Gold and The Economy in 2009

Investing in 2008 proved to be difficult. Stocks, commodities, real estate and other investments took a beating. The real estate bubble was to blame for most of the declines. What is the next big surprise in 2009? What can you do to protect your money? What many people did in the past; buy gold and silver.

There is a short supply of retail silver and gold. Coin stores and bullion suppliers are not able to keep up with demand. Online metals dealers are running out of product as soon as they post their inventories. Many coin shops have no inventory or very little to speak of. A flight to quality is taking place.

Why are people buying gold? The answer is quite simple; gold is worth more than paper. If an economy’s money becomes worthless or there is out of control inflation, gold will hold its value. Gold can’t be printed or digitized into existence. As the government creates money out of thin air it becomes less valuable. Every time there is a new bailout and the government creates money, your money becomes more inflated. The $100 dollars in your bank account becomes $75. The same $100 in gold becomes $125. You retain your purchasing power by owning gold.

The paper market price for gold and the physical price for gold is very different. You will pay 10 per cent or more for real gold. Remember paper can be inflated. Real physical gold can’t be inflated. Keep this in mind when buying gold. Many dealers will try to sell pool account gold. A pool account is when the dealer holds the gold for you and sends you a statement. Is the gold really there or is the dealer selling you paper? Do the research before you buy.

2008 Silver American Eagle Bullion Video

2008 Coco Chanel Gold 5 Euro Coin

The Coco Chanel coin is scheduled to be released in late December with an issue limit of 500 coins. The coin will be made of 92% gold and weigh 8.45 grams. The coin will be minted by Monnaie de Paris. Below are pictures from the Royal Scandinavian Mint of the new Coco Chanel euro coin.

More Information

The District of Columbia and United States Territories Quarter Program

In 2009, the United States Mint will mint and issue six quarter-dollar coins in honor of the District of Columbia and the five United States Territories.

The quarter-dollars will be released in the following order

1. The District of Columbia
2. The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
3. Guam
4. American Samoa
5. The United States Virgin Islands
6. The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands

Coin Specifications

• Standard Weight = 5.670g
• Standard Diameter = 0.955 in (24.26mm)
• Thickness = 1.75 mm
• Edge = Reeded
• Composition = Cupro-Nickel Clad (8.33% Nickel, Balance Cu)

We will post pictures as soon as the mint makes them available.

Don’t sell that old coin collection.

During these hard economic times many people have been doing anything to make ends meet. There are more people selling than buying. The stores are filled with products and no shoppers. Visit the local mall and you will know what I am talking about.

There are not many serious coin collectors left today. Well at least not as many as I can remember. My own story is a great example of a part time collector. My father left me his coin collection when he passed. I really did not pay much attention to the coins until I needed money. I researched the coins and had a pretty good idea what they were worth. Then the moment of truth, I tried to sell them. I went to a local coin shop and presented my coins to the owner. He was interested, and gave me an offer, it was way too low. I walked away with my collection intact and put it back into storage. That was around 6 years ago.

Today when I check the value of my father’s old coin colletion, It is worth about 3 times more. The coin collection held its value better than my 401k and other market investments. Then I did some math. I took the total amount of money that I invested in the markets and hypothetically plugged the numbers into a coin collection. I would have actually made money with the coins.

Think twice before selling that coin collection and do the research. I am not a professional investor and I don’t really know what I am talking about. That was my disclaimer. I am just giving a personal account based on what happened to me.

WorldCoinData

Are you ready for the new Lincoln penny in 2009 ?

The Lincoln penny is getting a face lift. In 2009 there will be four different designs released over the course of the year. One new penny design will be release every 3 months. The new pennies will celebrates the 200th anniversary of Lincolns birth and the 100th year of the Lincoln penny’s release.

Start looking for the new pennies on February 12, 2009. Happy collecting.

U.S. State Quarter Collecting

The last of the state quarters was issued in November ending a ten year program. Delaware was the first and Hawaii the last state quarter released in the State Quarters Program. Many people have collected the unique coins over the years and are sad to see the program over. However, Are they worth anything ? Complete collections are always worth more than individual coins and attract a higher price. When evaluating your collection keep in mind a few facts.

1. The state quarters have very high mintage numbers and do not hold a precious metal value.
2. Modern coins from circulation are only worth face value. The exception to this rule is a miss strike or a die error.
3. Uncirculated or perfect coins are worth more. MS-68 or better grade coins.
4. Mint sets issued form the U.S. mint have a higher value, especially the coins struck in silver.
5. Be wary of the painted state quarters. Many coin collectors do not put a higher value on these coins.
6. Most important: A coin is only worth what a collector will pay for it. The best reason to collect coins is for enjoyment.

For information about individual state quarters please look at the links below.

(1999) State Quarters (2000) State Quarters
(2001) State Quarters (2002) State Quarters
(2003) State Quarters (2004) State Quarters
(2005) State Quarters (2006) State Quarters
(2007) State Quarters (2008) State Quarters

The “Wartime” Nickel 1942-1945

During World War II Nickel was in short supply and was a strategic metal. Because of these shortages the U.S. nickels between 1942 and 1945 were made with .560 Copper .350 Silver .090 manganese. They can easily be identified because of the large mint mark on the reverse of the coin (see photo). Wartime nickels were minted in Denver (D), San Francisco (S), and Philadelphia (P). Today many can still be found in circulation and are a great find in anyone’s change. Do not spend them back into circulation, they are worth more money than there face value. The links at the bottom of the article include information about all 11 wartime nickels.

1942 P (Wartime) 1942 S (Wartime)

1943 D (Wartime) 1943 P (Wartime) 1943 S (Wartime)

1944 D (Wartime) 1944 P (Wartime) 1944 S (Wartime)
1945 D (Wartime) 1945 P (Wartime) 1945 S (Wartime)

2008 Vienna Philharmonic Silver Coin

The Vienna Philharmonic silver coin was introduced on January 26th 2008. Strong investor demand inspired the new product. The coin is a bullion investment piece. It is minted at the Austrian mint in Vienna.

Here is a list of its specifications.

Face Value: 1,50 Euro
Purity: .999 silver
Weight: 31.103 grams
Diameter: 37mm
Thickness: 3.2mm

Will COMEX Default on Futures ?

The buzz around the gold and silver bug websites is : "The Comex will default in December". Many articles have been written about this posibility. The large difference between the spot and physical price is around 50%. This means if silver spot price is $10.00 it is selling for around $15.00 at a coin shop. This leads many to believe that holders of Comex contracts will take delivery of their gold and silver instead of the cash. By taking delivery they can sell the gold and silver at a huge profit to the retail buyer. Many investors do not believe Comex has the gold and silver in inventory to cover all the contracts. Only time will tell. If you would like to discuss this topic please visit our forum.

http://worldcoindata.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=8

This is the direct link to the forum topic about comex.

8-8-08 Double Prosperity Set

The set of two gold coins is the 2nd of the Mint's Celebration Series. This is the first time the United States Mint has paired two gold coins in custom-designed package.

The first coin is the American Buffalo 1/2 ounce gold uncirculated coin.

The second is the American Eagle 1/2 ounce gold uncirculated coin.

Both coins are legal tender with a nominal face value designation of $25.

The coins are stamped with...

• The "W" mint mark
• The date
• The weight

The coins are packaged in a hardwood box with a Certificate of Authenticity.

Canadian Coin Collecting

Canadian Coin Collections

Canadian coin collecting can be very profitable. The mintage numbers are much lower than U.S. coins and are pretty easy to aquire. There are many key dates and design varieties. The coins change with every new monarch. Check out the link below of canadian coins.

http://www.worldcoindata.com/CanadianCoinIndex.htm

Fake 1995 Silver Panda Coin From China

This is a picture of a fake 1995 Silver Panda coin. Notice the area that was grinded. There is a copper core with a silver coating. This is a very common fake panda coin.

Another thing to notice is the detail. The real panda coin has much better detail in the fur.

There is more information on the WorldCoinData.Com forum. Check it out.

http://worldcoindata.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=6

Silver American Eagles. Why is the price so high?

Why is the price so high ? I have noticed a steady increase in price over the market spot price. For a long time the availability was steady and abundent. I never had a problen locating the coins. The price on ebay is just to high. I can't find any in local coin shops.

Is there a shortage of product ? Is the spot price wrong ?

On the link provided below is a list of Silver American eagles. If you follow the coin links you will see an ebay price.

http://www.worldcoindata.com/American%20Silver%20Eagles/AmericanSilverEaglesIndexPage.htm

Please post a comment if you think you have an explanation.

Thanks

New Coin Forum Added To WorldCoinData.com

We have added a coin collecting forum to www.worldcoindata.com. We invite everyone to contribute. The forum will focus on coin collecting information.

The direct link to the forum is .....
http://worldcoindata.com/phpBB2/

Thanks

Mini St. Gauden commemorative 1/2 Gram Gold Coin (Fake)

Due to the high demand for gold and silver in these troubled economic times a rash of fake gold products have been surfacing in the market. I hope that this article will bring to light one of the fakes out and about. There is a photo of the fake and Ebay posting of the product.

http://www.worldcoindata.com/Articles/article14.htm