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US Mint Bullion Silver Coins Pad Record, Silver Tumbles in November
December 1, 2013 by Darrin Lee Unser · Leave a Comment
Silver ended November sharply lower, sinking prices further into the red for 2013. Meanwhile, sales of United States Mint bullion silver coins took American Silver Eagles to a new record and saw several other products reach sooner-than-expected sellouts.
Silver prices tumbled in November. In sales of U.S. Mint bullion silver coins for the month, there was a new record set and some sell outs.
Closing the month for trading on Friday, Nov. 29, silver futures for March delivery settled at $20.03 an ounce on the Comex in New York. This marked a 35¢, or 1.8%, increase from the prior Wednesday session. Trading volume was thin on Friday with many investors taking an extended break after the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday on Thursday.
Despite the gain, silver price fell in November by a hefty $1.83, or 8.4%. The list of negative months for the precious metal this year outnumbers the positive ones. Other monthly declines in 2013 include February (-9.3%), March (-0.4%), April (-14.6%), May (-8%), June (-12.5%) and September (-7.7%). Gaining months include January (3.7%), July (0.8%), August (19.8%) and October (0.7%).
For the year to date, silver has plunged $10.20, or 33.7%. This is based on the last trading day of 2012 when the white metal settled at $30.23 an ounce.
In other New York precious metals futures:
- Gold for February delivery at $1,250.40 an ounce declined in November by $73.30, or 5.5%.
- January platinum settled to $1,368.80 an ounce, marking a monthly loss of $79.60, or 5.5%.
- Palladium for March delivery at $719.65 an ounce declined in November by $17.15, or 2.3%.
Gold and platinum are also down for the year, realizing respective losses of 25.4% and 11.3%. Alone among precious metals, palladium has advanced 2.3% this year.
London Fix Silver Prices
The London Fix for silver also climbed Friday with an increase of 17¢, or 0.9%, bringing it to $19.93 an ounce.
For November, silver prices fell $2.27, or 10.2%. Year to date results are also significantly negative with a drop of $10.02, or 33.5%.
Other results for London precious metal fixings include:
- Gold at $1,253 an ounce shed $71, or 5.4%, in November and has tumbled $411, or 24.7%, for the year.
- Platinum at $1,376 an ounce lost $74, or 5.1%, for the month and $147, or 9.7%, for the year so far.
- Palladium at $724 an ounce dropped $18, or 2.4%, in November. Year to date, the precious metal has gained $25, or 3.6%.
United States Mint Bullion Silver Coins
November sales of bullion American Silver Eagles fell brutally as the United States Mint sharply limited orders to reserve coin blanks for next year’s 2014-dated coins. (Typically, the US Mint after Thanksgiving begins striking Silver Eagles with the next year’s date.) In November, sales of the silver bullion coins rose 2,300,000, the smallest monthly total since December 2012.
Despite the strong rationing and modest monthly total compared to prior months from this year, Silver Eagle sales hit a new record on Nov. 12 with over 40 million sold. That record has since been padded with sales for the year now up to 41,475,000, easily smashing the old 2011 annual record of 39,868,500.
The top five years for Silver Eagles is shown in the chart below:
Top 5 Annual Sales Years for American Eagle Silver Bullion Coins
| Rank | Year | Annual Sales |
| 1 | 2013 | 41,475,000 |
| 2 | 2011 | 39,868,500 |
| 3 | 2010 | 34,662,500 |
| 4 | 2012 | 33,742,500 |
| 5 | 2009 | 28,766,500 |
The 2013 total will continue to grow until the Mint issues its last weekly allocation of 2013-dated bullion Silver Eagles on Monday, Dec. 9, 2013. Orders for the 2014-dated bullion coins will be accepted beginning on Monday, Jan.13, 2014.
Sales of America the Beautiful Five Ounce Bullion Silver Coins
2013 America the Beautiful Silver Bullion Coins realized gains in November of 39,100 compared to 6,600 in October. This increase was spread across four different designs:
- 2013 Perry’s Victory 5 Ounce Silver Coins added 900 to 27,100.
- 2013 Great Basin 5 Ounce Silver Coins climbed 1,400 to 28,600.
- 2013 Fort McHenry 5 Ounce Silver Coins gained 1,800 to 30,000.
- 2013 Mount Rushmore 5 Ounce Silver Coins advanced 35,000 to 35,000.
Three of the five 2013-dated strikes have now attained a sell-out with two of them happening in November. 2013 White Mountain silver coins were marked as sold-out in September when the last of the 35,000 mintage were ordered. All 30,000 of the Fort McHenry strikes sold out by Nov. 19, 2013. Also selling out were the latest 2013 Mount Rushmore silver coins. Released on Nov. 4, 2013, their entire mintage of 35,000 sold out on Nov. 22, 2013.
For the year to date, the United States Mint has recorded sales of 155,700 for the 2013 America the Beautiful Bullion Silver Coins. Adding in the 63,100 from the 2012 America the Beautiful Bullion Silver Coins that sold earlier in the year gives the combined total of 218,800 coins, or 1,094,000 ounces.
Melt Values of US Silver Coins
Along with the decline in the silver market, melt values of US silver coins also fell. Those monthly losses along with declines seen in their values year-to-date are shown in the chart below. The chart bases the melt values on the silver content of each coin.
| US Silver Coins | Silver Coin Melt Values (12/31/2012) | Silver Coin Melt Values (11/31/2013) | Net Change in October | Net Change YTD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1942-1945 Jefferson Nickels | $1.68 | $1.12 | -$0.13 | -$0.56 |
| 1892-1916 Barber Dimes | $2.17 | $1.44 | -$0.16 | -$0.72 |
| 1916-1945 Mercury Dimes | $2.17 | $1.44 | -$0.16 | -$0.72 |
| 1946-1964 Roosevelt Dimes | $2.17 | $1.44 | -$0.16 | -$0.72 |
| 1892-1916 Barber Quarters | $5.42 | $3.60 | -$0.41 | -$1.81 |
| 1916-1930 Standing Liberty 25c | $5.42 | $3.60 | -$0.41 | -$1.81 |
| 1932-1964 Washington Quarters | $5.42 | $3.60 | -$0.41 | -$1.81 |
| 1892-1915 Barber Half Dollars | $10.83 | $7.21 | -$0.82 | -$3.62 |
| 1916-1947 Walking Liberty 50c | $10.83 | $7.21 | -$0.82 | -$3.62 |
| 1948-1963 Franklin 50c | $10.83 | $7.21 | -$0.82 | -$3.62 |
| 1964 Kennedy Half Dollars | $10.83 | $7.21 | -$0.82 | -$3.62 |
| 1965-1970 Kennedy Half Dollars | $4.43 | $2.95 | -$0.34 | -$1.48 |
| 1878-1921 Morgan Dollars | $23.16 | $15.41 | -$1.76 | -$7.75 |
| 1921-1935 Peace Dollars | $23.16 | $15.41 | -$1.76 | -$7.75 |
| 1971-1976 Silver Eisenhower $1s | $9.47 | $6.30 | -$0.72 | -$3.17 |
| 1986-2013 American Eagles | $29.95 | $19.93 | -$2.27 | -$10.02 |
| 2010-2013 ATB Silver Coins | $149.75 | $99.65 | -$11.35 | -$50.10 |
Melt values are based on the London silver fix prices at the end of 2012 and the end of November 2013.
