Bellevue 425-454-1283 · Lynnwood 425-672-2646 · Issaquah 425-392-0450 · Tacoma 253-328-4014
The market for precious metals like gold and silver is experiencing unprecedented volatility, combined with a massive surge in demand. This has resulted in metal spot prices skyrocketing, but it’s also created difficulties for businesses involved in trading precious metals.
At Bellevue Rare Coins, we strive to be fair and transparent. This post will serve as an overview of some of the challenges the bullion industry is facing, and how it might affect your in-store experience buying or selling precious metals.
In January alone, gold surged over 20% and silver over 60%, before dipping substantially in the last few days.
With the surge has come increased volatility, as well, with prices for silver seen swinging as much as $20/ounce in a matter of hours.
While nobody can predict where the price is going next, the volatility (rapid price movements both up and down) is likely to continue.
Effect on Bellevue Rare Coins: Our buy and sell prices are constantly changing to adapt to market conditions. We cannot provide quotes over the phone, and all prices will be set based on current market conditions when you’re physically in the shop making the transaction. We are also experiencing elevated wait times for customers in our stores.
Unprecedented demand has led to supply shortages of physical metals.
During buying frenzies, local shops like Bellevue Rare Coins may run out of popular items like American Silver Eagles or gold coins. Wholesalers are slammed, too. Orders that would usually be delivered in a few days are now taking weeks.
At other times, inventory levels may actually be too high due to large selling volume. Some businesses are simply running out of funds to purchase more from the public, especially given that wholesale buyers are hesitant to purchase (more on this below).
Effect on Bellevue Rare Coins: We cannot guarantee inventory for any item at this time. We appreciate your patience as we navigate these historic market conditions.
Many refineries and dealer-to-dealer sales channels (where coin shops often sell silver and gold to) are now weeks if not months behind on production. This delay is due to the incredible volume of transactions they are processing. This has led refineries to adapt in a variety of ways.
Some have stopped taking silver altogether, due to inventory backlogs and increased processing costs. Others have substantially reduced payouts, paying significantly under spot. Others have stretched payment terms, taking weeks or even months to pay sellers.
Effect on Bellevue Rare Coins: Our buying process (particularly for silver and gold) is continually evolving based on market conditions. We may at times need to limit purchasing and/or reduce premiums paid to maintain our operations.
Many coin shops, wholesalers, refineries and private buyers are simply not buying silver in particular (and to a lesser extent, gold). Some dealers are facing a “no bid” scenario, which essentially means they have no buyers lined up to resell metals to, leading them to freeze purchasing themselves.
“Liquidity” refers to the ease of buying and selling an asset. Right now, liquidity in the physical precious metals market is extremely limited, leading to significant strain on operations for bullion businesses.
Effect on Bellevue Rare Coins: We continue to buy precious metals from the public, at the time of this writing. However, we must respond to changing market conditions and we reserve the right to freeze purchasing at any time.
We are doing our best to navigate this historic volatility and challenges — but we understand that some of our valued clients may be frustrated with the situation.
If you have any questions, we encourage you to send us a message or come into the stores to address any concerns. Our stores are running at full capacity, and we will serve you as fast as we possibly can.
At this time, we cannot answer all phone calls. We ask that you please refrain from calling about pricing, quantity, or inventory/cash availability.
We thank you for your patience as we navigate this challenging situation.
