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Silver Eagle Sales Tumble in June, Silver Soars in 2nd Quarter
July 1, 2014 by Darrin Lee Unser · Leave a Comment
Silver market gains in June reversed three months of declines and jumped in the second quarter but, on the flip side, demand tumbled for bullion 2014 American Silver Eagles. Silver Eagle sales in June were at their lowest levels in over six months.
Silver prices surged 12.7% in June and 6.6% in second quarter yet Silver Eagle sales tumbled below 3 million for the month for the first time since December.
As for the precious metal itself, silver futures shot up 12.7% in June, aided by multiple small increases during the period. Those gains pushed the second quarter into positive territory with an increase of 6.6%.
Silver for September delivery ended Monday, the final trading day of June, of the second quarter and of the first half of the year, at $21.06 an ounce. For the year to date, the white metal tallied gains totaling 8.7%.
Other precious metals futures settled at and notched monthly and quarterly gains of:
- Gold at $1,322.00 an ounce rose 6.1% in June and 2.98% for the quarter
- Palladium hit $843.15 an ounce, increasing 0.8% for the month and 8.5% for the quarter
- Platinum at $1,482.90 an ounce rose 2.1% in June and 4.4% in the quarter
For the first half the year, gold jumped 10%, palladium increased by 17.4% and platinum advanced 7.9%.
London Fix Silver Prices
Across the sea, silver was also up as the silver Fix in London ended June at $20.87 an ounce. This equates to a monthly increase of $1.87 from its position at the end up May, gaining 9.8% in June. For the quarter, silver rose 4.5%. It logged a gain of 7% in the first half of 2014.
In other London precious metals fixings:
- Gold at $1,315.00 an ounce increased 5.2% in June and 1.8% for the quarter
- Palladium at $844.00 an ounce rose 1% for the month and 8.5% in the second quarter
- Platinum at $1,480.00 an ounce tallied a monthly gain of 1.1% and an increase of 4.4% for the quarter
Precious metals fixings registered year-to-date gains of 9.5% for gold, 18.7% for palladium, and 9% for platinum.
United States Mint Sales of Bullion Silver Coins
Sales of bullion 2014 American Silver Eagles pulled back in June with just 2,692,000 sold. It marked the first time the 99.9% fine silver coins did not reach the three million threshold since sales ended early in December when the 2013-dated issues sold out.
2014 Monthly American Silver Eagle Sales
| January | 4,775,000 |
| February | 3,750,000 |
| March | 5,354,000 |
| April | 3,569,000 |
| May | 3,988,500 |
| June | 2,692,000 |
Sales for the bullion Silver Eagles through the first half of 2014 hit 24,128,500. For comparison, 2013 sales in the January through June reached 25,043,500. 2013 would go on to shatter the record books to attain the best year ever for Eagle sales with a total of 42,675,000. Prior to the June slump, 2014 was on track to break that record. Silver Eagle sales have actually been slumping since mid-May.
Sales of America the Beautiful Five Ounce Silver Bullion Coins
Aided in large part by Arches National Park Silver Coins that launched on June 9, overall sales of America the Beautiful Five Ounce Coins advanced 21,400 last month. Of that amount, 18,500 can be attributed to the Arches coin. Shown below are the current sales for the 2014 America the Beautiful Silver Coins.
- 2014 Great Smoky Mountains National Park 5 Ounce Silver Coins at 29,000
- 2014 Shenandoah National Park 5 Ounce Silver Coins at 20,000
- 2014 Arches National Park 5 Ounce Silver Coins at 18,500
- 2014 Great Sand Dunes National Park 5 Ounce Silver Coins (upcoming)
- 2014 Everglades National Park 5 Ounce Silver Coins (upcoming)
Melt Values of US Silver Coins
Common US silver coins are sought after by not only collectors, but also investors. Their compositions of silver offer investors an opportunity to hold coins with intrinsic melt values in addition to their face values or any associated numismatic values. As such, the chart below shows the change in those melt values over the last month. (SilverCoinsToday.com also offers a melt calculator for more personal comparisons.)
| US Silver Coins | Silver Coin Melt Values (5/30/2014) | Silver Coin Melt Values (6/30/2014) | Net Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1942-1945 Jefferson Silver Nickels | $1.07 | $1.17 | $0.10 |
| 1892-1916 Barber Silver Dimes | $1.37 | $1.51 | $0.14 |
| 1916-1945 Mercury Silver Dimes | $1.37 | $1.51 | $0.14 |
| 1946-1964 Roosevelt Silver Dimes | $1.37 | $1.51 | $0.14 |
| 1892-1916 Barber Silver Quarters | $3.44 | $3.77 | $0.33 |
| 1916-1930 Standing Silver Liberty 25c | $3.44 | $3.77 | $0.33 |
| 1932-1964 Washington Silver Quarters | $3.44 | $3.77 | $0.33 |
| 1892-1915 Barber Silver Halves | $6.87 | $7.55 | $0.68 |
| 1916-1947 Walking Liberty 50c | $6.87 | $7.55 | $0.68 |
| 1948-1963 Franklin 50c | $6.87 | $7.55 | $0.68 |
| 1964 Kennedy Half Dollars | $6.87 | $7.55 | $0.68 |
| 1965-1970 Kennedy Half Dollars | $2.81 | $3.09 | $0.04 |
| 1878-1921 Morgan Silver Dollars | $14.70 | $16.14 | $0.28 |
| 1921-1935 Peace Silver Dollars | $14.70 | $16.14 | $0.28 |
| 1971-1976 Silver Eisenhower $1s | $6.01 | $6.60 | $0.59 |
| 1986-2013 American Eagles | $19.00 | $20.87 | $1.87 |
| 2010-2014 ATB Silver Coins | $95.00 | $104.35 | $9.35 |
The melt values of these silver coins are based on the London silver fix prices at the end of May and June 2014.
