• Backdated Gold 1oz Eagle Coins for $70 over gold
• Backdated Silver 1oz Eagle Coins for a $3 premium
• Gold Krugerrand 1oz Coins for a $50 premium per ounce

Today we’ll walk through some of the history and facts of the American Gold Eagle coin.

The Basics of the Gold Eagle Coin

Let’s start by covering the basics of this gold bullion coin.

• Denominations: This coin comes in four denominations. 1 oz, 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz, and 1/10 oz. The face values are $50, $25, $10, and $5 respectively.
• Purity: The American Gold Eagle contains 91.67% gold, with the remainder being composed of copper and silver. This alloy gives the Gold Eagle greater durability and scratch resistance compared to pure 24-karat gold coins.
• Production: These coins are produced across three different locations of the United States Mint: the West Point Mint, the Philadelphia Mint, and the Denver Mint.

YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN: A Global Tour of Major Mints

About the Design

The front of the Gold Eagle coin features a portrayal of Lady Liberty striding forward while holding a torch in her right hand and an olive branch in her left. This iconic design is known as the “Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle” and was adapted from a design created by Augustus Saint-Gaudens for the $20 Double Eagle gold coin.

The back of the coin shows a family of eagles and was created by sculptor Miley Busiek. This design was specifically crafted for the American Gold Eagle coin series. This Gold Eagle’s design differs slightly from the Silver Eagle.

YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN: The History of the American Silver Eagle Coin

How to Add the American Gold Eagle Coin to Your Collection

Convinced that you need to add this gold bullion coin to your collection? Start by calling us at Manhattan Gold & Silver to order your Gold Eagle coin today.

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Here are some tips on how to sell unwanted jewelry:

Sort Jewelry by Type and Metal

Your first step is to sort through your jewelry collection — separate items into silver, gold, platinum, and so on. You should also look for any stamps of a specific karat weight. This will help you distinguish between costume and fine jewelry.

Research the Market Value of Used Jewelry

Next, you should do some research to determine the value of your unwanted jewelry. Be sure to use a regularly updated source for current precious metal prices, or an appraisal service that specializes in fine jewelry.

Recycle or Refine Used Jewelry for Cash

Now that you know approximately what each piece is worth, it’s time to start looking for offers from recyclers or refiners who buy unwanted metal and gems. Don’t forget to look at online reviews to make sure you’re working with a respected precious metal refiner!

Scrutinize Offers Before You Sell Unwanted Jewelry

It goes without saying that every offer should be carefully considered before making a sale. Always weigh potential earnings against fees charged by each recycler, such as taxes and shipping costs. It’s also wise to have a professional remove any gemstones to sell them separately, as doing so might get you more money in the end.

The post How to Sell Unwanted Jewelry Fast appeared first on Manhattan Gold & Silver.

In simple terms, a hedge is an investment that has a better chance of moving up in value when other portfolio assets take a downturn in price.

Let’s look at why and how gold works as a hedge against inflation and other financial adversities.

Why Is Gold a Hedge Against Inflation?

It’s common knowledge in investor circles that gold has an inverse relationship with the stock market – when the price for one is up, it tends to be down for the other.

This is why gold has a reputation for being a smart investment and a reliable way to diversify portfolios. Investing in gold also functions as a hedge against financial risks in a couple of ways.

Gold operates as a form of protection when the value of U.S. currency declines. It’s typically less expensive to hold than stocks and tends to rise in value when the dollar slips.

Gold is also a good hedge against inflation due to its track record for staying stable when the cost of living rises. In fact, over the past five decades, gold has risen when inflation caused the stock market to dip.

Hedge Your Portfolio with Gold

You can use gold as a comprehensive hedge in a widely diverse portfolio. Thanks to the inverse relationship gold has with other types of assets, many investors combine it with stocks and bonds to limit their exposure to volatility and risk.

Physical Gold as a Hedge

Adding physical gold to your portfolio can be done through private or government mints, precious metal dealers, or jewelers.

Some of the most popular physical gold assets include coins, bars, or fractional sheets of bullion.

As with any investment, you should make sure you’re working with a reputable gold seller who will ensure you receive nothing but 999.9 fine gold bullion.

Gold ETFs as a Hedge

Another common way to invest in gold is with exchange traded funds (ETFs). Gold ETFs are traded on an exchange market, and shares are backed by a store of physical bullion.

However, most ETFs don’t work as a substitute for physical gold – as an investor simply own shares of a gold-backed ETF and won’t be able to access the bullion that represents the investment.

Gold Futures as a Hedge

A futures contract is an arrangement to sell or buy gold on a date in the future for a pre-determined price. In most cases, no physical assets exchange hands in a gold futures deal.

This gold investment option can be complicated and lengthy, usually requires a large upfront investment, and comes with a list of additional costs. All of this makes gold futures a better choice for highly experienced investors.

Of course, how you choose to invest in gold is entirely up to you. No matter in what form, investing in gold as a hedge against inflation is a smart financial choice for most investors.

The post How Gold Works as a Hedge Investment appeared first on Manhattan Gold & Silver.

All investors should understand how the value of their holdings is determined. Most marketplace trading depends upon what’s known as the spot price, especially when it comes to liquid assets like precious metals.

The spot price is the present marketplace trade value of an asset, such as a commodity or security. Even though spot prices are defined by time and place, when it comes to exchange rates, they are typically uniform around the globe.

Bullion traders should read on to learn more about precious metal spot prices and ensure they get the best return on investments.

Key Precious Metal Markets

There are two key markets that help to determine the spot prices of precious metals. Let’s go over these markets and how they impact a “fair” price when it comes to a return on gold and silver.

The Over-the-Counter (OTC) Market

The OTC market is made up of a network of independent traders working privately in pairs 24 hours a day. Each deal is made over the phone or via a dealer’s proprietary trading software.

While typically used for professional trading companies making large deals, OTC trading is also done on a much smaller scale, such as when you buy a bullion coin or bar from a dealer.

This can make pinning down the OTC spot price difficult, which means many precious metal dealers use Bloomberg, Reuters, or the London Fixing to indicate current pricing trends.

In comparison, the spot price of gold, silver, and other precious metals tends to be much easier to pinpoint on a public exchange like the futures markets.

The Futures Exchanges

Futures markets are regulated public exchanges where the price of precious metals is traded at various future dates. The biggest and most prominent is the Commodity Exchange (COMEX).

Much of the time, future prices of precious metals are quoted as the spot price of physical gold. However, this technique isn’t the most accurate gauge of gold or silver prices, as it’s simply where assets could settle in the future.

Although technically inaccurate, many countries base their price of the prompt delivery of precious metals on local futures markets. This means that for retail consumers, the futures price of gold or silver effectively is the spot price.

Precious Metal Spot Price Factors

It’s essential to note that there’s a link between futures prices and spot prices. Due to that association, arbitrage traders work to keep both price types in alignment by watching over a variety of precious metal spot price factors.

• OTC and futures markets are wholesale, which means unlike retail customers, they trade in large quantities. This can impact spot prices during smaller private deals.
• When the precious metals market is moving quickly, dealers might not be able to take the Bloomberg or Reuters price into account, due to bullion banks being unable to update their prices fast enough.
• Both futures and OTC trading comes with general costs, such as dealer salaries and trade settling. Futures trading also incurs dealer brokerage fees.

How individual dealers manage these factors is by adding a margin to the futures or spot prices as they’re quoted. The size of that buffer will vary based on the volatility of the wholesale price and how buying or selling is being done by their clients.

How to Determine “Fair” Spot Prices

The result of the above precious metal spot price factors is an ever-changing price quote from dealers. So, how can you determine a fair price?

Your best bet is to follow the same practice the professionals use themselves, and shop around to see who’s offering the top price when you’re looking to liquidate.

If you plan to find the greatest return on your precious metal investments yourself, you should make sure to keep an eye on Bloomberg, Reuters, and COMEX for spot price updates.

You might also consider getting a hand from a family-owned company that’s been around for almost 40 years. At Manhattan Gold & Silver, we’re happy to show you how to sell your gold and get the biggest return on your investment.

The post What Affects the Spot Prices of Precious Metals? appeared first on Manhattan Gold & Silver.

That’s why ensuring you have a diversified portfolio is crucial to the success of your efforts. Finding that balance is one of the reasons gold continues to shine as an investment option.

Keep reading to find out more about gold vs. stocks when it comes to the right investment opportunity for you.

The Value of Portfolio Diversifying

You might have heard how diverting funds away from a stock portfolio that’s making consistent returns is not a good way to maximize your money-making efforts.

But what happens when there are large market fluctuations? For most investors, portfolio diversification is an excellent option for hedging against serious declines in one asset.

Diversifying your investment portfolio with a well-chosen mix of assets can also lead to strong growth year over year.

Gold as an Investment

This is especially true when it comes to choosing gold as an investment. People have been investing in gold for centuries, and the long-term gains are still attractive to many investors.

Gold as a Defensive Asset

Gold has no maturity date or credit risk, which makes it an obvious choice for many investors looking to diversify.

Historically, gold performs well even when interest rates rise. It’s also a broadly chosen option for offsetting foreign exchange risk.

All of this makes gold an appealing defensive asset choice, but it also offers a solid portfolio growth opportunity.

Gold as a Growth Asset

Over the past 20 years, the World Gold Council has calculated that including gold as 2% to 10% of a portfolio boosted risk-adjusted returns over the long term.

According to the World Gold Council, whether you have a conservative, moderate, or aggressive portfolio, holding up to 10% of gold can result in year-over-year growth.

Stocks as an Investment

While typically seen as a higher risk, investing in stocks also comes with the advantage of higher yields when compared with lower-risk options.

Investing in the stock market requires a much more “hands on” approach than adding defensive assets like gold or bonds. You might want to hire a portfolio manager to keep a full-time watch.

Some investors do have great financial victories by buying the right stocks at the right time. But most tend to benefit from a diverse portfolio with a mix of high-risk and low-risk assets.

Defensive Stocks

The safest stock options tend to involve investing in an entire sector, as opposed to a specific industry or company.

Defensive stocks provide stable and consistent earnings via dividends, even when the overall stock market is in a downturn.

A few of the top defensive stock sectors are energy and utilities, healthcare, financial services, and raw materials production.

Growth Stocks

A riskier choice, but often more profitable in less time, growth stocks usually don’t pay dividends. Your earnings would come through capital gains when shares of the stock are sold in the future.

Growth stocks often look expensive due to trading at a high Price/Earnings ratio, but if the company grows rapidly, you could enjoy a large return when the share price is driven up.

Classic examples of top-performing growth stocks over recent years are Netflix, Apple, and Amazon.

Investing in Gold vs. Stocks

When it comes to deciding whether to put your money into gold vs. the stock market, you should consider whether you’re more interested in avoiding risk or making financial power plays.

You can think of investing in precious metals like gold as acquiring “safe haven” assets. Gold will protect your wealth, even in times of political or economic upheaval.

On the other hand, investing in stocks is a better option when it comes to an opportunity to increase your fortune via capital gains and dividends. Just be sure to keep potential risks in mind.

The Bottom Line on Gold vs. the Stock Market

Whether you choose to invest in gold or stocks, it all comes back to making sure your investment portfolio is diverse enough to serve your best monetary interests now and in the future.

Volatility in the stock market can cause even the most experienced investors to feel worried about their stock gains disintegrating on shaky fiscal ground.

Think of a diversified portfolio as an umbrella against the storms of the stock market. Ensuring you have a combination of stocks and gold will help you to avoid steep investment losses.

Adding Gold to Your Investment Portfolio

Thanks to being highly liquid, physical gold is a convenient and flexible way to balance your portfolio.

Simply choose which gold investment option works best for you:

• Gold bullion bars
• Collectible coins
• Gold jewelry
• Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs)

At Manhattan Gold & Silver, we’re happy to help you get started with adding gold to your investment portfolio. Our certified gold bullion bars offer you a quick and uncomplicated way to add gold to your list of investments today.

The post Should You Invest in Gold or Stocks? appeared first on Manhattan Gold & Silver.

But first, a disclaimer: Please don’t take anything here as financial advice. We’re not your financial adviser. Investing is a personal thing, and the best strategy will depend on your individual circumstances and goals. Always seek personalized investment advice from a qualified professional. What we’ve written here is just for informational purposes.

As you’d expect, there are pros and cons to both forms of gold investment. So, we’ve listed some of the advantages of each one to help you better understand the gold bullion versus paper gold debate and get an idea which side you might come down on. Of course, you can always invest in both.

What Is Gold Bullion?

“Bullion” is a form of a metal that’s been refined to a high level of elemental purity. Gold bullion is physical gold—real, tangible gold—and it generally comes in two forms for investors: gold bars and gold coins.

What Is Paper Gold?

Paper gold refers to investment in the gold market without possessing physical gold. This includes investment vehicles like many exchange traded funds (ETFs), gold futures, gold options, and others. It’s an on-paper asset that typically derives its value from the price of gold.

Gold Bullion Versus Paper Gold: Advantages of Holding Physical Gold

Physical gold, or gold bullion:

• Has intrinsic value, unlike paper gold
• Has been accepted as a form of currency throughout history, around the globe, and across cultures
• Is scarce and can’t be replicated
• Is simpler than dealing with paper assets
• Isn’t subject to broker fees, account management fees, etc. like paper investments
• Isn’t vulnerable to mismanagement by third parties like paper assets
• Is easier than paper gold to give as a gift or pass on to an heir
• Diversifies your investment portfolio beyond paper assets
• Can be used as collateral
• Has actual demand for use (e.g., jewelry, decorative pieces, dental fillings, computer and other electronics manufacturing, medals, and more)
• Isn’t part of a country’s financial system (even though gold coins and bars are often minted by government-owned mints), so it’s not vulnerable to the volatility of national financial systems; paper gold is often more vulnerable to volatility resulting from geopolitical issues

Gold Bullion Versus Paper Gold: Advantages of Holding Paper Gold

Paper gold:

• Doesn’t require secure storage (either at home, or at a bank or other facility that will charge a monthly storage fee and likely require insurance)
• Can’t be stolen like physical gold
• Doesn’t take up any space or have to be moved
• Requires less upfront capital because you can generally buy smaller amounts
• Is also more affordable up front because physical gold dealers usually charge significant premiums/fees
• Is a highly liquid investment vehicle that’s easily traded while the market is open
• Isn’t vulnerable to the possibility of a government forbidding the possession of physical gold (it even happened in the U.S., when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 6102 in 1933, and it held until President Gerald Ford repealed it in 1974)

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Read on to learn what influences a spot price, elements that can impact the spot price and more.

Spot Price vs. Futures Price

While there are many unique features of spot prices and futures market prices, the primary difference between the two is time, which can have a dramatic impact on price. Spot price is the cost of immediate delivery of the product while the futures price is a contract for payment and delivery of a commodity at a pre-determined future date.

Because the futures pricing plays a role in determining the spot price, it’s important to make that distinction.

What Determines Spot Price?

There isn’t a simple answer to this question, as there are many factors that go into determining the spot price of gold, silver, and other precious metals.

However, gold and silver spot prices are mainly determined by commodity exchanges, including the “London fix” and the U.S. COMEX, where gold and silver are traded mostly through futures contracts. The spot price changes constantly as the markets move throughout the trading day.

What Impacts Spot Price?

Spot prices of precious metals are constantly in flux as many domestic and global market components influence the spot price of gold, silver and others, including:

• Economic data
• Inflation or deflation
• Geopolitical news and events
• Federal Reserve actions
• Equity markets
• Interest rates
• Currencies

When understanding spot prices for the precious metals of interest, it’s valuable to understand the interconnectivity of global markets that all play a role in impacting the day-to-day spot prices of precious metals.

Ready to Sell Your Scrap Metals?

Manhattan Gold & Silver specializes in precious metal scrap made from gold, silver, platinum and palladium. We can help you by determining the precious metal’s value and provide a quick, fair payout when you want to sell your lot.

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The Contents of an Olympic Gold Medal

The contents of Olympic medals can vary as the specific composition and design are determined by the host city’s organizing committee. However, minimum standards set would indicate that Olympic gold medals are at least 92.5% silver and are plated with at least 6 grams of gold.

There’s no official statement as to why they aren’t made out of pure gold, but it’s likely because pure gold medals would be much more expensive and impractical. Gold is a soft metal that is very easy to dent or scratch.

Gold medals aren’t the only medals handed out at the Olympics. Second and third place finishers are awarded silver and bronze medals, respectively. At the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, silver medals had a purity of 99.9%, according to Olympic.org. The bronze medal was made of an alloy of 90% copper and 10% zinc.

Awards That Are Made Out of Solid Gold

Although the Olympic gold medal is mostly silver, this doesn’t mean there aren’t any solid gold metals in existence. The Congressional Gold Medal and Nobel Prize medal are both made from solid gold.

The Olympic gold medals that we know and love may not be pure gold, but that doesn’t diminish the achievement they represent.

The post What Are Olympic Gold Medals Made Of? appeared first on Manhattan Gold & Silver.

The History of Gold Confiscation

In the 1930s, the U.S. was in the middle of The Great Depression. Widely known as the worst economic downturn in history, it began after the stock market crashed in October 1929, sending Wall Street into a panic and wiping out millions of investors.

As savvy investors know, gold is a great hedge against economic collapse and could help shield you from severe economic downturns. The only thing is – the government knows this as well. In 1933, President Roosevelt’s administration issued an Executive Order calling in gold. This meant Americans were required to turn in their gold and bullion in exchange for $20.67 per troy ounce or face a penalty of $10,000 should they decide to disobey the order. The reasoning behind this? It was believed that the “hoarding” of gold during the depression was stalling economic growth and worsening the crisis.

The order lasted for over 30 years, ending on December 31, 1974, with Executive Order 11825.

Could Gold Confiscation Happen Again?

In short, yes.

Although there is no federal law that explicitly states that the government can call in your gold, during extreme crises the government has the means to seize it whether it comes in the form of an Executive Order or a law.

The fact that gold confiscation is a real (yet unlikely) possibility has sparked many rumors and myths as to how investors can avoid this – usually accompanied by telemarketers armed with solutions and questionable motives.

Debunking Gold Confiscation Myths

Here is the truth about a few popular gold confiscation myths to help you avoid falling victim to any investment scams.

Myth #1: Rare or Collectible Coins Cannot Be Confiscated

 The myth that certain kinds of gold coins can’t be confiscated originated in Roosevelt’s Executive Order. This order exempted “gold coins having a recognized special value to collectors of rare and unusual coins.” But it did not define special value, collectors, or collectibles. Even so, telemarketers continue to perpetuate the myth that old U.S. gold coins won’t be confiscated to make selling expensive coins easier.

Myth #2: Non-Reportable Coins

Many promoters claim that the coins they sell are not subject to reporting. These statements imply that the government requires the reporting of gold transactions, which is not true. The government does not want gold reported, it wants the cash. The only case where someone would have to report the purchase of gold is in a transaction involving more than $10,000.

Myth #3: Old Foreign Gold Coins

Telemarketers also tend to promote European coins. They will usually claim that imported coins like British Sovereigns, Belgium Twenty Francs, and Dutch 10 Guilders cannot be confiscated. Unfortunately, this is also a myth.

If the government wanted to seize gold again, no coins would be safe except for those that are verifiably numismatic, truly exceptional coins.

Invest Wisely

Purchasing expensive old or collectible coins in the hopes of avoiding confiscation could lead to you paying unnecessarily high prices for gold. If you’re interested in gold investment, consider buying your gold coins and bullion from a trusted precious metal refiner like Manhattan Gold & Silver at fair prices.

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In this infographic, we’ll help you to understand whether gold or diamonds are more valuable not only in terms of how much they cost but also in terms of their rarity.

The post Which Is More Valuable: Gold or Diamond? appeared first on Manhattan Gold & Silver.