“Why is the premium for your Royal Canadian Mint Silver Bar 100oz more expensive than others?”
Lets face it, the above question has been asked by many precious metals investors out there looking to get the best value for their investments. And we totally understand that. Today, we will share with you a little of what goes on behind the scenes in the precious metals industry.
Price of a Physical Gold Bar = Market Spot Price + Physical Premium
This is how you calculate the total costs of your physical precious metals. Market price is easy enough to understand. That is the Loco London gold spot price that all bullion dealers internationally quote and refer to. (This is not true! Click here to find out why so?) So what is this “Physical Premium” about? Is it akin to “Workmanship” that is charged for jewellery?
Yes and No. Physical Premiums is not totally considered as workmanship per se.
The Physical Premium is the cost incurred when refineries cast the raw gold into the finished gold product forms, Ie coins/bars. When a distributor like GoldSilver Central purchases products directly from refineries, GSC pays this physical premium above the market spot price to the refinery in order to bring this product to Singapore. That being said, the physical premium includes other costs such as Storage costs, Insurance Costs and Delivery Costs. Thereafter, in order to run its business and earn some money, distributors typically add a margin within the premium and resell it to customers. For example, the costs for a Maple Leaf Silver Coin is US$1.80, GSC sells it at US$1.90, netting a 10c gross profit.
Keeping this in mind, the following situations are commonplace.
A same product would have different physical premiums in different countries.
Depending on the manner in which distributors obtain their supply, there will be different costs as well. (Of course the best is to buy from Distributors who work directly with refineries)
Sometimes when Premiums increase, it may not be due to the distributor. (Even more unlikely in this environment of increasing competition where profit margins will only continue to shrink) It may also be due to refineries increasing their premiums prices.
So thats it, a short writeup on physical premiums. Stay tuned as we continue our updates, to walk with you as you embark on your precious metals investing journey.
PS: Silver Prices have increased significantly over the past few months. We have been tracking the Royal Canadian Mint Silver Bar 100oz and their premiums have increased steadily since November last year. No telling if it will continue to increase.
One of our team members went to Korea and took this photo recently. For those of us unfamiliar, this is a love lock that lovers typically lock onto a public fixture (Most common a bridge or wall of sorts) to symbolize their love for each other. The key is supposedly then thrown away and their love is “unbreakable”. (Probably the author did not account for irate authorities or lock-picking thieves when he came up with this)
This Valentine’s day, we decided to explore why some people choose to “lock” their precious metals in a vault, whereas others just choose to leave them at home. What is the difference between a safety deposit box, a vault and my home safe anyway? Aren’t they all just places to store items safely? Today, we will head into the realm of vaulting security.
Home Safe
A metal safe box at your house where you apparently store your important papers under your personal name (Think title deeds, birth certificates, cash, etc.), all in the hopes that a burglar who breaks into your house will not find it/ deems it too troublesome to cart off a neatly packaged “takeaway container” of the things he came in to find in the first place. We jest, but you get the idea:)
PS: We must take this chance to state that we are very fortunate to reside in a safe country like Singapore.
Safety Deposit Box
A slight improvement from a home safe system where you place the actual metal box at a third party facility with security protocols implemented. Costs are incurred for the security personnel and the technology but are typically low across the industry. Privacy levels differ at different facilities but a general trend is the higher the level of privacy you require, the higher the annual costs. Insurance of your holdings is typically not available.
LBMA Network Vaults
The vault is maintained by an independent LBMA vault operator who follows international standards and have strict security protocols. Financial institutions typically store their holdings within these secure facilities and form an ecosystem that enables global liquidity management and easy location swaps. LBMA vaults perform an important role in providing secure locations where bullion transactions between bullion dealers are facilitated efficiently. 100% insurance coverage is provided and high levels of check and balances are maintained.
At GSC’s partner’s vault, whenever a GSC staff enters the vault, they are accompanied everywhere by a vault operator and the same security protocols for visitors apply to GSC staff as well. Any deposit and withdrawal of holdings is strictly controlled and holdings are inspected regularly to ensure accuracy and security
Click here to find out more information on LBMA vaults.
Private Vault
Similar to the combined concept of an LBMA vault operator and a safety deposit box system, but under a private vault operator who sets his own standards and might not prescribe to international standards. Such operators usually act alone (due to clients’ privacy) and are not connected to other ecosystems. Stored physical bullion typically have to be transported externally before transactions can occur. Counter party risk might be high depending on the solvency of the vault operator. Unfortunately, there have been known cases of operators absconding with their client’s assets.
Quick Comparison of Storage methods
Which among the 4 common options would be best to store precious metals you ask?
In a nutshell, it really depends on the clients’ needs and objectives! Different clients have different risk profiles and prioritize certain aspects of their portfolios over other factors. Speak to our Storage team for a more in depth analysis of your profile and portfolio to have a better idea.
So that’s it, a quick look at vaulting security. Keep in tune as we continue our updates, to make precious metals investing a transparent one.
PS: A quick shout out to GSC’s Storage Programme. We partner LBMA vault operators and seek to add value to our clients’ storage holdings.
Here’s how clients can maximize their holdings’ value:
- Instant Price Fix – Storage clients are able to phone in during office hours to sell their holdings instantaneously, regardless of their physical location.
- Live Valuation – When within GSC Vault Network, storage clients’ holdings are tracked with real-time prices, providing them a live valuation and profit/loss statement of their investment portfolio at any instance.
- Hassle-Free Administration – Clients do not have to worry about counting and keeping track how many pieces of each item they have. GSC sends a monthly statement with their item breakdown.
- Smart Analysis – Based on aggregated databases, we are able to optimize clients’ precious metals portfolio to achieve their objectives via portfolio rebalancing
Contact us at [email protected] or call us at +6562229703 if you are looking to maximize your precious metals potential.
It is common to mistake platinum for white gold due to their silvery white appearance. But they are distinguishable by their weight as platinum is 20% denser, weighing heavier than white gold. Scoring 3.5 on the Mohs scale, Platinum is harder than gold and more costly to produce. About 30 times rarer than gold, occurring at very low concentrations in the earth’s crust. Often the preferred choice of jewellery especially for couples as it symbolises strength, durability and endurance.
The automotive sector has the highest demand for Platinum. The metal’s active properties act as filters within catalytic converters of motor cars, helping to reduce harmful emissions. And because it does not react negatively to body tissue, they are considered biologically compatible metal and is used widely in hospitals for surgical instruments and implants. According to reports from World Platinum Investment Council, industrial demand for the metal are seeing an average 4.6% growth per annum from 1988 to 2019.
In the last 20 years, platinum reached its peak of $2,2253/oz in March 2008 and lowest of $785/oz in 2019. Interestingly, platinum backed investment jumped in the year 2019 particularly huge purchases in ETFs by large institutional investors. This maybe a hint to the market that corporate investors are speculating growth potentials. Perhaps it is time to consider diversifying your gold portfolio by buying some precious platinum.
But regardless if you are an investor looking to ride the platinum wave, a collector of platinum coins or diversify of your portfolio, GoldSilver Central is the one-stop solution that you need. Check out our website or drop-by our storefront and speak to our friendly staff. GoldSilver Central have an array of platinum bars and coins to meet your needs.
Dollar cost averaging is an investment strategy where you divide a total amount to be invested by the standard periodic purchases of a targeted asset. In other words, you are spacing out the intervals of your investment instead of committing to one larger amount. Avoiding the risk of making poorly timed decisions especially when the market is not in your favor. The key attribute to this strategy is the smoothening of investment risk. Lowering the risk and cost of wealth saving accumulation.
You can find plenty of similar offerings in the market, but have you heard of a precious metal accumulation plan? Yes! GoldSilver Central is offering the Savings Accumulation Program (GSAP), a metal accumulation method based on dollar cost averaging. For any increment of 100SGD or more per month you can start accumulating your savings in Gold, Silver or Platinum in your account.
Dollar cost averaging is suitable for highly volatile market such as Gold, Silver and Platinum. Fluctuations in pricing causes market uncertainly. By spacing out the accumulation, you are buying more when prices are lower and buying less when prices are high.
The flexibility of starting from as low as 100SGD per month is suitable for anyone who would like to start small. What this also means is if you feel comfortable, you can always opt to save more every month. Suitable for the young as a savings plan and also to institutional investors who are interested in the acquirement of precious metals over time 
The process is fully automated and no actions are required from you. Our system will proceed to execute daily based on the GSC 10AM Reference Price which you can find them at the top on our website. A statement with your accumulated holdings will be sent to you at the end of each accumulation month. We do the work so you can focus on what’s more important to you.One common question we have from you is if there is a solution to catch your desired price for selling your precious metals holdings to us.
Today, we will share how you can use our services to never miss out on cashing out on high prices for your bullion under a pooled allocated storage arrangement.
Solution A is for you if you are an investor who
- Wants an automatic arrangement for selling your bullion
- Knows the price level you want to sell your bullion at (Eg: I want to sell my 1kg Gold Bar at SGD 65500)
- Wants a straightforward method with minimal effort.
Here’s how it works:
- Bring your bullion you wish to sell to us during our operating hours where we will authenticate it.
- Your bullion will be stored with us under a pooled allocated arrangement (simply means that your bullion will be deposit into our holdings)
- Let us know what your specific selling price for your metals is. (For example: I want to sell my 1kg Gold Bar when it reaches SGD 65500).
- And it’s done! When spot BID prices have reached your desired selling price, it will automatically be sold.
- You will receive the proceeds via a Bank Transfer*
*we do need to onboard you as a client which means we need your NRIC and the header of your Bank Statement (reflecting the Name and Account Number). Please omit other sensitive information
- Wants full control of when you want to sell your holding
- Wants to sell your holdings bit by bit (For example, if you have a 100oz Silver Bar, you don’t have to sell 100oz at one go, but you can sell in 5oz sizes
- Want to set your own Sell Limits (Automated Feature)
Here’s how it works:
- Bring your bullion you wish to sell to us during our operating hours where we will authenticate it.
- Your bullion will be stored with us under a pooled allocated arrangement (simply means that your bullion will be deposit into our holdings)
- Unlock the Full GSC Live! Account Features with us by clicking here. This can be done before or during your visit.
- We will deposit the total weight of your metals into your GSC Live! Account.
- Login to your account under the “MetaTrader4” app in “GoldSilverCentral-Live” server.
- You can set Sell Limits to automatically trigger your desired selling prices or you can start selling your holdings whenever your desired prices are reached
Have more questions on the arrangements?
Drop us an email or a call and we’ll be happy to share more information with you!
Curious to know how we price our Gold Jewellery Buyback Prices on our website?
Here at GoldSilver Central, we do get many questions on how we calculate our buyback prices for Gold Jewellery and in this article, we aim to address some common questions you would have:
Q: How do I calculate GoldSilver Central’s Buyback Prices from the Gold Prices I see from mediums provided by General News Providers such as Channel News Asia?
Recall seeing prices like Gold: $1544.70 on mediums such as broadcast or on websites of general news providers?
The prices you reflected here are known as spot prices, and represents the prices for 1 troy ounce of Pure Gold. Spot prices refers to the live prices that a commodity is being transacted & delivered at the current moment. Prices are driven by Demand and Supply. The price for selling your Gold Jewellery to us would be based on the BID price.
1 Troy Ounce of Gold = 31.1035 Grams of Gold
Hence, if the price reflected is USD 1544.70, then 1 Grams of Gold would be:
USD 1544.70 ÷ 31.1035g = USD 49.66 per Grams.
Please take note that our buyback prices for Gold Jewellery are reflected in SGD hence, you would need to calculate (BID) Gold Prices in SGD.
If the ASK for USD/SGD is 1.3847, Gold Prices in SGD would be:
USD 49.66 x 1.3847 = SGD 68.76
This would be the spot price in SGD for 1 Gram of Gold.
So how do we price our Jewellery Buyback Prices from the Spot Price?
When this screenshot was taken, the Spot Price (BID) for Gold in SGD was SGD 2099.90 per troy ounce. Please take note that calculations here are based on estimates.
Final Buying Price = Spot Price (1 Gram) – Discount
As we will send the gold to a refiner for melt, the discount amount would include
- Melting Cost
- Transportation Cost (Shipping, etc)
- Insurance Cost for Shipping
- Manpower Cost
- Cost involved
Taking into consideration that Spot Price (BID) would be for Pure (999) Gold,
Spot Price for 1 gram of 999 Gold:
SGD 2099.90 ÷ 31.1035g = SGD 67.51 per gram.
Discount from Spot Price: SGD 67.51 – SGD 64.40 = SGD 3.11.
So, what if the Gold Jewellery you have is of 916 Purity?
Using the same Spot Price (BID) for Gold,
Spot Price for 1 gram of 916 Gold:
(SGD 2099.90 ÷ 31.1035g) x 91.6% = SGD 61.84 per gram
Discount from Spot Price: SGD 61.84 – SGD 58.30 = SGD 3.54
Note: The prices you see on our website would be the final NETT price, means there are no further deductions.
Q: How does a typical process look like when I sell my Gold Jewellery to you?
A typical process looks like this:
- Drop by our Retail Store during our Operating Hours with your Gold Jewellery.
- Our team will sort out your Gold Jewellery based on the purity
- After deducting the estimated weight for any stones on the jewellery, we will then refer to the Jewellery Buyback Prices on our website and use the rates as seen.
- Upon the confirmation of the total amount you would be getting for your Gold Jewellery, we would issue a buyback invoice and the amount will be given to you in Cash.
To see the latest prices for our Gold Jewellery Prices, Click Here.
The GSC Collateral Loan program enables you to retain full ownership of your physical metal holdings but also gives you the opportunity to monetize your assets for expansion of investments or when you need immediate cash flow. It is backed by a registered pawn broker in Singapore.
There are essentially 3 key points to take note of if you intend to make full use of this program to grow your investments* instead of storing your money in banks that give inflation-eroded interest rates:
- You already have precious metals on hand. If you seek liquidity, you can pawn the items to us instead of selling outright. The cost is only 1% interest a month for gold and 1.5% for silver and platinum. If prices go up more than the stipulated interest rate, you can redeem your items for the afore-agreed on principle amount and take profit while still maintain ownership of your items.
- You have no precious metals on hand but wish to own some. The Collateral Loan Program offers you leverage where you buy and then pawn the items with us at the respective loan-to-values (LTV): up to 85% for gold and 75% for silver and platinum. So basically, you can buy a gold kilobar valued at spot bid $65,000 and pawn it back to us at 85% LTV of $55,250. Hey you just paid $9,750 to own a gold kilobar with interest of 1% a month! Again you can choose to take physical delivery or sell your gold kilobar when prices rise above the interest costs to earn a profit.
- You have collateral loan items with us and can choose to revalue your pawn ticket when prices go up. This means you can get instant cash above the interest payment for the month.
For more information, please check out https://www.goldsilvercentral.com.sg/collateral-loan/
*As with any investment, there are risks involved. The above is based on the assumption that bullion prices are on a bullish trend. You may get back less than the amount invested if the market moves against you. You are advised to do your independent due diligence. Alternatively, you could approach us via walk-in, phone call or email for clarification.
You can set up your Price Alerts for the product you are monitoring! Here’s how you can do it:
Step 1: In a Single Product Page, scroll down to the multiple tabs area and click on “PRICE ALERT AND HISTORY”:
You will see the Price History of the product in a chart
Step 2: Click on “Setup Price Alert” as highlighted in this screenshot:
Step 3: You will see a pop up to key in your price and email. Key in your desired price and your email in the highlighted fields and click on “Create Price Alert” Button:
Step 4: You will get a confirmation pop-up and receive an email once the price drops to your indicated price.
World’s largest gold coin, worth $45M, makes NY Stock Exchange debut from CNBC.
New Yorkers are treated to a lovely view of the world’s largest and heaviest gold coin (with a value of SGD 61.47 million (.est)) ever minted. This colossal One Tonne Pure Gold Coin was delivered to the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in commemoration of Perth Mint’s latest investment products.
Richard Hayes, Perth Mint CEO, with the world’s largest gold coin. Copyright to The Perth Mint
WE ARE PRETTY BUMMED.
We’re pretty bummed that we can’t be there to view the 1-tonne Gold Coin upfront and to celebrate Perth Mint’s official launch for their latest investment products, so we’ll do here on our Little Red Dot with promotions and giveaways!
Take $5 off selected Perth Mint Lunar Silver Coins from today, Wednesday (17 July 2019 17:00) to Monday (22 July 2019 10:00). For every order on Perth Mint Lunar Series items under promotion, we are giving away Limited Quantities of Perth Mint Australia Kangaroo Gold Chocolate Coins and Perth Mint Gold Bar iPhone X Cases*!
See Perth Mint Specials!
*Only Limited to 1 Chocolate Coin or 1 iPhone X Case per Customer based on Available Stocks. Whilst Stocks Last
Have you been looking to buy uncommon Gold and Silver Collectible Coins from our Global Partners?
Here’s your chance!
In GSC Group Buy, we will accumulate Pre-Orders of selected Gold and Silver Collectible Coins.
If ample orders are fulfilled by the Pre-Order deadline, GSC will confirm the Group Buy.
HOW IT WORKS
- GSC accumulates Group Buy orders
- If minimum order of 10 items are fulfilled upon deadline, GSC will confirm Group Buy
- When items are here, GSC will inform clients that their orders are ready for collection
PRECIOUS METALS MARKET REVIEW.
| Weekly Spot Price (6 May – 10 May 2019) | ||||
| Open | High | Low | Close | |
| Gold | 1280.410 | 1291.290 | 1276.820 | 1285.530 |
| Silver | 14.836 | 14.922 | 14.647 | 14.691 |
| Platinum | 864.340 | 883.340 | 841.470 | 858.940 |
Precious metals updates…
| · | China-U.S. Feud Fuels Haven Demand as Traders Rewrite Playbook Forget all the optimism that briefly reverberated through markets over trade on Friday. The weekend’s events have reshuffled the deck and traders are once again looking toward haven assets. | ||
| · | Gold holds gains Gold edged higher on Friday and was heading for a weekly gain, supported by trade concerns after the United States hiked tariffs on Chinese goods after the recent trade talks between both countries. | ||
| · | Gold steadies in Asia Gold prices held firm on Friday, drawing support from increased trade tensions after US President Donald Trump’s tariff increase on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods took effect, putting the bullion on track for a weekly gain. | ||
| · | Gold price forecast: Upside favored after defense of key support for third straight week Gold could rise above $1,300 next week, having defended a long-term moving average price support for the third straight week. | ||
| · | China Adds Gold For 5th Month, Demand Surges During Important Indian Holiday China’s central bank added gold to its reserves for the fifth month in a row in April, the latest emerging market central bank to stock up on the yellow metal. | ||
| · | Economic figures to monitor this week: | ||
| Day & Date | Economic Events | ||
| Tuesday, 14 May 2019 | Average Earnings Index + Bonus (Mar) (UK) | ||
| Wednesday, 15 May 2019 |
Industrial Production (YoY) (Apr) (CN) Core Retail Sales (MoM) (Apr) (US) Retail Sales (MoM) (Apr) (US) Crude Oil Inventories (US) |
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| Thursday, 16 May 2019 |
Building Permits (Apr) (US) Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Index (May) (US) |
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| Friday, 17 May 2019 | CPI (YoY) (Apr) (EUR) | ||
To get updates on our Bullion Insights Report, please sign up for our bullion insights report emailer here:
We have added Pre-loved Gold Jewellery as a new product range at competitive prices WITHOUT WORKMANSHIP!
From purity 24K to 20K, covering most of the category of jewellery for example: bracelet, necklace, pendant, ring etc.
Do you know that in Korea, gold’s unit of measurement is termed “Don”?
1 Don = 3.75g.
Koreans have valued gold for centuries and it has been a long lived tradition to give out gold rings, bracelets, necklaces to babies celebrating their first birthday (in Korean it’s called “dohl”).
We have some very unique Pre-loved Korean jewellery that suit perfectly as Baby Shower Gift as well.
Apart from that, we have other auspicious jewellery that you might want to bring it home. Feel free to check out our Pre-loved Gold Jewellery here.
We will update our jewellery periodically, don’t miss out our latest offerings!
