Gold Coin Demand "Unbelievable...Phenomenal"

Gold Coin demand worldwide may surpass 2009's record totals, according to the gold industry's leading data consultancy.

"It looks as though we are going to surpass 2009," says Phillip Newman, director of research at London-based GFMS Ltd, speaking to MarketWatch.

Some 229 tonnes of gold was sold in the form of new Gold Coins last year, GFMS data say, showing a rise of 22% from 2008.

"It's been unbelievable. May was phenomenal," says Michael Kramer, an owner of the MTB Gold Coin store in Manhattan, also featured in MarketWatch's report.

Amid the Greek government debt crsis, "They couldn't find enough Gold Coins in Europe," says Kramer, "and they were buying from us."

Europe's largest official producer of Gold Coins, the Austrian Mint added a third shift to its daily output, but still "We did run out of stocks, we were living off our daily production," says Kerry Tattersall, director of marketing in Vienna.

Investors Buying Gold are warned, however, that dealer mark-ups on coins mean "They are unable to give you the most bang for your buck," says Jon Nadler, an analyst at Canada's Kitco Metals Inc.

"Secondly, you are going to have questions about liquidity...It's not going to be as easy to sell your Gold Coins as you think."

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