Silveretfs 1 PDF

If you’re buying silver or gold as an insurance policy against financial disaster, it makes sense to hold the actual commodity in its physical form rather than a piece of paper. If you’re buying such humongous quantities that you  must buy paper, buy the Perth Mint Silver Certificates instead.

For the rest of you regular folk, just buy silver coins like peace silver dollars or silver bars.  And if you like to collect pretty shiny objects, silver coins are the way to go! Collecting American silver coins is a great way to introduce your kids to the value of money and savings!

Related Posts

• February 18, 2009 -- Demand For Gold Tops $100 Billion!
• November 22, 2008 -- Gold Jumps: Has It Become Correlated To The Stock Market?
• May 12, 2010 -- Gold Closes At Record High
• January 30, 2010 -- Best Trade of 2009
• November 22, 2009 -- Trading & Investing Strategies for the Current Environment
• October 4, 2009 -- World Bank President: Time To Diversify Out Of The Dollar
• August 23, 2009 -- Which Dividend Stocks Are Worth Looking At?

The buyer was New Jersey dealer John Albanese, who said that the price was “basically a half-million down from last year because of the recession. It was a good opportunity. These don’t come around all the time.” The coin, the finest Class III 1804 dollar outside museums and available to collectors, had been expected to fetch $2 million.

The varieties of 1804 silver dollars are known as Class I, Class II, and Class III. The Class I pieces are sometimes called Originals, although that name is inaccurate, since they were struck in 1834 rather than 1804. The Class II and Class III pieces are sometimes called Restrikes, also an inaccurate name since there were technically no Originals.

A single obverse die and two reverse dies were created for all of the 1804 dollars, and it is virtually certain that the dies were all made at the same time, certainly no later than 1834. The dies were also produced by the same engraver. The two reverse dies have been designated as Reverse X and Reverse Y, following past literature on the subject.

Assuming these were minted in 1834 and are thus 175 years ago, that means the coin appreciated 8.731% a year. Not a bad rate of return!  Hopefully, someday my collection of Morgan Silver Dollars and Peace Silver Dollars will be worth something too.

Related Posts

• February 18, 2009 -- Demand For Gold Tops $100 Billion!
• August 2, 2009 -- Systematic Fraud Or Gross Negligence in Silver ETFs!
• March 24, 2009 -- How To Invest In Gold
• February 19, 2009 -- Is A Global Financial Meltdown Imminent?
• February 2, 2009 -- Peter Schiff: Dollar Is The Next Bubble To Collapse
• January 28, 2009 -- Long-Short Bond Trade: Now With Reduced Volatility!
• November 25, 2008 -- Buying Cheap Gold Coins

Like I’ve been saying for ages, make sure you buy some gold coins.  Silver coins aren’t bad either.

Related Posts

• February 18, 2009 -- Demand For Gold Tops $100 Billion!
• November 22, 2008 -- Gold Jumps: Has It Become Correlated To The Stock Market?
• July 22, 2008 -- The World’s Most Expensive Gold Coin
• May 12, 2010 -- Gold Closes At Record High
• October 4, 2009 -- World Bank President: Time To Diversify Out Of The Dollar
• June 13, 2009 -- Insurance Company Buys $400 Million in Gold
• March 26, 2009 -- The End of Cheap $1000 Gold?

FEARS of the unknown long-term effects from the global financial crisis have sparked a new gold rush.

With retail and wholesale clients around the world stocking up on the precious metal, the Perth Mint has been forced to suspend orders.

As the World Gold Council reported that the dollar demand for gold reached a quarterly record of $US32 billion ($50.73 billion) in the third quarter, industry insiders said the race to secure physical gold had reached an intensity that had never been witnessed before.

Perth Mint sales and marketing director Ron Currie said the unprecedented demand had forced the Mint to cease orders until January, with staff working seven days a week, 24-hour days, over three shifts to meet orders.

He said Europe was leading the demand, with Russia, Ukraine, Middle East and US all buying — making up 80 per cent of its sales. One European client purchased 30,000 ounces for $33 million.

“We have never seen this before and are working right at capacity. And we are seeing it from clients in the shop buying one ounce, right up to 30,000 ounces from overseas clients,” Mr Currie said.

Robert Jaggard, manager of bullion and rare coins dealer Jaggards, said business had picked up strongly and he expected it to increase further.

“All around the world there has been a heavy run on physical gold and there is a shortage of supply,” he said.

Mr Jaggard, who has been dealing in gold for 40 years and is an agent for the Perth Mint, said some clients were buying up to $1million worth of gold, paying a premium above the spot price.

Late yesterday afternoon, spot gold in Sydney was trading at $US747.30 an ounce, up $US8.15 on Thursday’s local close.

“Professional business people who have previously bought small amounts now want more gold because they are suffering in other markets,” Mr Jaggard said.

At a conference this week in Munich, delegates were lined up 30-deep to purchase physical gold. And reports out of the Middle East suggested that there had been unprecedented gold buying in Saudi Arabia during the first half of November, with an estimated $US3.5 billion purchased in recent weeks.

The World Gold Council, releasing its global demand trends yesterday, said identifiable investment demand, which incorporates demand for gold through exchange-traded funds and bars and coins, was the biggest contributor to overall demand during the quarter. It was up to $US10.7 billion, double last year’s levels.

The figures showed retail investment demand rose 121 per cent to 232 tonnes in the third quarter, with strong bar and coin buying reported in Swiss, German and US markets.

The quarter also witnessed widespread reports of gold shortages among bullion dealers across the globe, as investors searched for a haven. Overall, quarter three saw Europe reach an all-time record 51 tonnes of bar and coin buying. France became a net investor in gold for the first time since the early 1980s.

World Gold Council chief executive James Burton said gold’s universal role as a store of value had shone through during the quarter, helping attract investors and consumers to all forms of gold ownership.

“The rise in demand for gold bars and coins has been impressive,” he said.

Demand in India, the largest market for gold, recovered during the third quarter, encouraged by lower gold prices, a good monsoon and the onset of the festive season. At 250 tonnes, total consumer demand was 31 per cent higher than the same period last year. In value terms, demand hit the record quarterly sum of $US5 billion.

Here’s the link.

So there’s a surge in demand, but no spike in prices that’s usually associated with shortages!

Related Posts

• June 13, 2009 -- Insurance Company Buys $400 Million in Gold
• March 26, 2009 -- The End of Cheap $1000 Gold?
• March 24, 2009 -- How To Invest In Gold
• February 18, 2009 -- Demand For Gold Tops $100 Billion!
• February 2, 2009 -- Peter Schiff: Dollar Is The Next Bubble To Collapse
• November 22, 2008 -- Gold Jumps: Has It Become Correlated To The Stock Market?
• July 22, 2008 -- The World’s Most Expensive Gold Coin

Right now the premium on silver coins is a whopping 60%+. For gold it’s a lot lower but still higher than it’s historic 2.5-3%. I just got an email today from a newsletter service that I subscribe to that’s pretty interesting.

If You Want Cheap Gold Coins, Canada Has Them
By Tom Dyson

I don’t trust my bank. And I don’t trust the dollar.

As far as my savings are concerned, I’d rather keep them in gold. And I don’t mean gold futures or gold certificates or gold mining shares. I’m talking about physical gold bullion in a safety deposit box.

My family thinks I’m taking a big risk. But as I see it, they’re the ones taking the risk. I’m the one storing my money in the world’s safest asset… the asset that’s been used as money for 5,000 years… and the only money that’s no one else’s liability.

Besides, what have I got to lose? My bank pays less than 3% on its savings accounts.

I’d advise you to own at least a couple of ounces of gold, too… if nothing else, for insurance purposes.

Coins are the best way for individuals to buy gold. They come in small denominations, they’re portable, and you can exchange them for cash anywhere in the world at gold’s international spot price.

Here’s the thing: Right now, gold coins are hard to find. Even if you can find them, they’re more expensive than usual.

In normal markets, you can buy silver coins below the spot price and gold at a 1% or 2% premium to the spot price. I’ve spoken to at least six gold coin dealers in the last week. Three of them were out of stock. Of the dealers still in stock, the cheapest gold coins I found were selling for a 5% premium to the gold price.

In other words, with gold at $800, you’d have to spend at least $840 on a one-ounce coin. The scarcity of silver coins is even worse. One dealer told me he was paying $16 for one-ounce silver coins, purchased in bulk. Right now, the spot price of silver is $9 an ounce. So the premium’s almost 80%.

The financial crisis is the reason for this mispricing. Demand for coins, one-ounce bars, and other “retail” denominations of gold has outpaced the ability of fabricators to make them.

There is no shortage of physical gold. If you wanted to buy a kilo or a 100-ounce bar, you’d have no problem.

The shortage is just a short-term supply problem at the retail level. Gold producers will take advantage of the premium and ramp up production. So in a few months, the big mark-ups will disappear.

That said, if you want to buy small quantities of gold right now, go to Canada.

The Bank of Nova Scotia is one of the world’s largest precious-metals dealers. If you go to the Hollis Street branch in Halifax, Nova Scotia, or the King Street West branch in Toronto, they’ll sell you Canadian Maple Leaf coins at a 3.7% premium to spot and one-ounce wafers at a 2.6% premium to spot.

Good investing,

Tom

P.S. Gold doesn’t show up in airport security metal detectors. I’ve tested this with gold coins before. But if you’re traveling across the border with more than $10,000 worth of gold or currency, you must declare it at the border. They’ll run your name and make sure you’re not a money launderer. That’s it.

Of course, if you don’t feel like going all the way to Canada just to buy a few gold and silver coins you can always buy them cheaply here:
American & Canadian Silver Coins

American, Canadian French, & Swiss  Gold Coins

Related Posts

• February 18, 2009 -- Demand For Gold Tops $100 Billion!
• July 22, 2008 -- The World’s Most Expensive Gold Coin
• May 20, 2007 -- New Million Dollar Coin
• August 16, 2006 -- Gold At $100 Off Its 2006 Highs
• May 12, 2010 -- Gold Closes At Record High
• October 4, 2009 -- World Bank President: Time To Diversify Out Of The Dollar
• March 24, 2009 -- How To Invest In Gold