Bullion refers to any precious metal in a form where its primary value comes from the worth of the metal it's made from, and not from an artificial currency value. Bullion is most often traded as a commodity or as coins minted by national governments, or in bulk ingots.
Governments issue coins which have a nominal value assigned to them when they are minted, this value is virtually always clouded by the commodity value of the metal itself. For example, most government issued gold coins have a currency value of between USD and 0USD, but normally contain at least one troy ounce of gold, Silver, Platinum or the metal they're minted in. Given that the exchange rate of gold, Silver or any commodity rises and falls over time, as do other things in the stock market. They are a good investment, and better than most because of their stability. From the beginning of the twenty-first century as an example, Gold was worth about 0USD per troy ounce, at the closing of the market on 8/1/08 it's value was 2.50USD, and in contrast Silver a year ago was worth $12.00USD and closed on 8/1/08 at .47. So it can be can seen that the government- assigned currency value of a bullion coin is essentially meaningless.
12 OUNCES EQUALS
The value of bullion is determined by three factors: the metal, the weight and it's purity. The metal the bullion is comprised of is obviously important in determining its overall value: gold is worth more than silver, while platinum is worth more than gold. Platinum by the way closed on 8/1/08 at &1.675.00USD. The weight of bullion is commonly measured in troy ounces, where one troy ounce is equal to approximately 31 grams. Purity also varies widely in bullion, though many countries release coins with 99.99% purity, which is as close as one can get to pure.
The general minting of a bullion coin is less than 10,000, and the reason they are so popular with collectors. A high degree of limited issues are also relatively frequent, sometimes as few as 20 to 50 of a certain bullion coin are released. Silver Coins, are especially popular with collectors; because of the relatively low price of the metal, and they are collectible at a lower price in general. For this reason, silver bullion coins, more than gold or platinum, are often valued substantially above the market value of silver.
Today, most major countries proffer at least one type of bullion coin. Normally these coins will have one main symbol they use each year, though some nations choose to keep the same theme but alter the image annually.
Some examples of bullion coins include:
U.S. Eagles: Minted in platinum (since 1997), gold and silver, these coins are embossed with the image of a bald eagle. Gold Eagles are 91.67% pure.
Canadian Maple Leafs: These coins are minted in platinum, gold and silver, with the Canadian maple leaf embossed. Gold Maple Leafs were the first 99.99% pure gold coins to be released. A very limited platinum coin is also released by Canada, depicting wildlife.
Chinese Pandas: These come in platinum, gold, silver, palladium, copper and brass. The depict a panda bear, the image of which changes each year. China also had a short-lived series of unicorn gold and silver coins, and a limited run of twenty bullion coins in excess of 260 troy ounces (8 kilograms).
South African Krugerrands: These were the first bullion coins ever released by a nation, and are made of gold.
As you can see as a trader or collector these bullion commodity and coins are a very desirable item.
Bullion - What is It? And is it a Good Investment? 12 OUNCES EQUALS
No comments:
Post a Comment