US Mint Silver Eagle Bullion Sales Top 34 Million in 2010
The United States Mint ended a record year with a slow month. The American Silver Eagle bullion coins recorded their lowest monthly sales figure of the year at 1,772,000 ounces for December 2010.
For the full year, sales totaled 34,662,500 of the one ounce .999 fine silver coins. This established a new annual record for the third consecutive year. In previous years, the US Mint sold 19,583,500 ounces for 2008, followed by 28,766,500 for 2009.
2010 Silver Eagle Bullion Sales
| January | 3,592,500 |
| February | 2,050,000 |
| March | 3,381,000 |
| April | 2,507,500 |
| May | 3,636,500 |
| June | 3,001,000 |
| July | 2,981,000 |
| August | 2,451,000 |
| September | 1,880,000 |
| October | 3,150,000 |
| November | 4,260,000 |
| December | 1,772,000 |
| Total | 34,662,500 |
The slow down for December can likely be attributed to the pending release of the 2011 Silver Eagle bullion coins. The US Mint began sales of the coins to authorized purchasers on January 3, 2011. Generally, collectors and investors will prefer the newly dated coins, so authorized purchasers may have cut back their orders for the preceding month to avoid getting stuck with 2010-dated coins when the calendar turned over.
Will 2011 mark a fourth consecutive year of record breaking sales? Silver’s recent strong performance may keep investors focused on “poor man’s gold.” With only a few days in the books, the US Mint has already sold more than 2 million coins during January.
2011 American Silver Eagle Release Date
The United States Mint has announced the release date for the 2011 Silver Eagle bullion coins. Authorized purchasers will be allowed to begin placing orders for coins bearing the new date from January 3, 2011. The release of each year’s coins is an event eagerly awaited by many collectors.
Under the typical procedures of the bullion program, authorized purchasers place orders for the coins in bulk quantities based on the market price of silver plus a fixed mark up. The coins are then resold to a multitude of other coin dealers, bullion dealers, and the public. This system is believed to be the most efficient means for widespread distribution.
Inventories of 2010-dated coins will likely remain, so authorized purchasers will be required to take some of the older dated coins for quantities of the 2011 Silver Eagles ordered.
This year’s release date takes place earlier than last year, another sign that the US Mint is catching up with bullion demand and bringing things back to a state of normalcy– even amidst continuing high demand.
US Mint Achieves Record Silver Eagle Sales in November
The United States Mint sold more American Silver Eagle bullion coins during November 2010, than any other month in the history of the program.
Total sales for the month measured 4,260,000. In addition to establishing a new record high, exceeding the previous record high set in December 1986, this also marked the first monthly total above 4 million.
Previously US Mint Silver Eagle bullion sales had been interrupted or rationed due to planchet supplies. The Mint must have increased their supply and are now able to meet a much higher level of demand.
2010 Silver Eagle Bullion Sales
| January | 3,592,500 |
| February | 2,050,000 |
| March | 3,381,000 |
| April | 2,507,500 |
| May | 3,636,500 |
| June | 3,001,000 |
| July | 2,981,000 |
| August | 2,451,000 |
| September | 1,880,000 |
| October | 3,150,000 |
| November | 4,260,000 |
| Total | 32,890,500 |
At the end of November, year to date sales have reached 32,890,500. This is well above last year’s annual total of 28,766,500.
On the horizon, is the release of a second silver bullion series from the US Mint. The America the Beautiful 5 oz. Silver Bullion Coins were set to be released December 6, 2010, although recent reports say the series has been delayed. Will the series eventually have a meaningful impact on the amount of silver sold by the US Mint?