When it comes to Precious Metals investing, we often hear of well-known mints and refineries such as The Perth Mint, Argor-Heraeus, Austrian Mint, Pamp Suisse, Royal Canadian Mint and more. However, do you know what a mint and a refinery do? And what is the difference between them? Today, we will be sharing some basic but helpful information about them.
Mint
In simple terms, a mint is a factory where the bars and coins are produced. Most of the world’s leading mints, such as the Royal Canadian Mint, Austrian Mint, The Perth Mint and the US Mint, are state-owned, so they have the government’s consent to mint coins to be used as legal tender or national currencies. For example, the Canadian Maple Leaf Silver Coin 1oz has a monetized face value of 5 CAD (Canadian dollars), and the Austrian Philharmonic Gold Coin 1oz is worth 100 Euro.
Refinery
Mainly, the refinery is to refine the Precious Metals such as Gold, Silver and Platinum. The refinery process removes impurities, refines them, and produces them into investment grade bars and coins. Refineries can be from the industries such as mineral explorations, mining, jewellery business or scrap metal recycling.
Some of the well-known refineries in the precious metals industry are Argor-Heraeus, Pamp Suisse, Valcambi, Rand Refinery and more. We only carry bars from refiners who LBMA has accredited as meeting the exacting standards for trading on the global OTC (Over- The-Counter). You can check the LBMA accredited refinery list here.
GoldSilver Central has been an authorized and reputable bullion dealer in Singapore for 10 years. We carry a wide range of physical bullion from various LBMA accredited mints and refineries. In case you were wondering, we celebrated our 10th Anniversary last March! (Link to our 10th anniversary page). If you are interested in buying physical bullion, feel free to get in touch with us, and we will be more than happy to walk with you throughout your Precious Metals investing journey!
Evonne
Gold prices went above and beyond on the 8th and 9th of March 2022, before retracing back to levels below US $2,000/oz. Were you experiencing difficulties in reaching out to your dealers to transact, especially so when their phone lines were engaged? It’s always good to be able to transact anytime whenever the price is right, without the worry of whether the dealer is reachable. The Perth Distributor Depository Online (PMDDO) program is convenient when it comes to transacting! The program is also governed and guaranteed by the Western Australian government.
Let’s look at some of the benefits of investing under the PMDDO program, and why you should consider this program:
Benefits of Investing under the PMDDO Program
Some key benefits include being able to self-manage your physical Precious Metals (Gold, Silver, and Platinum) 24/7 and as the only government guaranteed (Western Australian government), you can also choose to trade in currencies such as the AUD or USD. A low minimum of AUD 50 is required to kickstart your journey with PMDDO, you can also choose allocated, unallocated or pool allocated storage options when you transact on the PMDDO platform.
Why Invest with The Perth Mint?
The Perth Mint is governed and owned by the government of Western Australian and have been refining Gold and other Precious Metals since 1899! The Perth Mint is also dedicated to ethically sourced Precious Metals with more than AUD 6 billion worth of Gold and Silver stored for more than 70,000 clients globally.
(Source: https://www.perthmint.com/invest/depository-online/)
Suzane
The recent war between Russia and Ukraine had far-reaching consequences for the international economy. Our friends in Russia and Ukraine had shared that their valuables (such as Gold) were confiscated by soldiers when they wanted to leave the country for asylum, resulting in them watching their hard-earned money being washed down the drain. However unbelievable, a heinous thing like that is actually happening in today’s world. Whether it is the war or the personal experiences of friends, we have a deeper understanding that investing in physical Precious Metals is not the only way to own Gold.
Perhaps many people have a specific understanding of non-physical Precious Metals investments such as CFD (contract for differences) Gold or Silver, Accumulation Programs, and ETFs (exchange-traded funds). But have you heard of the Perth Mint Certificate Program? In terms of credibility, this is the only government-guaranteed (Western Australia) program. In terms of flexibility, you can trade and withdraw physical Precious Metals any time! And in terms of threshold, the Perth Mint Depository Distributor Online account only require an amount as little as USD 50 to trade. Most importantly, there is no need to worry in times of uncertainty as the Certificate Program can only be traded by the Certificate owner, and no one can take the ownership of these Precious Metals from us.
If you are interested to find out more, please visit our website: https://www.goldsilvercentral.com.sg/perth-mint-depository-distributor-online-pmddo/
We also welcome you to make an appointment to discuss your Precious Metals investment needs with us: https://goldsilvercentral.setmore.com/bookappointment
That’s all for today, see you in our next article!
最近俄罗斯和乌克兰的战争对国际经济影响甚远。我们有一些在俄罗斯以及乌克兰的朋友甚至分享道当他们要从本国出境避难时，身上携带的值钱物品如黄金等都一律被士兵充公了。辛苦攒下的血汗钱就这么白白打了水漂。虽然难以置信但是如此令人发指的事情却真实发生了，无论是战争或朋友的亲身经历都让我们更深切的体会到投资实物贵金属并非拥有黄金的唯一方式。
或许有很多人对黄金或白银的差价合约、储蓄计划、ETF等非实物贵金属投资有一定的了解。那大家是否听说过珀斯铸币厂证书计划？论可信度，有一国政府（西澳大利亚州）的担保。论灵活度，可以随时变卖、提取实物贵金属。论门槛，此计划的线上户口最低只需要50美元就能交易。最重要的，是不需要担心发生如我们的朋友这般遗憾的事情。因为证书计划非本人是不能交易的，没有人可以从我们身上夺走这些贵金属的所有权。
有兴趣了解更多详情的话可以浏览我们的网站https://www.goldsilvercentral.com.sg/perth-mint-depository-distributor-online-pmddo/
我们也欢迎您预约时间来详谈您的投资需求https://goldsilvercentral.setmore.com/bookappointment
今天就到这里，我们下一篇文章见！
Maya
When the Gold price was hovering around the USD 2,000 per troy ounce(oz) levels, there were speculations that we may witness a repeat of the significant event back in 2011 that resulted in the end of the decade long bull run of Gold. It is worth mentioning a couple of the the contributing factors that differ then and now.
1. Inflation has been the talk of the town in 2011 with observable inflation readings.
Since the onset of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the ripple effect is evident through the enhanced focus on ESG concerns and the impetus towards onshoring and energy market fragilities. All these weren’t in play back in 2011.
2. The exuberance towards yellow metal in 2011 versus the subdued sentiment this time round is clear from the following chart.
According to the Topdown Chart by Thomson Reuters, Gold ETFs versus the total ETF market is only at 2% in 2020, comparatively to 8% back in 2011.
In comparison to 2011, Gold is projected to be in a healthier position with inflationary dynamics more supportive of the precious metal in the current times.
The majority of the investors would concur that higher interest rates are an aversion to Gold. Commonly, it is anticipated that when the Central Banks ease monetary policy, the gold price tends to react positively, whilst the opposite tends to happen when there is an expectation of tighter Central Bank policy. Reality has proven to be much more complex due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Not only is Russia the second-largest producer of Gold, mining about 10% of the world’s new supply each year, but its Central Bank also holds an estimated $145 billion in Gold reserves. This creates a great deal of uncertainty about the short-term future of the gold market. Disrupted trade could lead to a shortage of available Gold internationally, pushing the prices up. On the other hand, the economic pressure of the sanctions on Russia could force Kremlin to liquidate its Gold in exchange for currency, this would flood the market with an estimate of 2,000 megatonne (MT) of Gold, equivalent to about two-thirds of the total worldwide Gold production of a typical year.
Without a clear resolution to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, there’s no telling when will the market return to a more stable state. Strong underlying inflationary pressures continue to be the main supportive fundamental factor driving the Gold price.
In times of uncertainty, people generally have the tendency to turn to precious metals as a hedge for the time being and avoid speculation. There’s a Chinese saying that says: “When there is a crisis, there is money to be made.” Which asset will you look to channel your funds to?
Mindy
“Should I buy a gold necklace or a gold bar?”
We are pretty sure that thought has come across your mind before. Should you choose to go for that pretty jewellery piece or should you choose to go for a plain looking gold bar?
Today, we shall take a very brief look at the main forms of Gold and consider the pros and cons of each. Namely the following forms:
- Jewellery
- Bullion Bars and Coins
- Pool Allocated Precious Metals
Although, we must say that there are no “right or wrong” or “one size fits all” kind of form. Anyone who tells you otherwise is simply pushing a product to you. Beware of that! As you will see in the below table, there are pros and cons to each form, and it depends on the individuals’ preferences and circumstances!
Perhaps, to aid your decision, we have thought of 3 questions which might guide you!
3 questions you should also ask before investing!
So which form do you prefer you Gold in?
Let us know in the comments below!
Jason
While the recent ongoing tensions between Russia and Ukraine raise the risks of a protracted conflict within Ukraine, the war also creates concerns about the potential impact on financial markets and the global economy. Besides increasing the likelihood of market volatility, the invasion is likely to add to inflationary pressures by disrupting exports of oil, natural gas, and wheat from Russia and Ukraine and raising prices.
The impacts of the conflict are likely to vary depending on geography. While that injects some uncertainty into the global outlook, the US economy appears relatively insulated from the war. For individual investors and consumers in the US, the effects will most likely include additional inflationary pressures due to higher energy prices. These also led to recent stock market volatility, reflecting various investor concerns and uncertainty.
When it comes to the planning of your investment portfolio, inflation can affect your choices in the long run as money depreciates over the years. By diversifying your portfolio into Gold and Silver will help mitigate your overall portfolio risk. It is worth noting that over the years, Gold had outperformed the rate of inflation. If you hold some Gold in your portfolio, your risk will be reduced by a considerable margin. Similarly for Silver, they can perform the same function as Gold as they are positively correlated.
There are a few ways to diversify your Precious Metals investment geographically. If you’ve plans to hand down your physical bullion as part of your legacy to future generations, you can consider storing them in our allocated storage program at the Le Freeport. Le Freeport is a tax-free zone in Singapore which makes the vicinity an ideal storage premise. We also offer storage services globally in Hong Kong, New York, London and Zurich..
We are also one of the distributors of the only Government Guaranteed Precious Metals Storage Program in the world – The Perth Mint Certificate Program. The Perth Mint Certificate Program offers 3 storage options: Allocated, Pooled Allocated and Unallocated.
All with the same Government Guarantee and is an excellent program for your geographical diversification. You never know when you need your offshore precious metals especially when we witness now what is happening in both Ukraine and Russia citizens.
Do connect with us at [email protected] or WhatsApp us at +65 8893 9255 if you are keen to find out more about our Global Allocated Storage Program or the Perth Mint Certificate Program.
Joycelyn
Every investor is unique. The circumstances he/she faces at this stage in life, the mentality that he/she carries as well as his/her personal expectations. All these are different!
Hence, at GoldSilver Central, we firmly believe that no one product suits everyone’s needs. It is impossible. Chances are, customers end up investing in precious metals solutions that neither suit their needs and objectives and customers end up disappointed.
Here, we always ask any serious precious metals investor these 3 questions.
1. What is the purpose of this investment?
Are you looking to earn a quick profit? Did a “trusted friend” tell you that Gold prices are on the rise and you need to buy into Gold before its too late? If so, we suggest you take a pause and consider this question first before putting your money down.
It is important, because if you were to buy on someone’s advice, who would you listen to then if things do not go the way you expect it to? (take note there is no market that only trends upwards and never suffers pullbacks.) In those situations, would you try to “wait it out”, believing that prices would once again rise up and your investment would be vindicated? For those of us unfamiliar with Gold’s history, prices peaked in 2012 and remained low for the next eight years before reaching a new high in 2020. That is 8 long years to “hold on dear life”, much too long for a “trusted friend’s advice” in my humble opinion.
We would humbly suggest for you to consider instead, are you putting your money down with an eye for short term profits or long term asset allocation? If it is the former, what would your exit strategy then be? Are you looking to exit once the prices reach a certain level? If it is the latter, how much volatility are you prepared to take on in your portfolio?
These are areas which GoldSilver Central’s staff can discuss more and plan it out properly with you.
2. What is your timeframe?
Are you looking for a 1 week trade? Or a 5 year investment? If it is a shorter timeframe, you have to pay very close attention to details such as buy-sell spreads, premium costs, buyback discounts, etc. You have to know that paying a 20% premium for a silver bar, in the hopes that Silver prices rise by more than 20% (only for you to break-even) in a week would have a fairly low percentage chance of occurring. Not impossible, but improbable. If it is a longer timeframe, you then have more leeway to work with. You could employ strategies such as dollar cost averaging, wait for physical premiums to go lower, so on and so forth. That is why long term investors usually fare better than short term traders (and face lesser stress too).
3. What is your budget?
Do not misunderstand us when we put this question out there. Every investment sum is definitely a step in the right direction. What we mean by this question is this, if you are putting 10% of your portfolio into precious metals then yes, a proper thought process should be worked out. However, if you are looking to put in only 1% of your portfolio into precious metals, then is it really worth spending so much time and effort? Is it really worth spending hours negotiating numerous websites trying to save a few dollars of extra premiums? I would personally spend that few dollars and try to secure a dealer who is able to add value and think along the same lines of investments as me.
Of course, if you have a small monthly budget sum, that does not mean you cannot or should not plan properly. With tools such as GSC Live! and Goldblocx, you can buy Gold automatically daily for as low as $0.01! That definitely helps us in achieving our needs and objectives!
So that’s it. 3 simple and yet prudent questions which we feel should be asked before entering any investments. If you wish to discuss more, feel free to reach out to us via our GSC:Anywhere platform or just drop us a call!
Jason
We have seen the letters “ESG” so much more than before. Now, ESG is the short form of Environmental and Social Governance. I’m sure the question has crossed your mind many times – what has the environment or being socially responsible got to do with me purchasing precious metals?! The main reason ESG is so important right now is that it helps mitigate risks for investors. What risks are involved since we are just purchasing maybe some Silver coins and Gold bars, right? Let’s take a broader view into the factors involved in ESG below:
(Source: https://retailinvestment.gold/en (World Gold Council – Provider Principles)
The factors listed to be following ESG greatly impacts our everyday lives, and imagine if you had purchased the items from a non-adherence organisation! What if child labourers mined the gold bars we purchased in bad working conditions and in a country filled with corruption and bribery, and the gold bar suddenly becomes non-LBMA accredited? What would you do with the gold bar? It is always important for consumers like ourselves to check on the accreditations a Bullion Dealer holds and the various hallmarks carried by the dealer to safeguard and be at ease when purchasing.
At GoldSilver Central, we are a current local associate corporate member of the Singapore Bullion Market Association (SBMA) and carry a wide range of physical precious metals products (LBMA-accredited). We are also one of the Regulated Dealers registered under the Precious Stones and Precious Metals (Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing) Act 2019 (“PSPM Act”). With these, you can be assured that all our products follow ESG guidelines as we continue to move towards impact investing and being socially responsible.
We look forward to meeting you in our retail store soon!
Wendy
English version
In our previous article, I’ve mentioned that my personal recommendation for a newbie investing in precious metals is to invest and purchase in Gold. I’m sure you’ve heard that Silver has been trending recently, leading you to be hesitant on whether you should be choosing Gold or Silver, right? Today, we will be analyzing and comparing these two precious metals so that everyone can choose the investment they think is worthwhile.
We previously discussed that Gold has two key points – Liquidity and Buy/Sell Spread, which is in line with the needs of a newbie investor. In fact, I personally think that these two points are factors that must be considered in any kind of investment, not just for precious metals.
In terms of Liquidity, we’ve seen an improvement in Silver for the last 10 years. Although Silver is considered to be slightly inferior as compared to Gold, most dealers and a small number of pawnshops have accepted trading Silver (note: Silver here refers to investment grade Silver, which excludes Sterling Silver, 925 Silver jewellery, silverware, etc.). The Buy/Sell Spread on the other hand, increased from the usual 10% to between 15 – 20% due to a series of events (temporary supply chain paralysis caused by Covid-19, #SilverSqueeze by the Reddit Community, etc.). Dealers had to increase the price of Silver products accordingly as many mints and refineries increased their premiums due to supply shortages.
Having said that, let’s look at what other advantages Silver have over Gold. Personally, I think that affordability is the biggest advantage of Silver. Let’s take the most common hallmark coin – Canadian Maple Leaf One Ounce Gold and Silver coins as an example. The current price of the Gold coin can purchase 68pcs of the Silver coin. Just imagine, what happens if both Gold and Silver price rise by $10/oz? Well, the 68 pieces of Silver coins you bought would be more valuable than 1 Gold coin (note: we must also consider that the actual price increase of Gold and Silver are usually different, and this is just an analogy). It is precisely that because Silver is cheaper, its Upside Potential is also greater as it holds a higher value when holdings increase. The price of Gold as of 10 Mar 2022 15:45PM Singapore Time is USD 1,978.50/oz, and the price of Silver is at USD 25.50/oz (oz=troy ounce, pronounced as “aʊns, and is equivalent to 31.1035 grams). In August 2020, Gold hit an all-time high at USD 2,074.96/oz, whereas Silver’s all-time high was USD 49.45/oz in 1980. In terms of probability, I personally think that chances are higher that Silver’s price will double rather than Gold doubling its price.
By now, you must be wondering why wasn’t Platinum mentioned in my article? I’d say take it slow and not to rush as we should always learn things step-by-step. (In fact, I had to squeeze my brains and leave some topics to write for in the long-term when writing a manuscript. Thanks in advance for not blowing my cover!)
I will stop here for now, see you in our next article! If you’ve any questions, please feel free to leave a comment and we can discuss together.
Maya
中文版本
上期我们说到作为新手，我个人比较推荐买入黄金作为你第一块打开投资贵金属大门的敲门砖。可是相信你们还是会听说过最近白银很大势喔所以在犹豫到底选择哪一个比较好对吧？那么我们今天就来分析比较一下两者好让大家可以选到自己认为值得的投资。
之前我们说到黄金有两个特点我觉得是契合新手投资的需求的，那就是流动性(liquidity)和买卖差价率(buy/sell spread)。其实我觉得这两点是任何一种投资都得要考虑的因素，不单单只是适用于贵金属投资。
首先就流动性而言，白银在近10年的流动性已经改善了许多。虽然比起黄金还是稍微逊色了一些，可是大部分的经销商和少部分的当铺都已接受买卖白银（请注意这里的白银是普遍指投资用的白银，不包括sterling silver, 925银饰或银器等）。至于白银的买卖差价率则因为新型冠状病毒肺炎造成的短暂供应链瘫痪以及红迪(Reddit)用户挤压金属供应等一系列事件从往常的10%左右增加至15-20%。这是由于供不应求而造成很多铸币厂和精炼厂把手工费(premium)提高，经销商唯有跟着调高白银产品的售价。
说了以上两点，让我们来看看白银比起黄金有什么其他优势吧。我个人认为便宜是白银的最大优势，以最普遍的加拿大枫叶一盎司金币和银币来举例的话，目前一个金币的价格可以买68个银币。设想如果金价和银价同时都上涨10元，那你买的68个银币带给你的增值就会比1个金币来得多（当然也要考虑现实金价和银价的涨幅通常是不一样的，这里只是做一个简单的比喻）。也正因为白银便宜，所以它的上涨潜力比起黄金是大很多的而且因持有数量带来的增值也比较多。截至2022年3月10日新加坡时间15点45分，金价是美元1978.50/oz而银价是美元25.50/oz （盎司oz=troy ounce，读作”auns”。等于31.1035克）。2020年8月金价达到了历史以来最高的记录美元2074.96/oz，而银价的最高纪录则是在1980年达到49.45/oz。以可能性来说，我个人认为银价会翻倍的几率比金价来的高。
你说怎么没谈到铂金？慢慢来别急，学习总得要有个循次渐进（其实是我写稿也要挤挤脑汁留点话题才能写长远，请别当面拆穿我小女万分感激）。
今天暂时就分享到这里，我们下回见！有什么疑问欢迎在我们的留言区讨论哦。
Maya
