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Shortage of Authorized U.S. Mint Gold & Silver Coins
From Silverminers News Service
Unprecedented demand, a shortage of blanks and restrictive policies and regulations continue to exacerbate what is almost becoming a chronic shortage of gold and silver coins authorized by the U.S. Mint.
The Mint has again “temporarily” suspended sales of almost all of its gold uncirculated and proof coins, along with nearly all of its silver uncirculated coins because of the limited availability of blanks.
The 2009 American Buffalo one-ounce gold proof coin is to go on sale late in the second half of the 2009 calendar year after an acceptable inventory of 24-karat gold blanks can be acquired. In its catalog, the government says it will resume the American Eagle gold proof and uncirculated coin programs “once sufficient inventories of gold bullion blanks can be acquired to meet market demand for all three American Eagle gold coin products.”
Congressionally authorized American Eagle bullion coins are aimed at providing investors an effective way to invest in precious metals. Prices may change on a daily basis as the platinum, gold and silver markets fluctuate. The mint does not sell the bullion coins directly to the public, but distributes them in bulk through a network of official distributors who meet government financial and professional criteria, which must 
So far this year, the mint has sold 700,000 ounces or 700,000 gold bullion coins, compared to last year’s total sales of 860,500 ounces of gold or 1,172,000 bullion coins.
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Federal laws and regulations say the gold must be newly mined in the United States. Only a handful of refineries meet the standards and regulations to produce the blanks for the coins.
The product catalog states, “Currently, all available silver bullion blanks are being allocated to the American Eagle silver bullion coin program, as the United States Mint is required by Public Law 99-61 to produce these coins ‘in quantities sufficient to meet public demand.”
Thus far this year, silver bullion coin sales total 14,899,500 compared to last year’s total sales of 19,583,500.
While gold and silver producers have repeatedly gone to government officials to get them to authorize an increase in the number of refineries which can produce the blanks and the facilities that can mint the coins, industry sources say they feel they have been stonewalled by mint officials who refuse to budge.
Among the U.S. manufacturers of blanks are Sunshine Minting in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, and Stern-Leach of Attleboro, Mass. Nearly all U.S. Mint gold coins are manufactured at West Point, New York at a remote site on military academy grounds. See more at www.silverminers.com.
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(Issue # 36, September 7, 2009)
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