Falling to levels not seen in two years, bullion 2010 American Gold Eagles apparently lost some favor with precious metal investors last month.
August sales are listed at a modest 41,500 ounces, according to the most recent sales figures from the United States Mint. This is the total weight sold to the U.S. Mint’s network of authorized purchasers for all bullion Gold Eagles, including the one ounce strike as well as the three fractional 1/2 ounce, 1/4 ounce and 1/10 ounce sizes. In comparison, the month before (July 2010) saw a total of 152,000 ounces purchased.
2010 August US Mint Gold Eagle Sales
| August 2010 Total Coins Sold | August 2010 Total Ounces Sold | 2010 Totals Coins Sold | 2010 Totals Ounces Sold | |
| One Ounce Gold Eagles | 39,000 | 39,000 | 805,000 | 805,000 |
| 1/2 Ounce Gold Eagles | 1,000 | 500 | 34,000 | 17,000 |
|
1/4 Ounces Gold Eagles |
2,000 | 500 | 48,000 | 12,000 |
|
1/10 Ounce Gold Eagles |
15,000 | 1,500 | 325,000 | 32,500 |
| Total | 57,000 | 41,500 | 1,212,000 | 866,500 |
June 2008 was the last time the Mint sold an amount lower than what was ordered in August. It is also important to note that June 2008 was a few months before buyers started ramping up their orders. By August of that year, the Mint instituted a rationing program for the Gold Eagles which limited the number of coins that each member of the Mint’s authorized purchaser network could obtain. That rationing lasted into the middle of 2009, only to be reinstated again later in the year.
The intense demand also pressured the Mint to step in a direction it had never before traveled since the introduction of the American Eagle program in 1986. It cancelled the annual numismatic versions of the coins — the 2009 Uncirculated Gold Eagles and the 2009 Proof Gold Eagles. Forced by law to strike the bullion coins to meet demand, the Mint could not obtain enough blank gold planchets to produce all eagle versions. Fortunately for collectors, with demand lower this year, 2010 proofs will now be minted, the U.S. Mint confirmed Tuesday, September 7. (Read 2010 Proof Gold Eagles for October.)
Taking a more detailed look at August 2010 sales, the hardest hit bullion coin was the one ounce size. Their sales fell to only 39,000, a drop of 108,500 from where they stood during the prior month. The only coin to make a decent showing in August was the fractional 1/4 ounce coin, which managed to stay at the same level as July with 2,000 individual coins sold. Still, that number pales in comparison to the number sold in June (the debut month for the 2010 fractionals) when 44,000 of them were ordered.
[…] Gold Eagle August 2010 Bullion Coin Sales Slide The Falling to levels not seen in two years, bullion 2010 American Gold Eagles apparently lost some favor with precious metal investors last month. […]
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