Gold regains sparkle in buyers’ eyes

Somebody got the message. The U.S. Mint’s sales of gold American Eagle coins spiked by 433 percent between April and May, according to information released May 31 by the Mint. This is the highest monthly sales gain since 2015. Unfortunately, Mint-produced silver American Eagle sales were down 85 percent from the same period one year earlier.

Remember platinum? Buyers returned to action in this area. There were 10,000 ounces of platinum American Eagles sold. These were the first ones vended since the month of February, when 20,000 of these one-ounce coins went out the door.

The spot price of each of the precious metals remained in a tight trading range during this period.

Could collectors be missing the boat? Should they be scrambling to buy now? The value of most generic collectible coins remains flat. Even scarce to rare coins seldom set record prices.

The World Gold Council recently reported a significant increase in gold coin purchases in Turkey due to the uncertainty surrounding its upcoming presidential elections. Inflation is rising there, another sure motivation to buy gold.

Then there is the “Markle Sparkle.” The former Meghan Markle, now Duchess of Sussex, recently told the British Broadcasting Service that she prefers gold jewelry. A May 25 Reuters interview of several jewelers indicated this has increased sales.

The question for coin collectors is just how far will this go in spurring demand for gold bullion? Will this newfound interest in gold spill over into silver coins? Will it help bring the investor back to coins?

More Collecting Resources

• Is that coin in your hand the real deal or a clever fake? Discover the difference with U.S. Coins Close Up, a one-of-a-kind visual guide to every U.S. coin type.

• If you enjoy reading about what inspires coin designs, you'll want to check out Fascinating Facts, Mysteries & Myths about U.S. Coins.