For all practical purposes, MS62 is the optimal collectible grade for this San Francisco date. While all Mint State coins are scarce, the value increases dramatically above the MS62 level. By way of example, to our knowledge, the last MS63 – a PCGS example – to have been auctioned brought $29,375 more than three years ago. None have been graded higher by NGC. Listed at $15,600 in the CDN CPG, $14,600 in the NGC price guide and $16,500 in Trends.
Offered at $11,950 delivered
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Remain vigilant. That’s the apparent message the Cboe Volatility Index is flashing, even as cash equities race toward records.
The VIX Index – often referred to as the market’s “fear gauge” – is up over the past three sessions, as of 1:40 pm. in New York. At north of 16, it’s implying that US stocks will tend to move more than 1 per cent per day over the next month. In recent years, it hasn’t lingered above this level unless equities were weakening.
The higher reading belied the brisk advance of more than 2 per cent for the S&P 500 Index over the same three-day stretch. It’s the first time implied volatility has failed to decline amid stock gains of this magnitude since 2009, when the bull market was in its infancy. The two variables tend to move in opposite directions.
During Friday’s 1.1 per cent advance in the S&P 500, the VIX – which measures the 30-day implied volatility of the S&P 500 based on out-of-the-money options prices – also moved higher. That’s despite the weekend effect that typically sees the gauge move lower on Fridays, and the passage of a market-moving event – the May non-farm payrolls report.
This marked just the 11th time since 2004 that the VIX advanced while the stock benchmark rose at least 1 per cent, according to Macro Risk Advisors derivatives strategist Vinay Viswanathan.
“The options market is unwilling to lower its pricing of risk further despite impressive market strength,” he wrote. “The stocks up/vol up move could be a sign from the option market that while equities were performing well, there is still plenty of risk worth protecting against (especially with China trade talks/G-20 lingering on the horizon).”
The event premium built into options that encompass the month-end G-20 summit – at which US President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping are slated to talk trade – is off its recent highs, Viswanathan notes. He recommends July put options on the S&P 500 as an opportunity for investors nervous about the outcome to purchase relatively cheap protection.
Pravit Chintawongvanich, Wells Fargo’s equity derivatives strategist, said in a note that the fierceness of market rallies is contributing to firmness in the volatility index. For the most part, US stocks have taken the staircase down from a record close on April 30, and rebounded via the elevator.
“Up moves count as vol too, and have been pushing realised vol higher,” he wrote. “VIX actually looks low relative to realised vol.”
On Monday, the signal sent by a relatively muted retreat in the VIX appears to be a mirage linked to the demand for upside. The most heavily traded options are S&P 500 calls that expire on June 21 with strike prices of 2,900, 3,000 and 3,100. It’s an indication that fund managers who missed most of the 2019 might be looking for a way to get exposure to further gains without worrying about losses should equities reverse lower.
Twenty Dollar gold pieces have long been popular with collectors with Type 1 pieces such as the one being presented today the most sought after. On top of this coin being in impressive AU-58 condition, it is a mint error. Of all metal types, gold coins are the hardest to locate with errors. The one day has a strike through meaning the coin was minted with a foreign substance interfering with the minting process.
Offered at $4,950 delivered
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At 208,000 pieces, the mintage of the 1921-D Walking Liberty half dollar is the lowest in the series. This issue is also the second-rarest date in the series in high grade Uncirculated, with only the 1921-S being seen less often. The popularity of the Walking Liberty half dollar series is due to a combination of the attractive design as well as the relative availability of every issue therein. That said, the key dates of 1921 are only readily available in low circulated grades. Collectors seeking a complete set will encounter a roadblock with the 1921 issues, particularly those of the branch mints. Collecting Walkers by date and mintmark did not become widespread until the 1930s, by which time the number of Uncirculated ’21-D coins was scant.Listed at $16,300 in the CDN CPG, $18,500 in the PCGS price guide and $17,500 in Trends.
Offered at $13,950 delivered
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The San Francisco Mint struck large numbers of double eagles throughout the second half of the 19th century and 1877 was certainly no exception. A mintage of more than 1.7 million Liberty double eagles was accomplished that year. The coins were used to settle large accounts in both foreign and domestic trade, and few high-quality examples were saved for numismatic purposes. Accordingly, most examples seen today are heavily bag-marked specimens recovered from European holdings or worn circulated pieces that fulfilled their intended function in the hard money economy of the Western United States. Listed at $1,940 in the CDN CPG and $1,805 in the PCGS price guide.
Offered at $1,695 each delivered
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Courtesy of End of the American Dream Blog May 7, 2019 by Michael Snyder
This is the closest that the U.S. has been to a war with Iran in decades, and yet most Americans are either clueless or they don’t seem to believe that it could actually happen. And I certainly don’t think that President Trump wants a war, but he is surrounded by war hawks that have been pushing an extremely aggressive “get tough” policy with Iran. The Trump administration just canceled the waivers that were allowing other nations to continue purchasing Iranian oil, and the goal of that move is to reduce Iranian exports to zero. But oil exports are 40 percent of the Iranian economy, and the Iranians understand that this move could absolutely cripple their economy. The Iranians have threatened to close the straight of Hormuz in retaliation, and that would almost certainly provoke a U.S. military response. In addition, it is being reported that on Wednesday the Iranians will announce that they are taking steps to restart their nuclear program…
On Wednesday, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is expected to announce small steps to resume his country’s nuclear program. According to the New York Times, that will include conducting research on centrifuges that can make nuclear fuel, and curbing nuclear inspections from observers.
Of course the truth is that the Iranians never fully abandoned their nuclear program in the first place, but that is supposed to be a big secret.
In any event, tensions between the U.S. and Iran have now reached frightening levels.
On Sunday, White House National Security Adviser John Bolton announced that the USS Abraham Lincoln and four B-52 bombers are being sent to the Middle East as a message to Iran…
Apparently there was some intelligence which indicated that Iran was planning a possible attack on U.S. forces in the region, and Bolton said that these deployments would make it very clear that any assault would be “met with unrelenting force”…
The deployments would “send a clear and unmistakable message to the Iranian regime that any attack on United States’ interests, or on those of our allies, will be met with unrelenting force,” he said in a statement. “The United States is not seeking war with the Iranian regime, but we are fully prepared to respond to any attack, whether by proxy, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or regular Iranian forces.”
In response, the Iranians accused the U.S. of engaging in a form of “psychological warfare”.
In addition to everything else, CNN is reporting that it appears that the Iranians have been “moving short-range ballistic missiles aboard boats in the Persian Gulf”, and this has deeply alarmed U.S. officials…
Intelligence showing that Iran is likely moving short-range ballistic missiles aboard boats in the Persian Gulf was one of the critical reasons the US decided to move an aircraft carrier strike group and B-52 bombers into the region, according to several US officials with direct knowledge of the situation.
The concerns over the movement of the missiles was one of multiple threads of intelligence from various sources that led the US to believe Iran had a capability and intention to launch strikes against US targets.
If both sides rattle their sabers for a while but nothing ever comes of it, we will be fine.
But if someone goes a little bit too far and the missiles start flying, we could be soon engaged in a conflict that could literally spark World War 3.
While they are certainly no match for the U.S., the truth is that the Iranian military is quite strong, and they possess weapons of immense destructive power. And in the event of a military conflict with the U.S., the Iranians have already said that they will hit Israel too.
And if Israel gets hit, they will certainly strike back at Iran extremely hard.
The Iranians absolutely hate both the United States and Israel, and recent moves by the Trump administration have pushed the Iranians into a corner. The following comes from Pat Buchanan…
Did President Donald Trump approve of this? For he appears to be going along. He has pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal and re-imposed sanctions. Last week, he canceled waivers he had given eight nations to let them continue buying Iranian oil.
Purpose: Reduce Iran’s oil exports, 40% of GDP, to zero, to deepen an economic crisis that is already expected to cut Iran’s GDP this year by 6%.
Trump has also designated Iran a terrorist state and the Republican Guard a terrorist organization, the first time we have done that with the armed forces of a foreign nation. We don’t even do that with North Korea.
A cornered animal is extremely dangerous, and at this point the Iranians may feel as if the only option they have left is to lash out.
As a first step, they could potentially close the Strait of Hormuz, and that would instantly create a global oil crisis. Here is more from Buchanan…
Iran has also warned that if we choke off its oil exports that exit the Persian Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz, the Strait could be closed to other nations. As 30% of the world’s oil shipments transit the Strait, closing it could cause a global crash.
In 1973, when President Nixon rescued Israel in the Yom Kippur War, the OPEC Arabs imposed an oil embargo. Gas prices spiked so high Nixon considered taking a train to Florida for Christmas vacation.
Of course a potential war with Iran is not even on the radar for most Americans these days. Most of us are preoccupied with other things, but if the missiles start flying this will instantly become the top news story on the entire planet.
Wars never start in a vacuum. In every major war throughout history, there has always been a series of steps that has ultimately resulted in the outbreak of war.
Without a doubt, the U.S. and Iran are moving toward war. That doesn’t mean that one will happen, and we better hope that it doesn’t, because it would have all sorts of apocalyptic consequences.
So let us hope that cooler heads prevail.
Unfortunately, there doesn’t appear to be any “cooler heads” among Iranian leadership, and Trump has surrounded himself with war hawks like John Bolton and Mike Pompeo.
In the end, Trump himself will make the final call on any conflict with Iran, and let us hope that he makes the right one.
The San Francisco Mint continued to be the chief producer of double eagles in 1879, striking more than 1.2 million coins (about 1 million pieces more than all three other mints combined). However, Uncirculated examples are seldom offered finer than MS61 and are decidedly rare finer than MS62. If you’re looking for one of those MS62’s you should know that it’s likely to cost more than three times the amount of these MS61’s. Listed at $3,750 in both the CDN CPG and the NGC price guide and $4,250 in the PCGS price guide.
We have ten coins available…
Offered at $3,350 each delivered
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Posted on June 6, 2019 courtesy of Numismatic News Staff
Santa Ana, CA – Collectors from across the country descended on Baltimore’s Inner Harbor in the days leading up to Memorial Day, where two days of exciting auction sessions in their May 2019 Official Auction of the Whitman Coins & Collectibles Summer Expo. Highlighted by the Drummer, Fairmont and Newmark Collections, over $5.6 million in United States coins and Numismatic Americana were sold, kicking off an exciting summer season of auction events for the firm. All prices include the 20% buyer’s premium.
The Baltimore Auction featured an astounding selection of Flying Eagle and Indian Head cents. Several rarities from these series were presented in Session 1, including a Proof-65 RD (PCGS) 1865 cent which brought $13,200 (lot 29) and a Gem MS-66+ RD (PCGS) 1898 cent that realized $10,800 (lot 80).
A surviving Proof 1865 Indian cent, this coin is a significant example of the rare Snow-PR1 die pairing. Sold for $13,200. (Image courtesy of Stack’s Bowers)
Small cents continued to shine in Session 2, which featured the Rarities Night portion of the sale followed the Fairmont Collection of US Gold Coinage.
A beautiful Proof-66 (PCGS) 1856 Flying Eagle cent sold for $50,400 in lot 1005, and a Proof-65 BN (PCGS) CAC 1864 Indian Head cent with L on Ribbon earned $45,600 in lot 1016. Strong demand was demonstrated for key-dates and iconic rarities throughout the session, as was demonstrated by the $99,000 price realized by the MS-66+ FH (PCGS) CAC 1916 Standing Liberty quarter in lot 1059.
The star of the evening was the incredible 1879 Flowing Hair Stella offered in lot 1089. Certified Proof-66 UCAM by NGC with only three examples finer, it brought $234,000.
Three exceptional $50 slugs from the 1915 Panama Pacific Exposition were offered in the session, highlighted by a MS-64 (PCGS) Octagonal example (lot 1135), that earned $90,000. Bringing the session to the close was the Fairmont Collection, featuring desirable key-date issues from the Liberty Head gold series. An AU-58 (PCGS) CAC 1854-S double eagle was the highlight of this offering, realizing $21,600 in lot 1177.
The production of small-diameter cent patterns began in 1850, and by 1856 the desire to create a new format cent for circulation was great. The Mint in Philadelphia struck close to 1,000 examples of James B. Longacre’s Flying Eagle design type for distribution to important individuals. (Image courtesy of Stack’s Bowers) An eagerly sought key date issue, this 1916 Standing Liberty quarter sold for $99,000. Just 52,000 of this year were minted. (Image courtesy of Stack’s Bowers) As a “type coin,” the 1879 Flowing Hair Stella is a significant numismatic rarity, even more so from a market availability standpoint given the strong demand among advanced collectors. Sold for $234,000. (Image courtesy of Stack’s Bowers) The San Francisco Mint struck 1,500 examples of this 1915-S Panama-Pacific $50 for sale at the Exposition. The original asking price was $100, but later discounted when offered within sets. (Image courtesy of Stack’s Bowers)
The most highly anticipated item of the sale was offered in Session 4, where an original striking of the Washington Before Boston medal in silver was presented (lot 3031). A newly discovered piece, this example was certified Specimen-61 by PCGS and is one of just 11 examples known. After intense activity, it sold for $156,000.
Attracting similar excitement was the 1905 Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural medal in lot 3060. Designed by Augustus Saint-Gaudens, produced by Tiffany, and struck in bronze, it realized $31,200.
As reported in last week’s Numismatic News Express, this example of the famous Washington Before Boston Medal in silver drew $156,000 in the auction. (Image courtesy of Stack’s Bowers) Selling for $31,200, an American Classic MCMV (1905) Theodore Roosevelt inaugural bronze medal is one of just 150 examples authorized to be produced by Tiffany in bronze. It was found in the consignor’s grandmother’s jewelry box after her passing. (Image courtesy of Stack’s Bowers)
The session was brought to a close with an exciting offering of colonial and early American coins, including a selection of New Jersey coppers from the Collection of Larry L. Terrell. Highlights from the Terrell Collection included an EF-45 (PCGS) 1786 Maris 15-T that brought $5,280 (lot 3201) and a Condition Census EF-40 (PCGS) 1787 Maris 73-aa that realized $8,400 (lot 3241). A VF-30 (PCGS) Albany Church Penny in lot 3255 brought $21,600 and an AU-53 (PCGS) Washington Funeral Urn medal with GW on the Base earned $26,400 in lot 3268, claiming the top price among colonial issues.
The Albany Church pennies are attributed to the First Presbyterian Church of Albany, New York and were produced as a result of a resolution passed by the church elders on January 4, 1790. These pieces were intended to provide parishioners with coppers to place in the Sunday offering plates. (Image courtesy of Stack’s Bowers) A 1787 New Jersey Copper Maris 73-aa, which was overstruck on an 1787 Connecticut Copper realized $8,400 at the Stack’s Bowers Whitman Expo on May 24. (Image courtesy of Stack’s ToppinBowers)
Despite its substantial mintage of more than three million pieces, the 1924-D double eagle has always been an elusive issue. Most of the coins were held in Mint vaults or Federal Reserve Banks until the Gold Recall of 1933, and subsequently melted into gold bars for storage at Fort Knox. Comparatively few reached circulation in this country and the issue was believed to be quite rare in the 1940s. Fortunately, some of the exported coins were returned to the U.S., beginning about 1950, and the supply has been considerably augmented since then. The 1924-D is still scarce in MS64 condition, and very rare in higher grades. Only twelve have been graded 65 or higher by PCGS. Listed at $11,600 in the CDN CPG, $11,000 in the PCGS price guide and $12,500 in Trends.
Offered at $10,550 delivered
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The 1893-CC dollar is an issue that is hard for collectors to resist since it has so much going for it. It is the final year of issue for the Carson City mint, it has a relatively low mintage of 677,000 pieces, and better-grade Uncirculated pieces are a semi-key issue in the Morgan series. Two problems are widely known by collectors for this issue, weakness of strike and pervasive bag-marks. This particular coin is fully struck in the centers, unlike many Mint State survivors. Listed at $15,700 in the CDN CPG and $15,000 in both the PCGS price guide and Trends.
Offered at $14,300 delivered
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