(Bloomberg) – The US Mint has reduced the volume of gold and silver coins it is distributing to authorized buyers as the coronavirus pandemic slows production, according to a document seen by Bloomberg.
The West Point de Mint complex in New York is taking steps to prevent the virus from spreading among its employees, and that will likely reduce coin production there over the next 12 to 18 months, according to the document. The facility can no longer produce gold and silver coins at the same time, forcing it to choose one metal over the other, according to the document, which was presented to companies authorized to buy coins from the Mint last week. .
A spokesman for the Mint did not immediately comment.
“The pandemic created a whole new set of challenges for us,” the Mint said in the document. “We believe this environment will continue to lead to a certain degree of reduced capacity as West Point strives to balance employee safety with market demand.”
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The U.S. Mint, which makes gold, silver, platinum, and palladium coins sold through a network of dealers, has been producing commemorative and lower-capacity investment coins since it reopened the facilities of West Point and imposed social distancing earlier this year.
The cuts are yet another blow that the pandemic has dealt with America’s currency supplies. Last week, the Mint urged Americans to spend their pennies, pennies, dimes, and quarters because the pandemic has slowed store purchases and slowed the circulation of coins across the country.
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Low allocations are also coming just as investors cry out for precious currencies. Global uncertainty about the pandemic has pushed silver and gold prices to multi-year highs, making coins made of metals a safe haven for retail. Premiums for some currencies over spot metal prices have risen to record levels.
To cope with demand, the Mint is now asking distributors to provide their 10 and 90-day demand forecasts for the first time. According to the document, that will allow you to decide which products to manufacture, as some require more labor than others. If the Mint decides to make a tenth of an ounce of gold, for example, it must reduce the production of American Eagle Silver coins.
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