been completed.

Crime continues to surge in major cities, particularly in States that are heavily controlled and governed by Democrats with growing homeless encampments and criminal gangs looking to exploit opportunities.

Bitcoin and crypto investors are beginning to realize that the current fiat based system that has been led by the Federal Reserve is not likely to provide the stimulus needed to bring about a full economic recovery in the short-term.
Many leading industry experts and executives have suggested that Blockchain technology can be implemented to assist central bankers with international trade and other economic growth with the support and agreement of foreign trade organizations that are backed by precious metals, particularly gold.

Representatives from countries that belong to the G20 are meeting this week in Indonesia to layout a strategy for global economic recovery.

Industry observers expect that many of the G7 countries will promote the use of CBDC as a mechanism to control the flow of digital and crypto currency between nations as a leading solution to the problems with the fiat and global credit system. https://www.kitco.com/news/2022-11-08/Gold-price-soars-on-short-covering-bargain-hunting-crypto-rumors.html

Financial experts continue to warn that the fallout from the FTX fiasco is likely to be bigger than the housing bubble and collapse that proceeded the recession and financial crisis that began in 2008

The collapse of FTX and the founder being investigated for related financial and election related crimes is beginning to shed some light on further corruption by government officials in the United States and Ukraine, with millions of dollars of military aid suspected of being laundered through various crypto exchanges being donated to hundreds of Democrat candidates and Soros funded lobbying organizations throughout the country.

Over the last few years central government banks have been adding tons of gold bars to their vaults while attempting to repatriate additional gold stored in foreign vaults. https://www.kitco.com/news/2022-11-08/Silver-holdings-in-London-vaults-drop-to-record-lows.html

Venezuela, which has had much of their gold reserves stored in vaults in the UK, United States and Canada, has been attempting to repatriate their gold bars since the Presidency of Hugo Chavez.

In 2012, Venezuela was able to repatriate some gold reserves, valued at roughly $9 billion at the time. Attempts to move an additional 14 tons of gold reserves in 2018 were refused by government officials in the United States due to economic sanctions against the Maduro presidency which continues to cause economic harm to millions of Venezuelans seeking asylum.

Global demand for gold and silver is stronger than ever, especially in Asia where gold is viewed as a store of family wealth.

The Perth Mint of Australia continues a record breaking year, with exports and sales of gold coins reportedly shipping more than 183,000 troy ounces of gold in October.

Random Year Canadian Maple Leaf 1 oz Silver Coins – available from Silver Gold Bull and other dealers from $30.29 per troy ounce.

The best price for Random Year Silver Eagle coins this week can be found on eBay.

Fractional gold bars maintain their popularity and intrinsic value with investors and stackers searching for some economic security. The most savvy investors use the Closest to Spot tools to find the best prices on fractional gold bars in sizes that range from 1 gram to 20 grams.

The Perth Mint has Released Official Mintage Numbers for 2018

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The Perth Mint of Australia, renowned for producing some of the highest quality gold and silver bullion coins, has released their official mintage numbers for 2018 bullion and numismatic coins.

The Australian Red Kangaroo Silver Bullion Coin Series, which made it’s debut in 2015, has seen it’s popularity decrease since it’s peak in popularity in 2016.

Year Coin Series Denomination Description Declared Mintage
2015 Red Kangaroo $1 AUD 2015 Red Kangaroo 1oz Silver Bullion Coin 300,000
2016 Red Kangaroo $1 AUD 2016 Red Kangaroo 1oz Silver Bullion Coin 11,245,615
2017 Red Kangaroo $1 AUD 2017 Red Kangaroo 1oz 99.99% Silver Bullion Coin 5,178,016
2018 Red Kangaroo $1 AUD 2018 Red Kangaroo 1oz 99.99% Silver Bullion Coin 4,395,517

Other popular bullion coin mintages for 2018:

  • 2018 Perth 1 oz Silver Koala – Mintage: 166,434
  • 2018 The Australian Lunar Gold Coin Series II, 1oz Bullion Lunar Gold Dog Coin – Mintage: 30,000
  • 2018 Australian Kookaburra 1 oz Silver Coin – Mintage: 243,740

 

More information regarding official mintage totals for bullion coin produced by The Perth Mint for their can be found on The Perth Mint website.

 

The Simpsons Donut 1 oz Silver Coin

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The highly anticipated commemorative release of The Simpsons Donut 1 oz Silver Coin from The Perth Mint has finally arrived.

The coin, which is legal tender in Tuvalu, has a limited mintage of only 3,000 coins worldwide.

The Silver 1 oz Proof Coin is a special release commemorative coin to celebrate the most popular animated television series in history.

The obverse of the coin features a unique donut design that has been colorized and stylized like the TV show. The coin has a hole punched in the center to give it an authentic donut look.

The reverse of the coin features a bust portrait of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth, along with the weight, purity and face value details around the rim of the coin.

Many retailers are sold out. The Perth Mint has sold out of the limited mintage. There are some coins being sold on eBay for a reasonable premium given the limited mintage.