Can lower price be good?

There is a silver lining in the recent declines in the prices of precious metals – in this instance literally.

The Mint has postponed today’s introduction of the 5-ounce America the Beautiful uncirculated collector coin with a “P” mintmark for the purpose of repricing.

This coin honoring the Great Basin National Park will be the third design of five to be issued in 2013.

Prompting the delay is the operation of the Mint’s cumbersome repricing process that involves publishing new prices in the Federal Register.

The two 2013 5-ounce coins already being offered, the Perry’s Victory and International Peace Memorial and the White Mountain National Forest, are offered for $179.95.

They, too, will probably be repriced at a lower level along with other Mint products containing silver.

At the present $18.80 price of an ounce of silver, the bullion value of a 5-ounce ATB coin is $90.90.

For collectors who want to buy the latest coins for the lowest possible price, this is good news. Those who have already purchased the pieces offered earlier will be less cheerful about it.

Buzz blogger Dave Harper is editor of the weekly newspaper "Numismatic News."