Monthly Archives: January 2011
Gold Ends Slightly Higher, Silver Falls Modestly
U.S. precious metals were mixed Wednesday as gold prices rose $2.00, or 0.1 percent, and silver dipped 11.1 cents, or 0.4 percent. Palladium again was the best performing metal with its pick-up of 1.1 percent. Platinum edged higher by 0.5 percent.
Gold's second straight day of gains was supported by continued weakness in the dollar. The greenback took a hit early after U.S. housing starts data for December showed a larger-than-expected drop of 4.3 percent to [...]
2011 Proof Set Sales Debut at 253,144
The latest United States Mint coin sales figures indicate a slower start for the 2011 Proof Set which includes numismatic proof versions of the fourteen coins that will be in circulation this year.
That is the weakest start in at least the past four years despite its longer opening sales period. As an example, the 2010 Proof Set started near 300,000 during its first four days. The following [...]
It’s Wednesday, It Must Be Risk Appetite: ON – Wednesday Kitcommentary
Gold's early gains (it rose to highs near the $1,380.00 level on the offer side of spot) narrowed considerably as the morning wore on, and they did so despite not much of a recovery in the US dollar on the trade-weighted index (still down 0.43 at 78.58 at last check).
About the same could be said about silver as well; it opened strong, rose to highs near $29.50 and then fell back to the mid- $28 level [...]
Gold Nugget Weighing 100 Ounces in Long Beach Coin Expo
The headline-making 100-ounce gold nugget recently discovered in Northern California's Gold Rush country will make its first public appearance in Southern California at the Long Beach Coin, Stamp & Collectibles Expo (www.LongBeachExpo.com), February 3 - 5, 2011.
It will be publicly exhibited at the three-day collector's show for the first time anywhere in Southern California courtesy of Fred Holabird and Don Kagin of [...]
PNG Welcomes New Members
The Board of Directors of the Professional Numismatists Guild (PNG) has ratified the new or upgraded memberships of four professional numismatists.
John Albanese of John Albanese Numismatics in Far Hills, New Jersey and William Panitch of William S. Panitch Rare Coins in Albany, New York have joined PNG as Regular (full) members [...]
Gold Settles Higher, Silver Rises 2.1%
Precious metals rose Tuesday following an extended U.S. holiday weekend and after prices plunged on Friday.
Palladium rallied best, gaining 2.5 percent. Silver followed with a 2.1 percent increase while platinum and gold brought up the rear with respective gains of 0.7 and 0.6 percent.
At day's end, February gold prices added $7.70 to settle at $1,368.20 an ounce [...]
2011 America the Beautiful Quarter Images Revealed
The United States Mint has published images of the 2011 America the Beautiful Quarters which mark the sixth through tenth issues in the America the Beautiful Quarters® Program.
The quarter-dollars honor, in the order of their release, Gettysburg National Military Park in Pennsylvania, Glacier National Park in Montana, Olympic National Park in Washington, Vicksburg National Military Park in Mississippi, and Chickasaw National Recreation Area in Oklahoma [...]
Gentlemen, Start Your…Houses! – Tuesday Kitcommentary
Trading action resumed on Tuesday with gains across the precious metals price boards.
A sizeable drop in the US dollar on the trade-weighted index (off 0.46 to the 78.90 level) prompted by early concerns that US housing starts data to be released on Wednesday might reveal that not all is (yet) well in the pivotal American economic sector gave metals buyers the impetus to lift prices as the abbreviated trading week got underway [...]
NGC Online Security Image Archive Reaches 3 Million Coins
Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC) has announced that their online security image archive now includes 3,000,000 coins -- the largest database of NGC-certified coins in existence anywhere.
Since October 2008 NGC has been capturing digital photographs of every coin that it certifies and then storing them in an internet-accessible database.
By maintaining a secure and proprietary database of coin images and making it available to the public [...]
Canadian Mint Releases First 2011 Collector Coins
The Royal Canadian Mint is pleased to introduce a newly crafted array of gold, silver and base metal keepsakes as it launches its first collector coins of 2011.
This highly anticipated collection is headlined by the 2011 Proof Silver Dollar, Brilliant Uncirculated Silver Dollar and Proof Set, which celebrate the conservation of Canada's natural treasures on the 100th anniversary of Parks Canada [...]