Summer slowdown keeps lid on transactions

It’s arrived. Welcome to the summer slowdown. Or perhaps it is better to say the unwelcome summer slowdown for those in the coin business.

During June, July and August prior to the American Numismatic Association convention, the market for coins typically slows. This year is no exception.

The price of most coins remains steady. There is no pattern of a significant increase or decrease in prices for any specific coin series on the horizon. The spot prices of gold and silver bullion continue to trade in a tight range below where they were only two months earlier. There is a lot of hype from precious metal promoters, but there is no indication of future price appreciation on the horizon.

This trend will continue to impact common date, common condition coins valued primarily for their intrinsic content, but even here the recent fluctuations point towards more declines. The downside to this is for the person selling such material to a coin dealer. Dealers are tending to be more sensitive to the price of bullion when buying than when selling. Retail prices for the same coins are remaining steady even when the price of their metal content declines.

Rare coins appear to be in a separate world, this being where most increases are appearing. This is an entirely different clientele, more oblivious to their discretionary income. This is also an area where dealer-to-dealer transactions are more commonplace. It will likely be the ANA convention that will kick off a new season. In the meantime, “steady as she goes” is the trend.

More Collecting Resources

• Download The Metal Mania Seminar with David Harper to learn more about the metals market.

• Are you a U.S. coin collector? Check out the 2018 U.S. Coin Digest for the most recent coin prices.