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Silver is winning market
share from gold buyers.
2008 - In March 2008, sales increased
nine times over the month before - 200,000 to 1,855,000.
In April 2008, the United
States Mint had to start an allocation program, effectively rationing Silver
Eagle bullion coins to authorized dealers on a weekly basis due to
"unprecedented demand."
On June 6, 2008, the Mint
announced that all incoming silver planchets were
being used to produce only bullion issues of the Silver Eagle and not proof
or uncirculated collectible issues.
The 2008 Proof Silver
Eagle became unavailable for purchase from the United States Mint in August
2008. The US Mint suspended sales of the silver bullion coins to its network
of authorized purchasers twice during the year.
20,583,000 Bullion
American Silver Eagles were sold in 2008. Silver averaged $14.99 an ounce and
almost 80 percent more American Silver Eagles were sold then in any previous
year.
“During 2008 there
was a record inflow of over 93.1 million ounces (Moz)
into the three main silver ETFs.Coins and medals
fabrication jumped by an astonishing 63% to a record of 64.9 Moz. The main
reason for this was a surge in investment-related purchases of bullion coins,
both in the United States and Europe. Notably, fabrication of the U.S. Silver
Eagle bullion coin achieved a record 19.6 Moz,
approximately double the 2007 figure, and would have been higher if the U.S.
Mint had sufficient blanks to produce coins to meet demand.” silverinstitute.org
2009 - 30,459,000 Bullion American Silver
Eagles were sold.
On March 5, 2009, the
United States Mint announced that the proof and uncirculated versions of the
Silver Eagle coin for that year were temporarily suspended due to continuing
high demand for the bullion version.
On October 6, 2009, the
Mint announced that the collectible versions of the Silver Eagle coin would
not be produced for 2009.
The sale of 2009 Silver
Eagle bullion coins was suspended from November 24 to December 6 and the
allocation program was re-instituted on December 7.
Total ETF holdings rose
by 132.5 Moz and ended the year at 397.8 Moz. Coins
and medals fabrication rose 21 percent to post a new record of 78.7 Moz.
Silver Eagle bullion
coins sold out on January 12, 2010.
The average cost of an
ounce of silver in 2009 was $14.67
 2010 - No proof Silver Eagles were
released through the first ten months of the year, and there was a complete
cancellation of the uncirculated Silver Eagles.
Production of the 2010
Silver Eagle bullion coins began in January instead of December as usual. The
coins were distributed to authorized dealers under an allocation program
until September 3.
Silver posted an average
price of $20.19 in 2010. World investment rose by an
40 percent in 2010 to 279.3 million troy ounces (Moz).
“Exchange traded
funds (ETFs) registered another sterling performance in 2010, with global ETF
holdings reaching an impressive 582.6 Moz,
representing an increase of 114.9 Moz over the
total in 2009. A significant boost in retail silver investment demand paved
the way for higher investment in both physical bullion bars and in coins and
medals in 2010. Physical bullion bars accounted for 55.6 Moz
of the world investment in 2010. Coins and medals fabrication rose by 28% to
post a new record of 101.3 Moz. In the United States, over 34.6 million U.S.
Silver Eagle coins were minted, smashing the previous record set in 2009 at
almost 29 million.” silverinstitute.org
2011 - Silver posted an annual average
price of $35.12 in 2011, more than double the $14.67 average price for 2009.
Global investment in
silver bars and coins & medals produced yet another historic high of
282.2 million ounces - the equivalent of $10 billion, itself a record high.
Physical silver bar
investment grew by 67 percent in 2011 to 95.7 million ounces, global coins
& medals fabrication rose by roughly 19 percent to an all-time high of
118.2 million ounces.
The US imported 6,600,000
oz of silver for consumption in 2011 – up from
2007’s imports of 4,830,000 oz.
In 2011 the US Mint sold
40,020,000 Bullion American Silver Eagle Coins.
As a general rule,
the most successful man in life is the man who has the best information
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