Wednesday, January 18, 2012

2011-W Uncirculated $50 Gold Eagle Sold Out

Posted by Mint News Blog | Filed Under: Gold Eagles

Yesterday, the one ounce 2011-W Uncirculated Gold Eagle sold out on the US Mint’s website. The latest available sales figures show a strong possibility that this coin may mark a new mintage low across all American Gold Eagles.

From 2006 to 2008, the United States Mint offered collectible uncirculated versions of the American Gold Eagle, individually in four denominations or as a complete four coin set. These coins were struck on specially burnished blanks and carried the “W” mint mark. Near the end of 2008, the US Mint announced the cancellation of the fractional versions of the coins, with plans to offer only the one ounce size in the following year. This never came to pass, as high demand for bullion coins resulted in the cancellation of numismatic offerings. The one ounce collectible uncirculated Gold Eagle was similarly cancelled in 2010.

After the two year hiatus, the US Mint once again offered 2011-W Uncirculated Gold Eagle on May 5, 2011. From the outset, I had mentioned the possibility for a low mintage to occur. The collectible uncirculated coins never managed to generate the same interest level as the proof versions of the coins, and even after a two year absence, there did not seem to be a great deal of pent up demand.

The initial sales for the product came in rather low at 1,098 and proceeded at a relatively subdued level. There were some spikes in sales during the course of the offering, particularly during the unusual period when some of the US Mint’s numismatic gold coins were selling near bullion prices.

The most recent sales report, just published today shows sales for the 2011-W Uncirculated Gold Eagle at 8,810. The sales reporting date is the same day that the coins sold out, so it is possible that an updated figure may be provided next week. Also bear in mind that these are sales figures, not final audited mintage figures, which the US Mint can sometimes take years to release. However, as it currently stands, this would represent a new mintage low across all denominations and versions of the American Gold Eagle.

The three next lowest mintage Gold Eagles are shown below.

Low Mintage American Gold Eagles

2008-W $10 Uncirculated Gold Eagle 8,883
2006-W $50 Reverse Proof Gold Eagle  9,996
2007-W $25 Uncirculated Gold Eagle  11,455

 

The current mintage low 2008-W Uncirculated $10 Gold Eagle has sold for prices of more than $1,000 on the secondary market, which represents a significant increase in value for quarter ounce gold coin. If memory serves, prices didn’t reach this level until about a year after the initial sell out.

How will the 2011-W Uncirculated $50 Gold Eagle fare? There might be an immediate price bump, but in the longer term I think it will depend in great part on whether the US Mint continues to offer collectible uncirculated Gold Eagles in the coming years. If the coins continue to be offered, mintages may creep even lower for future years, particularly if gold prices continue higher. This would make the 2011-W less exceptional. However, if the US Mint discontinues the offering, this would solidify the status of the 2011-W Uncirculated Gold Eagle as the mintage low for the series, making the coin much more significant.

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Tuesday, January 17, 2012

US Mint Produces 8.2 Billion Circulating Coins in 2011

Posted by Mint News Blog | Filed Under: Coin Mintages

The US Mint has updated circulating coin production figures through the close of the 2011 calendar year.

During the month of December 2011, production was 431.78 million coins, down from the previous month’s production of 715.96 million. However, the final month of the year has typically seen minimal circulating coin production activity. In December 2010, the Mint struck only 80.2 million coins, while in December 2009, the US Mint did not report any circulating coins produced.

For the full year of 2011, circulating coin production reached just over 8.2 billion. This is an increase of 28.67% compared to production for the 2010 calendar year. The gains were primarily attributable to higher production of cents, nickels, and dimes.

2011 US Mint Coin Production Figures
Dec 2011 YTD 2011
Lincoln Cent – Denver 135.20 M 2,536.14 M
Lincoln Cent – Phil. 170.00 M 2,402.40 M
Jefferson Nickel – Denver 17.04 M 540.24 M
Jefferson Nickel – Phil. 35.04 M 450.00 M
Roosevelt Dime – Denver 42.00 M 754.00 M
Roosevelt Dime – Phil. 32.50 M 748.00 M
Quarters – Denver 0 195.00 M
Quarters – Phil. 0 196.20 M
Kennedy Half – Denver 0 1.70 M
Kennedy Half – Phil. 0 1.75 M
Native Am Dollar – Denver 0 48.16 M
Native Am Dollar – Phil. 0 29.40 M
Pres Dollar – Denver 0 148.96 M
Pres Dollar – Phil. 0 148.40 M
Total 431.78 M 8,200.35 M

Comparing 2011 coin production to the previous year, the number of cents produced across the Philadelphia and Denver Mint facilities rose by 23.13% to 4.94 billion. The number of nickels produced increased by 101.86% to 990.24 million. Both the cent and nickel cost more to produced than their respective face values, and the US Mint has indicated that demand for these two denominations is expected to increase.

Production of dimes for the full year reached 1.5 billion, representing an increase of 34.23% compared to the prior year. The number of quarters increased by 12.73%, but still remains at a historically low annual total of 391.2 million. Half Dollar production was essentially flat at 3.45 million.

Dollar coin production for the 2011 calendar year reached 374.92 million, down 6.79% from the previous year. Production levels will almost certainly experience a sharp decline in the coming year, following the announcement of the suspension of production of Presidential Dollars for circulation.

No changes occurred to the figures breaking down production by individual design for the 2011 Presidential Dollars and 2011 America the Beautiful Quarters. The final figures are provided below.

2011 US Mint Coin Production by Design
Denver Phil. Total
Gettysburg Quarter 30.80 M 30.40 M 61.20 M
Glacier Quarter 31.20 M 30.40 M 61.60 M
Olympic Quarter 30.60 M 30.40 M 61.00 M
Vicksburg Quarter 33.40 M 30.80 M 64.20 M
Chickasaw Quarter 69.40 M 73.80 M 143.20 M
Andrew Johnson Dollar 37.10 M 35.56 M 72.66 M
Ulysses S. Grant Dollar 37.94 M 38.08 M 76.02 M
Rutherd Hayes Dollar 36.82 M 37.66 M 74.48 M
James Garfield Dollar 37.10 M 37.10 M 74.20 M

Gold and Platinum Numismatic Product Prices

Based on the available data, it seems likely that the price for the 2011 Proof Platinum Eagle will be increased tomorrow. Depending on tomorrow’s London Fix prices, a price increase may also be possible for gold numismatic products.

The average price of platinum for the weekly period is in the middle of the US Mint’s $1450 to $1549.99 pricing tier, which is one level higher than the tier currently in effect. Since December 21, the 2011 Proof Platinum Eagle has been priced at $1,692, representing the lowest price during the course of the offering. The likely increase would bring the price to $1,792.

For the available data, the average gold price for the weekly period is just below $1,650. If tomorrow’s London AM Fix price comes in at $1,656.50 or higher and the PM Fix price is above $1,650, then the criteria would be met for a price increase. Prices for the 2011-W Uncirculated Gold Eagle, 2011 Proof Gold Eagle, 2011 Proof Gold Buffalo, and First Spouse Gold Coins would be increased proportionally by $50 for each ounce of gold content.

The 2011-W Uncirculated Gold Eagle has sold out at the US Mint. More on this tomorrow…

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Tuesday, January 17, 2012

2012 America the Beautiful Quarters Proof Set

Posted by Mint News Blog | Filed Under: America the Beautiful Quarters, Annual Sets

Today, January 17, 2012 at 12:00 Noon ET, the United States Mint will begin sales of the 2012 America the Beautiful Quarters Proof Set. This set contains proof versions of each of this year’s quarters struck at the San Francisco Mint.

Each set includes the following five coins:

  • 2012-S El Yunque National Forest Quarter
  • 2012-S Chaco Culture National Historical Park Quarter
  • 2012-S Acadia National Park Quarter
  • 2012-S Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park Quarter
  • 2012-S Denali National Park and Preserve Quarter

Each coin is struck in the standard copper-nickel clad composition also used for circulating coinage. The US Mint previously released a separate set containing 90% proof versions of the coins on January 10.

The 2012 America the Beautiful Quarters Proof Set is priced at $14.95, unchanged from the prior year. There is no stated maximum mintage or ordering limit imposed.

This product will represent the first opportunity for collectors to acquire the clad proof versions of this year’s quarters. They will later be available within the full annual set, which does not yet have a release date announced. Last year, the order of release was the opposite, which likely had a negative impact on sales of the five quarter set.

The 2011 ATB Quarters Proof Set, which still remains available for sale at the Mint, has sold 139,672 units as of the most recent sales report. This is a little bit more than half the level of the 2010-dated set.

17 Comments
Friday, January 13, 2012

US Mint 2011 Annual Report

Posted by Mint News Blog | Filed Under: US Mint

The United States Mint’s annual report for the 2011 fiscal year recently became available. Over the past two weeks, I have been reviewing the results in detail for Coin Update News. Visit this article for an overview and links to the subsequent articles with detailed coverage by segment.

For Mint News Blog, I wanted to provide a brief overview of the results and some important revelations that were made within the report. All figures and results are for the US Mint’s fiscal year ending September 30, 2011.

On an overall basis, the US Mint’s revenue increased by 27.87% to $4.97 billion. Seigniorage and net income increased by 30.06% to $527.8 million.

Looking at the results by segment, circulating coin shipments experienced a unit volume increase of 37% to 7.40 billion coins. The peak annual shipment of circulating coins was 27 billion coins in FY 2000. The recent low was 5.2 billion in FY 2009.

Bullion coin sales achieved record highs for unit volume, revenue, and net income. The US Mint sold 45.2 million ounces of gold and silver bullion coins, up 26.2% from the prior year. Revenue was $3.47 billion, an increase of 21.6% from the prior year. Net income was 65.8 million, up 19.2% from the prior year.

Numismatic program increased by 74.7% to reach record $721.7 million. Net income and seigniorage increased by 127.3% to reach $113.2 million. The increase in revenue was driven by the sale of both 2010 and 2011-dated numismatic Gold and Silver Eagles during the fiscal year. Net income benefited from a shift in sales towards higher margin precious metals products.

The unit cost to produce and manufacture the cent reached a new high of 2.41 cents, and the cost of the nickel rose to 11.18 cents. Meanwhile, the unit cost of the $1 coin dropped to 18.03 cents. During the previous fiscal year the costs were 1.79 cents for the cent, 9.22 cents for the nickel, and 31.57 cents for the $1 coin. The changes were the result of differences in metal costs as well as a change in the method of allocation for sales, general & administrative expenses.

The US Mint is evaluating the optimum way to bring back American Platinum Eagle bullion coins in 2012. The bullion versions of the coin have not been minted or issued since 2008.

The required study to determine the financial viability of palladium bullion coins “will soon begin”. The bullion and possible numismatic American Palladium Eagles will only be issued if the study determines that there is adequate demand to ensure that the  coins can be minted and issued at no net cost to taxpayers.

The US Mint plans to offer a 2012-S Uncirculated Silver Eagle. This will be in addition to the collectible uncirculated version with the “W” mint mark.

Although seigniorage and net income were $527.8 million, the US Mint transferred only $51 million to the Treasury General Fund citing uncertainties in future cash flow from circulating coin operations.

Customer satisfaction improved for the numismatic business. 91.7% of customers rated the Mint favorably, compared to 86.1% in the previous year. The US Mint attributed the better performance to the return of the numismatic versions of the Gold and Silver Eagles.

The US Mint did not fully comply with the requirements of the Native American $1 Coin Act, which requires at least 20% of all $1 coins minted and issued in any year to be Native American Dollars. During the 2010 calendar year, Native American Dollars accounted for 20.1% of all $1 coins produced, but only 12.5% of all $1 coins issued.

Deputy Director Richard A. Peterson had some interesting comments with regards to circulating coinage:

“…we also need to understand the broader trends, dynamics, and realities of today’s economic environment–more so now than at any other time in recent Mint history. Specifically, we need to focus on the metals composition and purchasing power of our circulating coins. Every few generations the nation adjusts the metals content (and occasionally the actual denominations, physical size, and weight) of its circulating coins.”

He goes on to discuss the Coin Modernization, Oversight, and Continuity Act of 2010 which authorized research and development of new metals formulations for circulating coins and requires the submission of a report to Congress by December 2012. Peterson said, “We are clearly focused on delivering to Congress a thorough, well-researched report that provides a prudent framework for future legislation to modernize our nation’s circulating coins.”

Although the ultimate authority to make any changes will rest with Congress, the US Mint seems to be looking for a major overhaul.

The US Mint’s 2011 Annual Report is not yet posted on their website, however, a copy accessed on the Treasury site here.

44 Comments
Thursday, January 12, 2012

Vicksburg Five Ounce Silver Uncirculated Coins

Posted by Mint News Blog | Filed Under: America the Beautiful Quarters

Today January 12, 2012 at 12:00 Noon ET, the United States Mint will begin sales of the 2011-P Vicksburg National Military Park Five Ounce Silver Uncirculated Coins.

The reverse design of the coin features the U.S.S. Cairo on the Yazoo River as it would have appeared while serving the Union Navy during the Civil War. This image is intended to be representative of Vicksburg national Military Park in Mississippi. The reverse was designed by Thomas Cleveland and sculpted by Joseph Menna. The obverse features the 1932 portrait of George Washington designed by John Flanagan.

Each coin is struck in five troy ounces of .999 fine silver and has a diameter of three inches. The coins carry an uncirculated finish created through a vapor blasting technique and contain the “P” mint mark. Both of these characteristics differentiate the coins from the bullion version of the coin released during 2011.

The Vicksburg Five Ounce Silver Uncirculated Coins are limited to a total mintage of 35,000 coins. For the start of sales the US Mint is imposing an ordering limit of five per household.

The coins will be priced at $204.95 each, which will be the lowest starting price so far for the numismatic series. The first release of the series were priced at $279.95 each. The price level was lowered to $229.95, and later $204.95.

The most recent price was established by publication in the Federal Register dated December 30, 2011, although the price change was made effective for available designs on December 27. On these two dates, the price of silver was $28.65 and $28.18. Since the start of the new year, silver has moved higher with the current price at $30.60.

If the upswing in silver continues a suspension and repricing for the ATB Five Ounce Silver Coins becomes a possibility. The US Mint has not publicly stated their criteria for pricing changes to these products, rather they keep catching many collectors by surprise.

The other numismatic five ounce silver coins still available for sale at the Mint include the designs for Gettysburg National Military Park, Glacier National Park, and Olympic National Park. Each is priced at $204.95.

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