A fistful of investment coins

The price of investment coins varies from day to day, from hour to hour. Usually we have four basic factors to take into consideration: The price of silver, the premium of the coin, the collector value and the value of US dollar.

The following coins are, with the exception of the Australian Lunar, investment coins. You buy them in the hope that gold and silver shall get more expensive so that you can sell the coins back to the dealer with a profit. Many people also buy silver and gold coins as a backup in case paper money will become valueless.

The Australian Kookaburra: A silver coin in the hand is better than ten in the bank? Kookaburras are tree kingfishers native to Australia , which grow to between 28–42 cm (11–17 in) in length. Kookaburras like meat and they are known to eat baby-birds, mice, snakes, insects and small reptiles. The kookaburra's loud call sounds like echoing human laughter. Once, $crooge McDuck was prospecting in Australia, he thought Kookaburras laughed at him. The miser threw a rock at the birds: Donald Duck: “Look! There, where your rock knocked the shale off the ledge!” $crooge McDuck: “I exposed a vein of silver! Let the kookaburras laugh that off!”
To commemorate the 25th anniversary of the kookaburra coin, the 2015 coin features the same image of the kookaburra as the original 1990 coin. To differentiate the 1990 and 2015 coins the date on the reverse reads 1990-2015 and 2015 on the obverse. The face value of the coin is one Australian dollar; the weight is one troy ounce, 31.135 grams, 40.60 mm and 4 mm thick. Maximum mintage: 500 000
In Oslo, 26. June 2015, you have to pay for a 1 oz. Silver Kookaburra: NOK 173 or US$ 23

The American Eagle: A Fistful of Dollars? You got to try it! If you haven’t already invested in the American Eagle Silver coins… Do it! Buy at least a five coins and hold them in your hand. Close your eyes and make a fist… Feel the silver on your skin. Savor Lady Liberty and know in your heart why silver dollars are so popular. They feel like real money.
Anyway, there are three versions of the American Eagle. The U.S. Mint produces the proof version ($ 49), the uncirculated collector’s version ($ 40) and the bullion version. Strangely enough, the Mint sells only the proof and collector coin directly to the public. (Probably because the profit is better).You have to buy the bullion coin at a dealer.
The American Eagle Coin is not exactly a beautiful coin. The front design is Lady Liberty walking towards the setting sun, and the rear design has an eagle behind a shield, holding an olive branch and arrows in its talons, 13 stars to represent the original colonies. The one troy ounce (31,103 g) coin reeks of solidity, is desirable and purchased by investors all over the world. It is also legal tender. The spot price of silver is at the time of writing close to $ 17 and you have to pay approximately $ 20 – 21 for the coin.
In Oslo, 26. June 2015, you have to pay for a 1 oz. Silver Eagle: NOK 158 or US$ 21

The Australian Lunar: The Year of the Tiger, 寅,is one of the 12 animal years in the Chinese calendar. In many ways this calendar is important for superstitious Chinese who believe in luck. It might even be determinative for “the lucky day” of a wedding, dying or opening a new shop.
Anyway, the Perth Mint’s Lunar Series II are beautifully minted collector coins. The 2010 coin picture a tiger lying under a tree. As well as the inscription ‘Year of the Tiger’ and the Chinese character for ‘tiger’ the coins are Issued as legal tender. Each coin features the well known face of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
The Lunar calendar coins are not investment coins in the sense that you buy the coins for the value of the metal. You buy them for the pleasure of owning them or giving them away as gifts. It is doubtful that The Year of the Tiger coin will ever get valuable since the Perth Mint minted 300 000. The metal content is 1 troy ounce (31,103 gram) and the purity is 999/1000. Thickness – 2.6 millimeter.
In Oslo, 26, June 2015, you have to pay for a 1 oz. Australian Lunar: NOK 434 or US$ 56

TIGER, tiger, burning bright
In the forests of the night
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?
- William Blake (1752 – 1827)

The Chinese Silver Panda: We do love the Panda Bear - 大熊猫 - even if I am not sure why we do. It’s a stinking bear. It must be the illusion of soft, friendliness all wrapped up in black and white. But looks can deceive. I used to love the beauty of the Silver Panda Coin, but now I am no longer sure if my love is true. Because the Chinese Central Bank released the 2015 edition without metal fineness and weight.
Since its introduction in 1983, the Silver Panda has been a highly sought-after investment coin. The Panda for 2015 is minted with (??.?? grams) of ??? silver?, and has a face value of CNY10 yuan, This year’s Panda is sitting with bamboo leaves in its mouth. The Temple of heaven depict the opposite side with Chinese characters on top saying People's Republic of China. At the bottom the year of issue. Circulation: 8 000 000.
Is The Panda Coin value for your money? Probably, even if you can’t be certain of what you are buying. But if true to last year coin my guess is 1 troy oz (31,103 grams) – 999 silver.
In Oslo, 26. June 2015, you have to pay for a 1 oz. Silver Panda: NOK 186 or US$ 24

The Chinese Gold Panda: Do we love the Panda Bear? - 大熊猫. Children do. They think the black-and-white bear is the distant cousin of the Teddy bear. Last year I bought a 2014 Panda Coin. Not that it is a good investment, but it is a beautiful little piece of art. I do love the motive on the 2015 edition, a single panda nibbling on a stalk of bamboo, in a stand of bamboo. However, I have not yet acquired it, if I ever do. The Chinese Central Bank released the 2015 edition without metal fineness and weight. The lack of information make it easier for collectors to be fooled by counterfeit coins. That means you and me!
China issued its first gold coins picturing a Panda in 1982 and the coin has been a sought-after investment coin. The Panda for 2015 is minted with (??.?? grams) of ??? gold? The Temple of Heaven depict the opposite side with Chinese characters on top saying People's Republic of China. At the bottom the year of issue. Circulation: 1 000 000.
In Oslo, 26. June 2015, you have to pay for a 1 oz. Gold Panda: NOK 9721 or US$ 1195

The Canadian Silver Maple Leaf: This Leaf is not electric and my favorite investment coin. Beautifully minted with Canada’s national symbol and a portrait of the Queen of the Brits. The lines on both sides make the coin glitter in sunlight when you flip it.
Since its introduction in 1988, the Silver Maple Leaf has been a highly sought-after. The SML is minted with one troy ounce (31.11 grams) of 9999 pure silver, and has a face value of CAD $ 5, The radial lines on the 2015 coin have been precisely machined to within microns. The line width and pitch creates a light diffracting pattern. A visual security feature —a textured maple leaf micro of, with the numeral “15” denoting the coin’s year of issue.
The Maple Leaf Silver Coin is value for your money.
In Oslo, 26. June 2015, you have to pay for a 1 oz. Silver Maple Leaf : NOK 154 or US$ 20

It is important to differ between an investment coin – bullion. (You buy the metal.). And a collector coin (You buy the coin.) Sometimes it is difficult to see what is what. The Australian Lunar Coin is a typical collector’s item.