Mint News Blog

News, Information, and Commentary on US Mint Products

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Another First Spouse Gold Coin Price Increase Tomorrow?


The price of gold broke above $1,200 per ounce last week and has continued to move higher today. Based on the available London Fix gold prices, it is once again possible that the US Mint will adjust prices higher for available First Spouse Gold Coins.

The last price increase took place a just week ago on May 5, 2010, when the average weekly price of gold came in above $1,150 per ounce. Another price increase will take place if the average of the London Fix prices from the prior Thursday AM to the current Wednesday AM (tomorrow) is $1,200 or greater.

Here are the relevant prices for this weekly period:
Thurs AM - May 6 1,178.00
Thurs PM - May 6 1,185.25
Fri AM - May 7 1,199.60
Fri PM - May 7 1,202.25
Mon AM - May 10 1,188.25
Mon PM - May 10 1,196.50
Tue AM - May 11 1,209.00
Tue PM - May 11 1,222.50
Wed AM - May 12 ?

By my calculation, a London AM Fix price of $1,218.65 or higher for tomorrow morning would trigger a price increase. Price increase are generally put into effect by the US Mint on Wednesday around mid-morning.

An increase would put price levels for First Spouse Gold Coins at the highest levels ever. The uncirculated coins would be priced at $766 each and the proof coins would be priced at $779 each.

The lowest prices for First Spouse Coins this year were in effect from January 27 to February 23, 2010 while the average price of gold was in the $1,050 to $1,099.99 range. The prices were $691 for uncirculated coins and $704 for proof coins.

If higher gold prices persist, this will also impact upcoming gold numismatic products. The US Mint plans to release the 2010 Proof Gold Buffalo on June 3, 2010. If gold remains within the current range, the coins would be priced at $1,510 each. When the 2009 Proof Gold Buffalo was released late last year, the initial price was $1,360.

Also scheduled for release on June 3, 2010 will be the Jane Pierce First Spouse Gold Coins. The previous release of the series featuring Abigail Fillmore was initially priced at $716 and $729 for uncirculated and proof coins, respectively.

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31 Comments:

At May 11, 2010 at 12:42 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Darn! I was hoping to get one of the 2010 Buffaloes on the first day. I'm hoping to wait out the high price and hopefully they'll settle down in a few months.

JA

 
At May 11, 2010 at 1:49 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

If you don't buy your gold coins on the first day of availability, there's a good chance you might receive someone else's returned coin, for defects or some other reason.

For my own piece of mind, I prefer to get my coins from the initial shipments to make sure I truly am the first one to get a look at it. Sometimes that does cost extra though, if the price falls later.

 
At May 11, 2010 at 2:32 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Don't worry about price drop. It ain't gonna happen. There is now a major cluster duck in Europe due to the Greek bail out which is actually a European banker bailout just like they did here.

 
At May 11, 2010 at 3:46 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Gold may go down a tier or two, but probably not more than that. I'm with the second poster...you will have a significantly higher chance of getting a return coin if you don't order when a coin first goes on sale. Many larger volume buyers cherry pick and return the obvious PF69s. You run the risk of getting one of their returns. I am confident that is what happened to me with the 2009 UHR Gold Double Eagle once the limits were raised.

 
At May 11, 2010 at 4:16 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Gold will be high all summer, after that??????

 
At May 11, 2010 at 6:46 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

It looks like the mint charges platinum prices for gold now.

 
At May 11, 2010 at 7:39 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

The world do change in a hurry. I bought a 1 oz. '06 proof buff for 800 bucks now you can get a half oz. for almost that. This isn't funny.

 
At May 11, 2010 at 8:11 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Good gosh, I do believe the first 4 or so spouses I bought I got at 2 for 1, using the prices of today. So much for the dream of completing both the unc and proof sets. I agree with previous posts, I don't see gold coming down much any time soon. I'll just need to save a bit more to make sure I can complete the two Liberty subsets.

 
At May 12, 2010 at 4:31 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

What ever happened to Mr. "Pop pop pop"?
Gold at fresh all tiime highs this AM!

 
At May 12, 2010 at 6:47 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Don't mention those annoying "pop pop pop!" comments that used to plague these boards! That was undoubtedly some poor jealous sap who had no money to spend on gold and silver anyway! They were just trying to make those who did question their judgement about buying. It never swayed me, and even if gold falls back $200/oz. tomorrow, I will still buy. I'm in for the long haul.

By the way, the Mint's prices WILL be rising on gold coins this morning. The AM fix came in at $1,241.25. If you've been putting off buying your spouses, you might want to pick them up before the next hike! If the fixes don't pull back, the possibility of a third increase in as many weeks is very likely!

 
At May 12, 2010 at 6:58 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

***Buy first spouse gold this morning before price increase***

 
At May 12, 2010 at 7:24 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Honestly I just see the spouse coins as as mere bullion that's is. I am just going to put my dollars in the 08 buffalos. They are going to get a new leg up as gold goes up.

 
At May 12, 2010 at 8:00 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

First spouse sales by the Mint are actually a better value as gold increases in value since the premium is fixed. A higher purchase price actually includes less percentage mark-up than when gold was less expensive. I agree that IF you want some first spouse coins, this morning would be a logical time to buy.

 
At May 12, 2010 at 8:24 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

It's already too late now. The coins still show as available on the website, but when I tried to check out the order total changed to ".00". I guess they don't officially take the coins down to change the prices anymore, but simply block all new orders until the change has been made. I was going to order another uncirculated version of the remaining 2009's, but I guess now I won't.

 
At May 12, 2010 at 8:45 AM , Anonymous VABEACHBUM said...

Strangely enough, as of 11 AM EDT, the Mint has yet to make the price adjustment. During previous changes, the products had been unavailable for a short period of time; still for sale at current prices. Maybe they're giving folks that last chance to buy at current rates.

While most of my comments focus on the Spouse boards, I also have been following and collecting the Gold Buffs since their 2006 premiere. Given that the current "collectable values" of the raw 2008 W coins and sets are at or above 3x the purchase prices and the respective gold contents, I don't expect the current gold markets to "impact" these coins. Maybe some bumps - up and down - but no big impacts.

These same bumps can be seen in the graded 2010 Buff Bullions that are hitting the market this week. Someone was auctioning presales for MS70ER's with consistent sales of $1450 to $1550. I confirmed my reasonably priced order with a 3rd party vendor Monday night, then watched their prices climb another $50 with the market on Tuesday. A little bit of patience and a lot of luck.

I'll be counting on that patience and luck when the 2010 Proofs become available in 3 weeks. Like many, I'll be following the market for that best time to strike. I'm also going to delay my purchase of the lower demand Pierce coins in order to ensure my ability to respond to the Buchanan and Lincoln coins later in the year. Pierce - yeah, she'll be around for a while!!

Buffs, Eagles, Spouses. Whatever your flavor, good luck to all.

 
At May 12, 2010 at 8:56 AM , Anonymous VABEACHBUMZ said...

Just checked again.

As of 11:50 AM EDT, the Mint has taken down the Spouse Coins.

Here come the changes!!!

 
At May 12, 2010 at 9:24 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Even while the spouse coins were still showing as "available", the Mint stopped the ordering process on the last screen of checkout. The s/h showed zero and the total purchase price showed zero.

I'm thinking that one of two things would have happened had I tried to submit the order. Either the order would have been cancelled upon placement, or the prices would have been adjusted to the next tier once the change had been officially made.

 
At May 12, 2010 at 9:25 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Price increased,check it out.

 
At May 12, 2010 at 9:26 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

The Mint has posted their "Last Opportunity" section for some of the 2009 products. All products containing Lincoln cents go off-sale on June 15th, and the Territories Quarters First-Day Coin Covers go off-sale on June 30th.

Strangely enough, no mention was made of the 2009 Presidential Dollar First-Day Coin Covers, or the 2008-2009 Presidential Dollar U.S. Mint Rolls. I figured those would be put out of their misery by June 30th also. I wonder how long the Mint intends to beat those dead horses?

 
At May 12, 2010 at 10:36 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

The mint may have to raise prices of gold again next week it this trend continues! If the mint made a quality 10 ct Diamond Eagle for $100,000.00 with only 100 minted would you buy it? Point being if they don't make fractionals of gold and platinum for across all collectible products, most American will not afford to collect!

They should make fractional Buffs and Plats. First spouse should have a silver option or a quarter ounce option. CHANGE THE LAW to make this happen! This is getting rediculous!

 
At May 12, 2010 at 10:37 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Sorry, "ridiculous"!

 
At May 12, 2010 at 3:52 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

I would not buy these coins at 779$ per piece. Except few coins in this collection, the majority are ugly and will never be popular.

 
At May 12, 2010 at 4:01 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Never say never. Some folks would buy a turd, as long as it's low-mintage. Some of these coins certainly qualify, under both counts!

Seriously though, the extremely low-mintage of some of these coins is going to become the dominating factor someday, regardless of what they look like. It's almost advantageous that the 2007 coins are more easily had, as they will provide the starting point for new set builders. When they try to get the 2008's and beyond, that's where the going will get tough. It will only take two would-be set builders to fight over one of the very rare coins when it does show up to drive the price sky-high.

These coins are not a bad place to stick some extra money, if you've got it. JMHO.

 
At May 13, 2010 at 2:49 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

I have read a lot about how the first spouse coins are ugly and unpopular. Well the second is true but ugly no way. If you spend the time looking at each one of these coins under a 10X loupe you will discover many amazing things and fantastic detail. With Eagles and Buffalo's once you’ve seen one you seen them all, the only difference is the date. Because of this IMO the first spouse coins once discovered by the masses will be highly sought after.

 
At May 13, 2010 at 3:43 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Popular classic coins usually have a symbolic theme or representation. The spouse coins are simply historical and do not offer the classic symbolism. I am not saying they are bad or lack detail just no classic symbolism is contained in them. The buffalo is unique and highly popular even though it has been produced in numerous variations because not only is it uniquely an American symbolic classic but has a historical component included.

 
At May 13, 2010 at 4:04 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Many spouses have repeated " book theme " . Not so attractive theme. I am sure there could have been more historical events to depict. I believe the themes chosen ( books, Kids, taking care of wounded) representing the secondary role of first ladies at that time. Going forward, I can predict that Michelle Obama coin will depict her talking to college students in a poor neighborhood.

 
At May 14, 2010 at 8:48 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

There won't BE a Michelle Obama coin. Most likely there will not be any Laura Bush or Hillary Clinton coins either. They all have to be dead to be on a coin. Also, Betty Ford, Rosalyn Carter, Nancy Reagan and Barbara Bush are all still living as well.

The Mint does not allow any gaps in the program, so at present it will end with Pat Nixon.

There is a possibility the Presidential Dollar and First Spouse programs might be able to continue through the Reagans or George and Barbara Bush, but they, Nancy Reagan, Jimmy and Rosalyn Carter and Betty Ford will all have to pass away before their turn comes up.

 
At May 16, 2010 at 12:16 PM , Anonymous Goldfinger said...

Just want to ask: where are all the "gold is in a bubble" idiots with their "Pop! Pop! Pop!" comments now? Hunh? Where are you, losers?? Off crying in your beer because you missed getting in on the single greatest appreciating asset in the last decade, that's where. Hahhahahahahaha

 
At May 17, 2010 at 7:28 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Don't worry, they'll resume their stupid "Pop! Pop! Pop" comments as soon as gold dips below $1,200 again. They only pay attention when the price falls a bit.

 
At May 17, 2010 at 9:32 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

GS selling for 100 $ less than the mint price on Ebay auctions.

 
At May 17, 2010 at 11:09 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

I assume "GS" means gold spouse, and if so, only the early, easier to get coins are going for that. You won't be able to get the low-mintage coins for much under the current Mint price, and sometimes they go for a LOT more.

 

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