NEW YORK (Reuters) – The United States Mint said on Tuesday that it was unable to meet the rising demand for its gold and silver bullion coins in 2020 and through January, partly due to pandemic-driven demand and problems with the factory capacity.
Sales of U.S. gold coins were up 258% in 2020, while demand for silver coins was up 28%, the U.S. Mint said Tuesday. Heavy purchases continued in 2021, putting stocks under pressure, which were already tight as the coronavirus affected production.
A social media-fueled buying wave took silver futures to an eight-year high on Monday, but dealers in the coin market were already struggling with a stock shortage and shipping delays for that rally.
The Mint, a division of the United States Treasury Department, had limited distribution of its silver coins to suppliers as it is currently changing the designs for its American Eagle Gold and Silver Bullion Coins.
“There would be a backlog in the silver supply chain, making Silver Eagles scarcer anyway,” said Everett Millman of Gainesville Coins in Florida. For the most popular products, he expected delays until mid-March.
“The silver coins and silver bars available have received significantly higher premiums,” he added.
In January 220,500 American Eagle gold coins were sold, 290% more than 56,500 a year earlier, the Mint said.
For this year, the US Mint has limited time to produce its current gold and silver coins, with redesigned coins expected to be released in the summer. It is restricting distribution of its gold, silver and platinum coins to specific dealers due to high demand, and a limited number of metal suppliers, it said in a statement.
Reporting by Devika Krishna Kumar in New York and Arpan Varghese in Bengaluru; edited by Richard Pullin