Falling gold and platinum prices have set the stage for the United States Mint to reduce prices on numismatic coins containing the precious metals.
Wednesdays are when the U.S. Mint averages recent London fixings for gold and platinum to decide if there’s a need to adjust its prices for products with the two metals. Weekly averages for both metals are firmly within the $1,150.00 to $1,199.99 range, marking pricing tiers that are $50 lower than previous. Wednesday’s AM and PM values for the London precious metals Fix must still be considered before anything can happen.
Coin News Update: Gold coin prices were reduced Wednesday. New prices are shown in the "To" column further below.
Gold at this writing is at $1,177.20 an ounce. If the AM gold fixing remains below $1,251.46 an ounce and the PM fixing keeps under $1,200 an ounce, then gold coin prices will fall. They were last raised on Dec. 10.
Platinum at this writing is at $1,190 an ounce. If the AM platinum fixing remains below $1,231.96 an ounce and the PM fixing also keeps under $1,200 an ounce, then the Mint’s 2014 Proof Platinum Eagle’s price will fall. This particular change would probably be muted, however. The platinum coin is listed as "out of stock" and likely sold out.
Here is a table of likely coin prices:
| Numismatic Gold Coin Products | From | To |
| 2014-Proof American Platinum Eagle Coin | $1,600.00 | $1,550.00 |
| 1964-2014 Proof Gold Kennedy Gold Coin | $1,202.50 | $1,165.00 |
| 2014-W Uncirculated American Eagle Gold Coin (1 oz) | $1,525.00 | $1,475.00 |
| 2014-W Proof American Eagle Gold Coin (1/10 oz) | $175.00 | $170.00 |
| 2014-W Proof Gold Eagle Four-Coin Set | $2,890.00 | $2,797.50 |
| 2013 & 2014-W Proof First Spouse Gold Coins | $815.00 | $790.00 |
| 2013 & 2014-W Uncirculated First Spouse Gold Coins | $795.00 | $770.00 |
2014 First Spouse Gold Coins include those honoring former first ladies Florence Harding, Grace Coolidge, Lou Hoover and Eleanor Roosevelt. The 2013-dated coins commemorate Edith Roosevelt, Ida McKinley, Edith Wilson, Ellen Wilson and Helen Taft.
When the U.S. Mint changes prices on its coins, it tends to freeze ordering of the affected products for around 30 minutes. Adjustments usually happen around the noon hour on Wednesday. This time the Christmas break could delay them until Friday. The Mint made similar cuts last year in the week of Christmas but they didn’t happen until the 26th.
As always, this coin news article will get updated with what actually happens.
