2016 Silver Eagles Top 27.4M; Ordering Limits Ended

Members of the United States Mint’s network of bullion distributors can now order as many American Silver Eagles as they want.

2016 sales of bullion American Silver Eagles total 27,445,500

The U.S. Mint on Monday, July 18, halted its allocation system that limited how many sold each week because of a shortage of silver planchets needed to make the 99.9% pure silver coins. The U.S. Mint sent its authorized distributors the following notice:

"We are pleased to announce after 28 weeks of allocation in 2016, effective Monday, July 18, 2016, we have lifted allocation of American Eagle Silver Bullion Coins. Authorized Purchasers may purchase as many American Eagle Silver Bullion Coins they desire. The United States Mint will continue to monitor its American Eagle Silver Bullion Coin demand and adjust its bullion coin production accordingly."

Authorized Purchasers order U.S. Mint bullion coins in bulk and then resell them in smaller quantities.

Weekly ordering limits had been in place since the newly 2016-dated Silver Eagles went on sale January 11, 2016. The weekly allocation level had been rising for some time, however, as the summer doldrums kicked in and more and more of the coins went unsold. The U.S. Mint this year has been producing about 1 million new Silver Eagles each week, but last week’s allocation level was up to 3,649,500 coins.

Year-to-date sales of the bullion 2016 American Silver Eagles reached 27,445,500 as of Wednesday afternoon. The level is 12% higher than during the same time in record year 2015. Last year, the U.S. Mint sold 47 million coins in total. The U.S. Mint had also lifted ordering restrictions in the summer of 2015 but then Silver Eagle demand spiked and limits returned in about a month.