All my local dealers have been out and are not getting any bullion soon.......http://investmentwatchblog.com/mint...-out-of-stock-comex-gold-inventories-plummet/
I would imagine that to some extent the LCS is just telling you they are out, when in reality they just aren't selling right now. Why would they be interested in selling at the current prices? People will gripe if they try to charge a mark up on the spot price, so some will just say that they do not have any and wait for the price to go back up again so they can make better profits.
Because it's too much of a gamble not to. Bullion dealers, and to a certain extent coins stores, shouldn't give a flip about what the current spot price is because they earn their profits on the spread. Sure, prices dove faster than many dealers could sell, it happens. It doesn't look like it's about to shoot back up any time soon so they might as well move that inventory. Any dealer that keeps their inventory stashed away because the current prices are not favorable will be hurting big time if the prices continue to fall. Of course new inventory will come in and they'll sell that no problem, but that old bullion that they bought a month or more ago will still be sitting there, mocking them: "Can't sell that for less than I bought it for, even if it doesn't make any sense..."
Mine are doing good too. I was concerned that one of them wouldn't sell at the lower prices, but he sold off most of his silver bullion inventory to a guy that came in right after the plunge and was willing to buy at $30/oz. I don't know that either have hundreds of OZs, but they aren't sold out because there doesn't seem to be any shortage of people wanting to jump ship on precious metals. I just wish some of those people would respond to my craigslist ads.
Well, I can tell you that my suppliers have either suspened sales ,are out of stock or on a delay of more than 3 weeks . I am not speaking of little suppliers either,these are big players. I also know that most LCS in my area are out of stock as well. Sure the public can buy a few ounces here or there from myself or another shop that gets walk in materials , even APMEX or Provident if they are lucky but for bulk purchasers like myself the stoy is as stated by the OP. Sorry that I did not clarify that the pertains to silver & not gold, I have no problem getting gold.
Coin shops and online dealers are not in the same category as exchanges. The point is not that metal is unavailable, rather that we are witnessing a shift in investment psychology in that those who are typically pacified with paper promises are now demanding delivery at unprecedented levels. Do they know something we don't, or is it simply that far undervalued that they can make a profit on the physical metal? That being said, the coin shops in my area are out of eagles. It's a 2 week wait if you want to pay outrageous premiums. What generic metal is in stock is $5 over spot.
The other thing that this is telling us is that instutional investors are making the shift from paper to physical, as in hedge fund managers. The big money a.k.a. the smart money is voting for physical now.
Howdy folks, My LCS is showing out on ASE's, 50 Pesos, 100 Coronas and 90%. What we'll want to watch if both declining supply AND/OR increasing premiums. Either are a sign that the divergence between the paper price and the street price is growing. peace, rono