Answers

What is the most popular gold bullion coin? The U.S. Gold Eagle.
See our American Gold Eagles Page.

Why does bullion cost more than the spot price?  The 'spot' price of gold is a theoretical trading price upon which all gold business is based. It is a base price, before any commissions or fees, and does not include costs such as minting, insuring, shipping, and so forth.

Is bullion always pure gold?   No. The American Eagle, Krugerrand, and Britannia, and others are 91.7% (22 karat) gold. They contain their full stated weight in gold, just like any form of bullion, but have an additional weight in alloy to harden them against wear. Other bullion coins are pure gold (24 karat or 99.99%) without alloy, including the Maple Leaf, Kangaroo, Panda, and Australian Dragon.

How are the prices of gold bullion coins set in the market? - Who sets the price?  Everyday, gold trades in dozens of markets around the world- New York, Chicago, Sydney, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Calcutta, Turkey, France, and so forth. Each market reacts to news as it  happens, and gold is always trading, wherever the sun shines as the earth turns. The prices are 'set,' and constantly 're-set,' by the ever-changing supply and demand factors, input by thousands of investors, central banks, governments, miners, jewelers, dealers, and others who trade in gold almost daily. The gold market amounts to billions of dollars every day, and no one can 'set' the price. It changes constantly, due to hundreds of factors, ranging from the opening of a new gold mine, to the changes in interest rates of one currency or another. Of all the commodity markets, the gold market is probably the largest and most free market in the world. 

Aren't gold bars cheaper than coins? Yes, the larger gold bars such as 10 ounce, kilogram (32.15 oz), and 400 ounce gold bars can be bought for a smaller fee over the spot price of gold.

Which is the least expensive gold bullion coin? The older year  Krugerrands are the least expensive way to buy one ounce gold bullion coins. Because the Krugerrand was so widely sold in this country from 1975 - 1985, there is almost always a good supply of these older gold coins available at less than the rates you have to pay for newly minted coins. Of course, the buy-back rate on Krugerrands is also less, so  "net-net," the cost of trading in Krugerrands is about the same as the other standard bullion coins. 

Which coin is the heaviest gold bullion coin - contains the most gold?  The Australians actually put out a gold Kangaroo coin which weighs a kilogram - 32.15 troy ounces, or about 2.2 pounds avoirdupois. This monster size coin contains more gold than any other round, legal tender chunk of gold. If you're interested, these are occasionally available in this country - give us a call and we'll find out  for you! 

Which Countries produce gold coins? The most popular ones are on this site. Over the centuries, most countries have produced gold coins at some point in their history. And modern bullion coins have been produced by several countries over the past few years, including Britain, Singapore, Mexico, not to mention the states of California and Texas.  See our page:  {Coins Of The World}

How many different sizes of gold coins are available? Gold bullion coins range in size from as small as 1/25th of an ounce up to the full kilogram (32.15 troy ounces) Australian Nugget. By far the most popular is the 1-troy ounce size, which probably accounts for more than 75% of all bullion gold traded

I see a different spot price  (in the newspaper, on the Internet, radio, etc) from what you are quoting. Why is that? The 'spot' price of gold is changing constantly. Obviously, the newpaper is showing yesterday's closing price, and other sources vary in how up-to-the-minute they are. When you call us during the U.S. trading day, you will be quoted an absolutely up to the minute price from the U.S. Comex trading exchange.

Is gold cheaper in other countries? No. Worldwide markets, and the portability of gold, insure that the price of gold will not vary significantly in free markets from country to country.

Why is the premium higher on fractional  bullion coins, i.e., those less than 1 troy ounce? It simply costs 'x' amount to produce a bullion coin, no matter what the size. So on a smaller size coin, that production cost is a bigger percentage of its gold value.

Do the premiums change? Yes, there are times when premiums can vary different forms of gold bullion, due to changes in demand or production. These changes don't happen very often, usually don't amount to more than 1% or 2%, and usually premiums go back to 'normal' within a few weeks

Is 24 karat gold the best?  24 karat gold is the purest form of gold (99.9% or more), but it is not necessarily the 'best.' Gold coinage has traditionally been 22 karat or so, because the addition of a small percentage of alloy metal, usually copper, strengthens the coin tremendously and makes it less susceptible to wear and damage. Pure gold would be a poor choice for a coin that actually has to pass hand to hand in commercial use - it would wear smooth very quickly

Why aren't some gold coins pure? Traditionally, gold coins are 90% to 91.7% pure. The addition of another metal as alloy makes the coins stand up to wear much better than pure gold, which is very soft. Many modern bullion coins are pure gold, because they are not likely to ever have to be used as everyday 'money.'

What is the mintage figure on bullion coins? Each year, the issuing mint will generally strike and sell as many standard bullion coins as the market will absorb. There is no attempt to limit the amount made, or produce a coin with a rarity value. The various world mints compete for the bullion gold market, and each attempts to distribute as large a volume as the market will bear.

Why do bullion coins have a face value? Gold bullion coins have a legal tender face value, often a value which seems ridiculously low compared to the actual gold value of the coin. This nominal face value is assigned to these coins to make them actual legal tender, which can be transported from country to country, freely, and without the tariffs and taxes imposed by some countries on gold bullion

For a large purchase, shouldn't I buy the less expensive gold bars? Usually not, if you are going to take physical delivery of the gold. You may save a couple of percent, but the bars are harder to resell once they leave the depository they are stored at. It's hard to find a ready buyer for the larger bars, and often there is a delay in payment, or even a possible re-assay required. Larger bars are fine if you buy them and leave them in the depository for storage. But if you wish to take possession of your gold yourself, the one ounce bullion coins are much easier to resell.

Don't gold coins have 'numismatic' value that makes them more expensive? The modern bullion coins are purposefully struck to have no 'numismatic' value whatsoever. They cost money to manufacture, distribute, and sell, but this is just a small percentage compared to 'numismatic' coins.

Is gold straight out of a gold mine pure?  Gold comes out of the ground in different purities, depending on the location of the mine. Typically, natural or 'placer' gold ranges from 65% to 98% pure, with most around 85%. Gold can also be found mixed with silver, copper, or other metals in varying percentages. And gold is often extracted in minute quantities per ton of dirt or ore. There are gold mines in Nevada that profitably remove .05 ounces, or about $14 worth of pure gold from a ton of dirt.

How much gold is there in the world?  All the gold mined in the world in history would fit in a cube 60 feet on each side, that is to say, it would fit in the space underneath the Eiffel Tower. Gold occurs as part of the earth’s crust at approximately .0025 parts per million, and is widely distributed throughout the world. Gold also occurs in seawater, to the tune of approximately 10 parts of gold per trillion parts of water, concentrations too small to profitably extract.

How much gold is mined in a year?  For calendar year 1999, approximately 2400 tons of gold were mined throughout the world. South Africa is the largest producer, with the U.S., Russia, Canada, and Australia also being major producers. Gold is distributed widely over the earth, and gold mining is pursued in most countries with some success.

Aren't gold production costs coming down every year? As gold exploration and extraction techniques become more technologically advanced, the cost of getting gold out of the ground tends to go down. For instance, there are some new mines that have costs of production well below $200 per ounce of gold. On the other hand, the fact that gold has been sought all over the world for thousands of years means that the easy pickings have already been discovered. There are no new California- or South Africa-size discoveries to be made. New mines are fewer and farther between, and the promising ones often start out strong and fade out fast when the actual amount of extractable gold doesn't measure up to expectations

Isn't gold just an obsolete form of money?  The world's central banks and private citizens certainly don't think so. And our own Fort Knox contains the U.S. national gold holdings which form our monetary reserve. Although gold as money is not a part of our daily lives, every major nation holds gold as a fiscal insurance policy. Money in the form of paper currency and accounting entries comes and goes, but gold is a form of permanent national wealth.The 20th Century just past is littered with the debris of currencies which inflated out of existence and became obsolete, including those from Germany, France, Russia, Italy, Mexico, and many others. Paper monies often become obsolete - gold never has.

Can I buy gold coins over the internet?   How?    You can buy gold from us, and learn all about gold through our website, but the actual purchase of gold comes with your phone call to one of our staff. For reasons of security, privacy, and payment integrity, your actual purchase of gold is done the old-fashion way: talking to a real human being, confirming your purchase, sending us a check or electronic funds transfer, and taking delivery via Registered U.S. Mail or bonded courier.

How long has gold bullion been around? Probably since gold was first mined commercially. Early bullion bars were just products of the mine, to be later made into jewelry, artwork, or coinage. With the advent of gold as coinage, thousands of years ago, the value of a coin was exactly the value of the gold it contained. The coin was bullion.

What was the first modern bullion coin?  The South African Krugerrand in 1967 pioneered the idea of a coin that contained an ounce of pure gold, and was made to trade just for its gold value.