Dollars, gold wanted at Long Beach
Dealer’s demand for key dates, silver dollars and gold coins made for a wholesale market at Long Beach Expo, which was held June 9-11 in Long Beach, Calif.
The Long Beach Expo had an active wholesale coin market where dollars and gold were in demand.
Matt Crane of L&C Coins, Los Alamitos, Calif., said the show was a typical Long Beach Expo.
“There was a good crowd on Thursday. Friday was a little slower but picked up,” he said. “The vibe was positive.”
He said their business at the show focuses on wholesale deals.
“We had luck with dealers looking to buy key dates for their inventories,” he said. “Everything from cents through dollars.”
Harry Miller, owner of Miller’s Mint, Patchogue, N.Y., said foot traffic into the show was about the same as past years’ shows.
“The retail market was quiet,” he said. “Wholesale business was about normal. We bought a large quantity of material.”
He said while bulk wholesale was cheaper than it has been in the past, quality rare coins were in demand.
“Nice coins are difficult to find wholesale,” he said. “Coins like Walking Liberty halves, Barber coinage and Seated Liberty coinage. I did buy an uncirculated 1833 $2.50, which is a very tough coin.”
David Leventhal, owner of Beantown Coins, Hingham, Mass., said the show’s first day started well, but slowed down Friday and Saturday.
“Thursday was a very good day,” he said. “We did quite a bit of wholesale. About 10 percent of sales were retail. I was jubilant on Thursday.
“I was astonished that Friday was a different day for dealers. There was only half of the retail traffic we saw on Thursday and wholesale business was down as well.”
He said the lack of strong retail traffic is due mostly to the season and buyers’ motivations.
“The June Long Beach Expo can be slower,” he said. “The summer season is here so a lot of people are on vacation or not willing to work as hard on coins.”
Dealers can overcome the smaller retail foot traffic by offering more material for sale, he said.
“We sold U.S. and foreign coins plus ancients,” he said. “If you have a variety of different material, you saw retail traffic.”
On the wholesale market, dealers wanted dollars and gold, he said.
“Wholesale dealers wanted Morgan and Peace dollars as well as gold coins,” he said. “There were dealers asking about Indian Head gold coins.”
Jack Beymer, owner of Jack H. Beymer Rare Coins, Santa Rosa, Calif., said retail buyers showed up, but kept their money in their pockets.
“There wasn’t much retail activity,” he said. “Wholesale was good. We brought gold pre-1933 U.S. coins both certified and raw and sold them there.
“As usual, it was a well run and advertised show.”
While it appears retail activity is quiet going into summer, the June Long Beach Expo reveals the wholesale market is as active as ever for quality coins.
The next Long Beach Expo is slated for Sept. 8-10.
This article was originally printed in Numismatic News.
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