Demand for United States Mint bullion coins soared in September as precious metals prices tumbled. Gold and silver coin sales leapt to multi-month highs, more than doubling sales from the previous month and landing well higher than a year ago.
A sales summary across U.S. Mint bullion products for last month and for the first nine months of this year follows.
American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins
September sales of American Eagle gold coins surged 58,000 ounces for the highest total since the 2014-dated versions launched in January. Orders last month jumped 132% from sales of 25,000 ounces in August and soared 346.2% from the 13,000 ounces sold in September 2013.
While higher on the month than a year ago, demand last year was still stronger overall. Gold Eagle sales in the January to September period total 379,000 ounces, which is 46.2% below the 704,000 ounces sold during the first nine months of 2013.
22-karat American Gold Eagles are produced in sizes of 1 oz, 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz and 1/10 oz. These correspond to denominations on the coins of $50, $25, $10 and $5. All sizes gained in September for the first time since June.
American Eagle Silver Bullion Coins
American Silver Eagles rallied to 4,140,000 coins last month, surging 106.2% over August sales of 2,007,500 coins and hurdling the year ago level of 3,013,000 coins by 37.4%. Last month went down as the second best September and the ninth best month in the Silver Eagle’s 29-year history.
Year-to-date sales stand at 32,251,000 coins for the second quickest pace ever, behind record year 2013 when sales from the January through September period tallied to 36,088,000 coins. This year’s Silver Eagle sales total is already higher than annual sales of all but 4 years since the 99.9% pure silver coins debuted in 1986.
American Eagle Platinum Bullion Coins
September sales of American Eagle platinum coins leapt 2,700 after gaining 700 August, staying pat in July and rising 700 in June; 1,000 in May; 1,200 in April; and 10,000 in March. Before then, the 99.95% fine platinum bullion coins had not been issued since 2008. In that year, annual sales combined to 33,700 ounces across sizes of 1 oz, 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz and 1/10 oz. This year there is only the 1 oz size. Buyers have grabbed 16,300 of them so far.
Platinum Eagle sales this month were supported by the U.S. Mint’s announcement of an Oct. 1 ordering deadline.
American Buffalo Gold Bullion Coins
American Buffalo gold coins, struck in 24-karat gold, advanced 14,500 for a 81.3% increase over the previous month and the highest total since 16,000 moved in June.
Sales through the first nine months of 2014 total 139,500 coins for a 30.3% drop from a year earlier when orders reached 200,000 coins.
America the Beautiful Five Ounce Silver Bullion Coins
Finally, orders of 99.9% pure 2014 America the Beautiful Five Ounce Silver Bullion Coins went up 9,800 after gaining 9,200 in August. Monthly and total sales by design are:
- Great Smoky Mountains National Park Five Ounce Silver Coins, adding 3,500 to 33,000
- Shenandoah National Park Five Ounce Silver Coins, climbing 1,000 to 21,500
- Arches National Park Five Ounce Silver Coins, gaining 800 to 22,000
- Great Sand Dunes National Park Five Ounce Silver Coins, rising 4,500 to 12,000
Sales of 2014 ATB Five Ounce Silver Bullion Coins total 88,500, or 442,500 ounces. That compares to 173,100 coins for 865,500 ounces through September of last year.
US Mint Bullion Sales by Product
Tables below offer U.S. Mint bullion sales by product. The first table lists September 2013 sales for comparison and then monthly sales between June and September of this year. The second table offers monthly sales figures between January and May. Totals are in the number of bullion coins sold, not in the amount of ounces.
| June – September 2014 Sales of US Mint Bullion Coins (# of coins) |
||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Last Year Sept | Jun 2014 | Jul 2014 | Aug 2014 | Sept 2014 | YTD Sales | |||
| $100 American Eagle Platinum Coins (1 oz) | N/A | 700 | 0 | 700 | 2,700 | 16,300 | ||
| $50 American Eagle Gold Coins (1 oz) | 8,500 | 43,000 | 26,000 | 21,000 | 50,500 | 296,000 | ||
| $25 American Eagle Gold Coins (1/2 oz) | 5,000 | 2,000 | 0 | 0 | 5,000 | 32,000 | ||
| $10 American Eagle Gold Coins (1/4 oz) | 4,000 | 4,000 | 6,000 | 6,000 | 8,000 | 92,000 | ||
| $5 American Eagle Gold Coins (1/10 oz) | 10,000 | 35,000 | 25,000 | 25,000 | 30,000 | 440,000 | ||
| $50 American Buffalo Gold Coins (1 oz) | 10,000 | 16,000 | 5,500 | 8,000 | 14,500 | 139,500 | ||
| ATB Silver Coins (5 oz) | 22,900 | 21,400 | 2,000 | 9,200 | 9,800 | 88,500 | ||
| American Silver Eagle Coins (1 oz) | 3.013M | 2.692M | 1.975M | 2.0075M | 4.14M | 32.251M | ||
| January – May 2014 Sales of US Mint Bullion Coins (# of coins) |
||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2014 | Feb 2014 | Mar 2014 | Apr 2014 | May 2014 | YTD Sales | |
| $100 American Eagle Platinum Coins (1 oz) | N/A | N/A | 10,000 | 1,200 | 1,000 | 16,300 |
| $50 American Eagle Gold Coins (1 oz) | 62,500 | 22,000 | 16,000 | 26,000 | 29,000 | 296,000 |
| $25 American Eagle Gold Coins (1/2 oz) | 12,000 | 3,000 | 2,000 | 5,000 | 3,000 | 32,000 |
| $10 American Eagle Gold Coins (1/4 oz) | 28,000 | 10,000 | 4,000 | 20,000 | 6,000 | 92,000 |
| $5 American Eagle Gold Coins (1/10 oz) | 160,000 | 50,000 | 30,000 | 50,000 | 35,000 | 440,000 |
| $50 American Buffalo Gold Coins (1 oz) | 41,500 | 12,000 | 12,000 | 17,500 | 12,500 | 139,500 |
| ATB Silver Coins (5 oz) | 0 | 0 | 12,400 | 10,600 | 23,100 | 88,500 |
| American Silver Eagle Coins (1 oz) | 4.755M | 3.750M | 5.354M | 3.569M | 3.9885M | 32.251M |
U.S. Mint bullion coins are sold in bulk to "Authorized Purchasers" who consist of major coin and precious metals dealers, brokerage companies, and other participating financial intermediaries. Bullion coins are usually priced at a few percentage points above the latest value of their precious metal content.
