The Wall Street Journal reported the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) confirmed Wednesday that there’s a new investigation into the silver market. Apparently, the CFTC has received numerous complaints that silver was in short supply — verified by reported visits to various coin shops, yet prices were manipulated lower by large investors. WSJ writes:

Silver investors have argued that a handful of U.S. banks have been controlling a large portion of silver’s short positions — or bets that prices will decline — on Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Official data from the CFTC showed that two U.S. banks had increased short positions in the silver futures market between July and August by 450% and controlled 25% of the total open interest.

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The United States Mint 2008 Alaska Official First Day Coin Cover goes on sale Tuesday, September 30 at noon eastern for the price of $14.95, plus $4.95 for standard shipping and handling.

The 35,000 limited edition covers are the 49th in the series and include two Alaska state quarters featuring a grizzly bear emerging from the water clutching a salmon in its jaws.

The quarter-dollars were collected from the first day of their mintage — July 14, 2008. One quarter is from the Mint’s Denver facility and bears the "D" mint mark while the other is minted from Philadelphia with a "P" mint mark.

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