Gerry's Daily Blog

Featured Coins of the Day

1899 PCGS MS64 CAC G$5 Osprey $1050	1925-D NGC MS64 CAC G$2.5 $900	1908 PCGS MS65 CAC G$5 Osprey $3550
1907 PCGS MS64+ CAC G$5 $895	1882 NGC MS64+ CAC G$5 $1450	1913 PCGS MS63 CAC G$5 Osprey $1250

 

 

September 22, 2019

More Seated Half Dimes From Dr. Peterson's Dansco

and

Labelman87 Barber Collection Sale Schedule

Greetings on a Sunday morning and welcome to the Blog.

Southern Maine is blessed with a perfect Autumn season. Today brings a continuation of warmer temperatures and bright sunny skies. I will probably pull another 8-10 Liberty Seated half dimes from Dr. Peterson's Dansco album and continue the effort to wrap up his Liberty Seated half dime sales.

There are many parallel efforts happening in the GFRC office. Each day brings multiplexing between three or four projects to ensure a balanced release of new inventory to the price list. At the moment, I am pricing the Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection, processing images for the Massachusetts Collection Seated dime collection, processing images for Gerry Fortin's 1875-CC through 1877-CC referece collection Seated dimes, and extracting more Seated half dimes from Dr. Peterson's Dansco album collection.

Another wave of consignments is due to arrive this week including a lot of mint state Barber dimes, more Carson City material from the Murphys Collection, and finally a new offering from Oregon Beaver.

 

Nice Raw Liberty Seated Half Dimes from Dr. Glenn Peterson

We open today's Blog edition with a Liberty Seated half dime gallery. All pieces are raw and were recently extracted from Dr. Glenn Peterson's Dansco album. These are quality coins being offered at attractive prices. Since I've not had the pleasure of sending these through the PCGS grading gauntlet with associated grading and shipping fees, offer prices are lower. Attributions are as provided by Dr. Peterson without my double checking.

More Dr. Peterson Dansco Album Liberty Seated Half Dimes

      1850 V-5 Raw AU55 5C                                   1851 V-1 Raw AU53 5C                                1851-O V-2 Raw AU55 5C  

            

      1852 Raw AU55 5C                                      1852-O Raw EF40 5C                                     1853 NA Raw VF20 5C  

            

 

New Oregon Beaver Collection Consignment Arriving Soon

The Oregon Beaver Collection is well known among the GFRC community. Oregon Beaver has the second ranked Liberty Seated half dollar collection in the Open Set Registry, and also enjoys smaller denomination United States gold. Late last week, an email arrived with a new consignment proposal. The following lot will be shipping on Monday or Tuesday to the GFRC office. Please note the fine selection of $2.5 quarter eagle gold with nearly all being CAC approved. First Rights of Refusal are welcomed.

Barber 50c: 1897 O raw AU50; 1911-S PCGS VF35 CAC

Gold $2.5: 1856-O NGC AU55 CAC; 1873-S PCGS AU55; 1889 PCGS MS64 CAC; 1897 PCGS MS63 CAC; 1900 PCGS MS64+ CAC

 

Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection Sale Schedule

I'm pleased to report that preparations for the Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection sale are nearing completion. Saturday evening brought the pricing of dates up through 1900 with a COIN report provided to the consignor for his approval or changes. Core date and mintmark (PCGS Registry Set) descriptions continue to be written by GFRC's ace catalogger. Image galleries for the core Barber quarter set and separately, the duplicates, are completed.

The time has arrived to announce the Labelman87 Barber quarter sale schedule. The overall sale includes 101 desirable offerings in a four day period. Barber quarter fans should be ready for a busy week. Gaining access to the fantastic Labelman87 Collection is a once in a decade opportunity.

Following is the GFRC sale schedule that will be strictly adhered to;

Tuesday September 24

- Labelman87 PCGS Registry Date and Mintmark Set will be displayed in client gallery format as a special edition Daily Blog.

- First Right of Refusals will be immediately accepted and added to the existing requests on record.

Wednesday September 25

- The Labelman87 PCGS Registry Date and Mintmark set is loaded to the GFRC price list at 7:00 am ET.

- Individuals with FRoRs will be contacted for play/pass decisions since asking prices and full descriptions are available.

Thursday September 26

- Labelman87 Barber Quarter duplicates will be displayed in the Daily Blog as a featured gallery. Believe me, there are many fantastic duplicates too!

- First Right of Refusals will be immediately accepted on Thursday once the Blog is published.

Friday September 27

- The Labelman87 Barber Collection duplicates are loaded to the GFRC price list at 7:00 am ET.

- Individuals with FRoRs will be contacted for play/pass decisions.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

Given the lovely southern Maine weather, I'm heading outdoors for a long health walk. Afterwards, it is back into the GFRC office to complete the Labelman87 Collection pricing recommendations.

Thank-you for making the Blog a regular part of your day. See you on Monday morning.

 

 

 

September 21, 2019

Fast and Furious Weekend - The Labelman87 Collection

Greetings and welcome to the Blog on a gorgeous Saturday morning in southern Maine. Skies are cloudless and light blue. Temperatures will be on the rise to the high 70s! The first Indian summer event of 2019 arrives.

Autumn foilage has begun its seasonal transistion. The silver maple along the driveway is the first homestead tree to show dramatic colors. I could not resist running out in bare feet at 6:30 am for a quick cellphone image. A colorful sunrise also added to the color display; note the sunrise line on the mugo pine to the lower right of the silver maple.

Early Autumn Colors - GFRC Maine Office

 

Fast and Furious Weekend - The Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection

Preparations for the Labelman87 Barber quarter collection are moving at a fast and furious pace. All but twenty coins have completed images ready for posting to the Blog and price list. Yesterday brought the construction of the core date and mintmark gallery file. The file was shared with the consignor and GFRC's ace description specialist with positive feedback.

By the end of the weekend, I expect the core Labelman87 set descriptions and images will be completed and ready to publish. This includes both the core date mintmark set and the duplicates. The final step, and most important, is determining asking prices. Sunday is targeted for this activity followed by a wrap-up conference call with the consignor for pricing approval. If all goes to plan, I may pull in the core date and mintmark sale launch by a day or two and immediate bring out the duplicates before the end of coming week. Hold on to your hats as the next seven days will be exciting for Barber quarter and PCGS AU58 CAC enthusiasts.

Following are four better date Labelman87 Barber quarters to consider.

Coming Soon - Awesome Barber Quarter Better Dates!

 1895-O PCGS MS64+ CAC 25C                                                         1895-S PCGS MS64 CAC 25C

    

         1897-S PCGS AU58 25C                                                             1901-O PCGS MS64 CAC 25C

    

 

New GFRC United States Gold Arrivals

In between the Labelman87 set preparations, there was still time to post two new United States gold offerings to the price list. Both are quality collector pieces. The 1834 Plain 4 PCGS AU58 half eagle offers rich orange gold patina and choice surfaces. From a value perspective, you can't beat this 1914-D PCGS MS65+ $20 double eagle. MS66 certified examples trade in the $6500 to $7000 range. This MS65+ offering has gorgeous frosty mint bloom and orange-gold coloring at only $2800.

1834 Plain 4 PCGS AU58 G$5                                                           1914-D PCGS MS65+ G$20

    

 

Dan White Concludes European Buying Trip

An email arrived from Dan indicating his return trip from Brussels to Tampa happens today. Dan reports a very successful buying trip with over forty United States gold pieces being repatriated. His focus was on $10 and $20 gold including better dates and higher grades. Next comes a quick submission to PCGS with the goal of having all pieces into GFRC inventory prior to the November Whitman Baltimore show.

 

Gerry Wraps Up Another Blog Edition

Though it is Saturday, I will be in the GFRC office most of the day. Top priorities are finalizing Labelman87 images and starting the price determination process. There are also eight or more Dr. Glenn Peterson half dimes that I hope to move to the price list on Sunday.

Purchase orders are solicited and welcomed! GFRC inventory is replete with quality coins in all product lines. Consignors are staging more shipments, therefore making spaces in the inventory boxes is paramount. Please call or email for a fast response.

A sincere thank-you for the ongoing support and patronage. Have a great Autumn weekend!

 

 

 

September 20, 2019

Sneak Peak Time - Eye Appealing Labelman87 Barber Quarters

Greetings and welcome to a Friday Blog edition. Another regular work week comes to an end for many.

The Autumn season is moving along quickly with seasonal colors becoming apparent. Though we are still a full month away from peak foliage, I relish the slow visual changes in the landscape.

Thursday brought a short reprieve from the GFRC office. The overnight low temperatures were a reminder that colder weather is approaching and best to move the firewood to the garage on a comfortable sunny day. Transport of the firewood from its drying location under the sunroom to the garage was a three hour job. The exercise was welcomed but not the resulting sore back. With the seasoned wood stacked and available, all that is left is a visit by the local chimney cleaner next week.

Seth Godin Blog: “I know it’s bad – but everyone’s doing it”

I could not resist featuring Seth Godin's latest blogpost in today's edition. Godin has a way of crystallizing core societal issues in just a few sentences. The intersection of the internet and human emotions was not well anticipated years ago. Greed, insecurity, jealousy and just plain malice are easily executed and amplified via social media or at a higher level, the "news media" companies. As Godin points out, some people will sell their soul to secure money and fame. The internet provides an easy to leverage platform for ongoing bad behaviors and brings about a normalization of those behaviors. Let's remember that in many group settings, actions tend to sink to the lowest common denominator. It takes resolve, personal confidence, and the willingness to buck the crowd to rise above what everyone is doing.

By now, the GFRC community understands that the GFRC business and the Daily Blog are labors of love. The GFRC business model will eventually bring change to the numismatic industry while the Daily Blog has proven to be a transparent source of numismatic information. There is pride in waking up each morning and feeling comfortable with the person in the mirror. Each day, I do my best to re-normalize good behaviors though not perfect.

“I know it’s bad – but everyone’s doing it”

The optimists who got excited about the ‘everyone has a microphone’ promise of the Net 20 years ago overlooked two flaws in human nature:

First, given sufficient reward (money, attention, fame, notoriety) some people will show up and say and do things that they know are wrong.

Second, if enough people are in the first group of bottom fishers, many other people may decide that those behaviors aren’t as wrong as they thought they were. The internet ends up normalizing bad behavior, because bad behavior captures our attention and gets noticed. We multiply the outliers in our imagination and come to the erroneous conclusion that their behavior is common, when it actually isn’t.

There are two ways forward, and both are up to us: First, we can start paying more attention (rewarding) good behavior. And second, we can start modeling precisely the sort of discourse and contributions we hope to see from others.

The best antidote to a culture shifting to bad behavior is to re-normalize good behavior.

 

Substantial Progress on Labelman87 Barber Collection Launch

The lack of new offerings on the price list is an indication of yesterday's priorities. Other than stacking firewood for three hours, the day was spent finalizing Labelman87 Barber quarter images. I'm pleased to report that 30 or so of the 101 pieces have been completed. By tomorrow, the entire lot will be wrapped up and shared privately with the consignor and GFRC's contractor for writing descriptions.

I most proud of how the images are turning out. Much care and attention is being applied to ensure that the Labelman87 Collection is properly memorialized once broken up. If this were my personal collection, I would hope that someone would do the same for me. Following are four early date highlights to whet your appetite.

A Few Early Dates - Labelman87 Barber Quarters

1892 PCGS MS66 25C                                                   1892-S PCGS AU55 CAC 25C

    

1893 PCGS MS64 CAC 25C                                                   1893-O PCGS AU58 CAC 25C

    

 

Global Financial News

World equity markets are wrapping up the week in a quiet mood though today brings potential volality due to quadruple witching day, which refers to the simultaneous expiration of market index futures, stock futures, market index options and stock options. The Federal Reserve continues to pump daily liquidity into the banking system. This fact should not go unnoticed. Let's have a look at this situation via a Seeking Alpha headlines.

The short-term funding market has apparently not yet recovered from the hysteria seen at the start of the week, which saw repo rates skyrocket to 10%. The New York Fed will conduct another $75B repurchase operation this morning, its fourth in as many days, to help maintain the federal funds rate within the target range of 1.75%-2.00%. While the cause of the interest rate spike remains a mystery, most are suggesting that the Fed's earlier balance sheet reduction left the market with too few dollars relative to Treasuries held by financial institutions.

A good analogy for the short-term financial market funding issues is that of a business having spent too much cash flow on physical gold holdings and running out of cash for basic transactions.

Commodities and interest rates are mostly flat today. Crude oil is quoting at $58.63/bbl. $1511 will buy you an ounce of gold. Bitcoin is up slightly to $10139 while the 10 Year U.S. Treasury rate is down slightly to 1.78%.

In other Seeking Alpha headlines, Australia is moving forward as a global rare earth supplier.

President Trump and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison are set to release a plan today aimed at securing the supply of rare earth minerals amid growing concerns that China could cut off shipments of the treasured commodities. Rare earths are a group of 17 chemical elements used in everything from high-tech consumer electronics to military equipment. Australia contains only 2.8% of the world's rare earth reserves but accounts for more than half of the new projects in the global pipeline.

Virginia Tech's Blacksburg and adjacent Christiansburg are the site for testing Google drone deliveries.

Walgreens and FedEx are partnering with Alphabet's Wing drone business in a new test delivery program. It will see food and beverages, over-the-counter medications and other household items be eligible to be delivered by drones in Christiansburg, Virginia this October. The city was selected as the test market, as Wing has been working closely with nearby Virginia Tech in Blacksburg to explore drone delivery as part of a DOT test program.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

Today brings a few orders to ship via the GFRC Quick Ship program followed by a health walk. The balance of the day will be allocated to the remaining Labelman87 images and wrapping up that project. All that will be left are the formulation of asking prices and description writing. I hope to return to price list new offerings come Sunday.

Thank-you for checking in that Blog. See you tomorrow.

 

 

 

September 19, 2019

Dr. Glenn Peterson Seated Half Dime Lot on Price List

Greetings and welcome to the Blog on a Thursday morning. Your patronage is appreciated.

Frost warnings were in place last evening for much of northern and western Maine. Closer to the coast, overnight temperatures dropped into the mid to high 30s. As of 7:00 am, the Raymond temperature was 37F. The autumn foliage display is underway with the driveway silver maple already 40% converted to gold, crimson and yellow colors. The arrival of colder temperatures is also a signal to get going with the transport of firewood for the 2019-2020 burning season. A day will be needed to move and stack firewood from under the sunroom to the garage.

There is little prepared for today's Blog edition after working until 10:00 pm processing Labelman87 collection images. Good progress is being made. If all goes to plan, I hope to have Labelman87's core Barber quarter set ready for display in next Wednesday's Blog followed by price list posting on Thursday morning. That leaves one week to build the gallery display, wrap up image processing, and reaching consensus on asking prices with the consignor.

 

Leveling the FRoR Playing Field for Labelman87 Collection

While spending hours formatting the Labelman87 images (a mindless task), I gave some thought to the First Right of Refusal process. Is leveling the playing field possible for the GFRC community given the wave of FRoRs that are already recorded? I believe so. Once the entire Labelman87 core Barber quarter registry set is displayed next Wednesday morning, I expect two reactions. First will be another round of FRoRs. Second will be potential shifting of requests by those individual who have already placed their FRoRs. This situation will become chaotic for yours truly with the potential to make customers unhappy. Collectors can become passionately focused when pursuing key acquisitions for a collection. To that end, I've decided to employ the follow policy for allocating first shots.

- All existing First Rights of Refusal will be honored. Those with FRoRs will have the opportunity to play or pass on their selections.

- However, these individuals will not have the opportunity to make alternate selections, on a priority based, upon viewing Wednesday's client gallery display. The scope of their FRoRs is limited to earlier requests. If wishing to make new requests, these will be queued along with others that arrive after publishing the Labelman87 client gallery.

- Current Labelman87 offerings without FRoRs will be reserved for GFRC customers who did not submit earlier requests. A new 24 hour FRoR round will be initiated once the gallery is made available on Wednesday morning. New customers to the collection will be given FRoR priority over those who already placed their requests. Those who placed early FRoRs are welcomed to place more during that 24 hour period. However, these will be queued behind those who did not submit earlier requests. Come Thursday morning, all customers are welcomed to jump into the fray and I will sort out the remaining offerings to the best of my ability.

My goal is to wrap up the sale of the "core PCGS Registry" Labelman87 Barber Quarter collection prior to attending the NH Coin Expo the following week. Duplicates will be offered on the price list after the Manchester show.

 

New Dr. Glenn Peterson Dansco Album Offerings

On Wednesday afternoon, an eight piece Liberty Seated half dime lot from Dr. Glenn Peterson's Dansco album was placed on the price list. All are offered raw and accurately graded. Below are two selections that would immediately be CAC approved if the buyer went through the TPG holdering process and secured accurate grades.

1869-S V-1 Raw AU58 5C - Choice Original                                        1870 Raw EF45+ 5C - Crusty Little Gem

    

 

Global Financial News

Global equity markets are mixed to start the day. Traders must digest implications for yesterday's 0.25% interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve. There is mounting evidence that Iran launched the Saudi Arabia oilfield attack since the missiles traveled from the north. Though there are some in Washington who want a retaliation strike by the United Stated, I suspect Trump will not fall into this trap. Any escalation and new damage to oil producing infrastructure in the Middle East will drive up oil prices and hurt the U.S. economy. Trump is a cagey old businessman and will use other means to punish Iran. Lack of a clear new mandate for Israel's Netanyahu, in current elections, must also be factored. A war with Iran will spill over into Lebanon and Syria.

Looking at commodities and interest rate, crude oil is flat at $59/bbl as is spot gold at $1505/oz. Bitcoin has pulled back to $9874/coin. The 10 Year U.S. Treasury bond yield is essentially unchanged at 1.79%.

There is little in today's Seeking Alpha headlines that excites me towards sharing. Let's take a pass here.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

Yes, I will be in the office the entire day continuing to work on Labelman87 images along with posting more Peterson Seated half dimes or half dollars to the price list. All new postings will be raw.

Wishing everyone a pleasant Thursday. Time for another health walk and the usual morning shipping. See you tomorrow morning at the Blog.

 

 

 

September 18, 2019

Fast Moving Labelman87 Collection Processing

Greetings and welcome to the Blog on a chilly southern Maine morning. I'm glad that you've taken time to check in.

Yes, the day starts at a cool 42F with a projected high of 62 degrees. However, the cool temperatures are accompanied by a low dew point. A low dew point means a bright cloudless sky which is ideal for GFRC photography. Actually, southern Maine is forecasted to enjoy this weather pattern into the weekend before an Indian summer period returns.

So what might be on the photography agenda for today? How about some quality Liberty Seated half dimes from the Dr. Glenn Peterson Dansco album. There are still many raw pieces remaining since their value was not conducive for PCGS submission and grading fee charges. Currently queued are dates and die varieties between 1868 and 1871.

 

Is It Really September?

Odd question you may ask? September is traditionally a weak numismatic sales month. The month brings back to school activities along with the start of the college and NFL football seasons. In past years, GFRC sales were notably lower in this timeframe.

I'm most pleased to report that September 2019 is turning out to be an outstanding month for online sales. Yesterday brought a host of orders across all product lines except United States gold. In between servicing orders, I was busy processing Labelman87 Collection images against an aggressive rollout schedule. Once the Labelman87 core Barber Quarter Collection is brought to market, prior to the NH Coin Expo (October 4-5), I will be soliciting incremental consignments to reload inventory for the month of October and going into the Winter Baltimore show (November 14-16).

 

Wanted! A Low Grade or Problem 1870-CC Liberty Seated Quarter

GFRC is building its reputation for having access to better date Liberty Seated coinage. The Sunset Point 1873-CC Liberty Seated quarter was recently sold via another dealer to his client. The same client is seeking a problematic 1870-CC quarter to finish his Dansco collection. If anyone in the GFRC community has a problem 1870-CC Seated quarter that they wish to divest, now might be a good time. Please email or call me.

 

A Sneek Peek at Labelman87 Image Processing

How about a quick sneek peek at Labelman87 image processing status? I'm most pleased with the progress as all 200 images (100 coins sans 1896-S) have been aligned, and color balanced. Last evening brought the application of brightness and contrast for those pieces dated 1892 through 1895 along with cropping. All that remains, for the first 20 coins in the below laptop illustation, is a final round of color matching following by merging and file naming.

The Labelman87 Barber quarters are simply awesome and so much fun to work with! Blog readers can enjoy the sneek peek by clicking on the below image to download a large high resolution image of my laptop's screen. Please forgive the lack of crisp details on the high res image since taken with a cellphone camera.

Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection - 1892 Through 1895 Images

 

Global Financial News

A United States banking liquidity event on Tuesday? Yes, there was a serious liquidity crisis among U.S. banks that saw inter-bank interest rates jump to as high as 10%. The Federal Reserve saved the day by injecting more than $50B into the bank system. The trouble started when big banks and hedge funds finance their daily trading with repurchase agreements based on the Feds Funds rate. The problem was as simple as a major cash flow issue for the big banks since holding too many U.S. Treasury bonds on their books. The banks had not sold enough to their downstream clients for sufficient cash flow leading to a lack of liquidity and a one day spike in interest rates.

Seeking Alpha briefly touches upon the event with this headline.

Policymakers have been thrown another unexpected curveball as cash available to banks for their short-term funding needs all but dried up on Monday and Tuesday. That forced the New York Fed to make an emergency injection of more than $50B, its first since the financial crisis, to bring down key short-term rates that had spiked to as high as 10%. Fed traders will be back this morning to restore calm by offering another $75B of cash to the market.

Crude oil prices are dropping as Saudi Arabia is quickly restoring crude oil production. Crude is down to $58.77/bbl.

The sharp reversal in Monday's crude rally is continuing, with WTI futures down 1% to $58.77/bbl, after the Saudi Arabian oil ministry announced it will fully restore output by the end of September. Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman also said the ministry has managed to restore supplies to customers to the levels they were at before the weekend attacks by drawing from crude stocks. Figures released by the American Petroleum Institute on Tuesday suggested a surprise 592K barrel increase, while U.S. government data on crude stocks is due today at 10:30 a.m. ET.

The South Korea and Japan trading feud is getting worst. Japan appears to be in a stronger position as a raw materials supplier to South Korea.

South Korea is following through with plans to drop Japan from a list of countries receiving fast-track approvals in trade, a reaction to a similar move by Tokyo to downgrade Seoul's trade status. The dispute between the nations began in July when Japan imposed tighter export controls on three chemicals South Korean companies use to produce semiconductors and displays for smartphones and TVs, which are major import items for South Korea. The escalating row is rooted in wartime history and could cast uncertainty into the global supply chain and economy.

Physical gold pricing is holding at $1510/oz while the Saudi Arabia oil facilities recovery process takes place. Bitcoin pricing is quiet at $10186/coin. The United States 10 Year Treasury yield has reversed course and is quoting at 1.77%.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

First priority of the day is heading out for a health walk followed by the usual morning packing and shipping. Photography and image processing will consume the afternoon hours. I will be in the GFRC office the entire day and available for phone call or email orders. If you might have a new consignment for the October timeframe, I'm all ears.

Thank-you for being regular Daily Blog readers. I hope you've enjoyed today's ramblings. See you tomorrow morning.

 

 

 

September 17, 2019

Taking a Writing Break - Great Guest Blogs on a Tuesday

Greetings and welcome to the Blog on a Tuesday morning.

Another early day in the GFRC office arrives. Tuesday brings several day time appointments along with enjoying the top down Miata for transport. After sharing lengthy blogposts on Sunday and Monday, I would like to turn over most of today's edition to guests Blog and/or emails inputs that arrived in the past 24 hours. Before that, a quick reminder that more Dr. Glenn Peterson Liberty Seated halves were posted to the price list on Monday. Please have a look.

 

Labelman87 Joins the Guest Blog Ranks

Labelman87 has quickly become a Daily Blog fan. Last evening, he sent along a short commentary concerning earlier life experiences that resulted in a substantial Barber Quarter collection being assembled. Let's welcome Labelman87 as a Blog contributor.

My "Barber Way"

I have be asked how did you get interested in collecting Barber Quarters? Two less difficult coins in my collection illustrate this point. They are an 1895 PCGS MS61 CAC (1 CAC in this grade) and an 1899 PCGS MS62 CAC (2 CACs in this grade). Both are really nice coins with a good look. I bought these coins along with 2 others as a 4 coin set at auction back before TPG plastic. They all looked really nice and were priced attractively. Much later, they went to PCGS after which they went to CAC. I did this many times over during many years of set building.

Many of my actions were based on two of my experiences. On March 7, 1975 I went to Stack’s in New York and viewed the James A. Stack quarter and half dollar collection (I still have the catalog). Lot 206 of this sale was his 1901-S Barber Quarter Gem that, at that time, I considered the best of its kind ever and decided that I would like to get a few Barber Quarters. In the spring of 1976, I spent 8 hours viewing the complete Louis Eliasberg collection on display at the Philadelphia Mint. Some of his quality and rarity were unbelievable. These experiences ingrained in my mind wow eye appeal and quality, the only way to go, and a decision to buy a coin for a collection should be based on these qualities no matter what the grade.

Back in the day I asked “should I buy these 4 quarters”? Take a look at these 2 coins, when images are posted, and you will know why I knew what to do.

 

Dan White's Input on the Saudia Arabia Oilfield Attack

Our good friend Dan White spent a long career working in Saudi Arabia's oilfields and has a first hand knowledge of the Aramco oil facilities that were attacked. He shared the following via email.

Gerry, I worked in the plants that were attacked. Abqaiq plants are extremely important as they process the output from the Ghawar field. The Ghawar field is a true giant with deposits only 5000 to 8000 feet deep. My faulty memory says the field is almost 40 miles wide and 150 miles long. In general the numerous producing zones are hundreds of feet thick. After working on repairs of other fire events, it seems to me that it may be at least a month or more before full production is restored.

On the other hand, Saudi has several other fields that don’t go through Abqaiq that can be ramped up to meet oil demand. Best guess is that enough production will be online within 2 weeks to meet all of sales commitments.

Note however I left Aramco in 2002 so my ideas are based on dated info.

 

Len Augsburger Guest Blog: Perfecting the Process

Len and I are both products of the high technology industry. Len's experiences lie in software development while mine were exclusively in the hardware realm. However, there are universal quality systems such as Ford QS and ISO that ensure repeatability, zero defects or as close as possible to zero, and overall quality for complex product development and manufacturing processes.

When completing Monday's Blog concerning the GFRC handling of the Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection, I felt as if I'd documented the internal GFRC process flow for handling substantial consignments. This point was humorously made to Len Augsburger in a correspondence on another topic. Len could not pass up the opportunity to provide his insights via this guest blogpost. His mention of Jim O'Donnell touched my heart. Jim was one of the three prominent numismatic mentors in my life and was indeed as eccentric as described in the following piece. Please read on and enjoy Len's sharing.

Perfecting the Process

Gerry’s recent blog describing the intake of the Labelman87 collection caused me to recall many lessons about process from my software development days. The companies I worked for invested substantial funds not just in software, but also in software processes. All aspects of the software development lifecycle were subject to one process or another, from requirements to coding to testing. The companies I worked for invested substantially in defining and perfecting these written processes. Those of us who first developed software in the cowboy days of the 1970s and 1980s didn’t take too kindly to the revolution, but after a few years it was obvious that developing software on a broad scale simply demanded that large enterprises exert control over the beast, and the only way to do it was to define and measure every micro step along the way and constantly look for improvements.

One of my favorite old time dealers was Jim O’Donnell, who passed away in 2008. Jim’s entire business was in one briefcase. He would have perhaps 50 coins in inventory at any time, always a small number, and as far as I could tell the only accounting was in his head. The rumors said he lived off the grid, had no Social Security number, never paid taxes, etc. A quick check of the online Social Security Death Index suggests the Social Security part might actually be true. He had no website or email, just a Manhattan phone number, where he lived in the same rent-controlled apartment for 40 years, with a reputed monthly rent of $400. It’s safe to say Jim would have thought the idea of process in the coin business was about the most idiotic thing he had ever heard of. Jim had a pretty simple process, which was to ask himself whether any potential transaction was, or wasn’t, profitable. The other part of his process depended on his success at the racetrack, where, it was said, you might get a better deal on a coin if his horse had a bad day.

These days, running a coin business and website requires its own processes, which can be broken up into multiple steps. This might start with accepting a consignment and negotiating consignment rates. The next step is to prepare an inventory of the consignment. Personally, I simply hand over a box of coins, it’s Gerry’s problem to create the list! Grading and/or CAC submission may happen at this point. From there, the coins have to be priced, photographed, and described before uploading to the website. This is a revealing part of the process – turns out processing a $100 coin has about the same overhead as a $1,000 coin – but there is probably more room for profit on the $1,000 coin. Finally, the coins have to packed and shipped after a buyer materializes, and payment is processed. On the backend of this is the website itself, which underlies every step along the way – anytime a coin moves within the pipeline, this has to be captured electronically in order to create GFRC business and consignor reports, and to update the public-facing website.

Once the pipeline is broken up into multiple tasks, the fun starts, and you start looking for optimizations at each step. For example, what’s the fastest way to photograph coins? We’ve all seen the online offerings where the coins were clearly run through a flatbed scanner and not much else. Sometimes it might be faster, but not better. Certain auction houses have better or worse reputations in this regard, but, with thousands of coins coming through the “factory” there is no question that speed is always a concern. GFRC won’t compromise on this point, with outdoor imaging performed by a single photographer to ensure consistency.

In the interest of continuous improvement, I’ll mention the GFRC FRoR process, which is a bit less defined. This line from the Monday blog is telling – “Upon announcing the Labelman87 Collection consignment in the Blog, about two weeks ago, there was a wave of FRoR emails even though I had not indicated that FRoRs were being accepted….Once the genie is out of the bottle, it is difficult to put back.” Perhaps this could be tightened up a bit? With clear FRoR rules it will level the playing field for purchasers and make life easier (or at least more predictable) for GFRC as well.

In large enterprises, all of these processes or “rules” get written down and the “process police” (usually referred to as the quality team) come around periodically to ensure compliance, check all your numbers, and verify you have plans to improve. GFRC isn’t at that stage and honestly doesn’t want to get there. The shipping department, which consists of Diane, will likely not tolerate careful scrutiny of how long it takes to drive to the post office. At UPS, drivers often operate with open vehicle doors in the interest of squeezing every last second out of delivery time. Rest assured GFRC coin packages will not be so delivered. But, common sense steps to streamline and optimize operations will always be considered.

 

Global Financial News

Equity markets are mostly mixed to start the day. It appears that the oil price surge, as a result of the Saudi Arabia oil field attack, has run its course. Crude oil is quoting at $61.80/bbl while traders wait to learn the amount of time necessary to restore production capacity. This Seeking Alpha headline captures crude oil's trading status.

The rally in oil prices is taking a breather after yesterday's historic 14.7% gain, with October WTI down 1.8% to $61.80/bbl. Investors are awaiting clarity on how long it'll take Saudi Arabia to restore output that was cut in half by the attacks on its production facilities as Aramco (ARMCO) grows less optimistic about a quick recovery. The state-owned operator may face weeks or months before the majority of output is restored, but other nations, including the U.S., could offset supply losses if the disruption lasts longer than initially expected.

Physical gold is not reacting to recent events in the Middle East as today's quote is $1505/oz. As I've offered several times, elevated gold demand is driven by Asia turmoil and not substantially impacted by Middle East events. Bitcoin pricing is essentially flat at $10175/coin. Finally, the 10 Year U.S. Treasury bond yield is stable at 1.83%.

Across the Atlantic pond, Brexit efforts are reaching a climax with October 31 quickly approaching. Boris Johnson's efforts to suspend Parliament are heading to the British Supreme Court for a final ruling.

The stakes couldn't be higher given the current Brexit turmoil as Britain's highest court begins hearing arguments today on whether the government's decision to suspend Parliament was lawful (judges in England and Scotland previously came to contrasting conclusions). Boris Johnson argues that he asked the Queen to prorogue the lower house in order to introduce a new legislative agenda, but critics accuse him of attempting to stymie debate and push through a no-deal Brexit before an Oct. 31 deadline.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

Tuesday brings another busy day in the GFRC office. After morning shipping is wrapped up, I must run off to a quick appointment. Processing Labelman87 images is today's primary goal. If necessary, I plan to work late into the evening to gain ground on this task.

It is doubtful that GFRC will post new gallery images within the Blog during the next 24 hours. Staying focused on the Labelman87 Collection consignment is the current imperative.

And with that, I bid you farewell for another day. Emails and phone messages will be monitored for potential orders as another fast paced day is navigated.

Thank-you for checking in at the Blog.

 

 

 

September 16, 2019

The Labelman87 Collection - Statistics and an 1896-S Barber Quarter

Greetings on a Monday and welcome to the Blog. Another regular work week arrives for many.

So the New York Time got it wrong on the latest bombshell Justice Kavanaugh story. The accuser doesn't recall the alleged event at a drunken Yale college party. The New York Times issues an Editor's Note to set the record straight. Credibility is paramount for news organizations but that fact appears to be lost in today's age of hyper politics and ease at which individual's reputations can be destroyed. Enough said...

Back to your regular Blog edition...

Southern Maine weather is seasonally perfect this year. I've already mentioned the comfortable daytime highs, sunny conditions, and cool evenings for securing refreshing sleep. The weather pattern continues throughout the coming week. Given the ideal weather, Diane and I took a break from the GFRC business and enjoyed an afternoon drive in the top down Miata. The Miata recently received a long overdue tune-up and runs like a fresh soul. Low RPM torque is most important from a small 116 hp engine.

 

A Labelman87 Collection Blog Edition

Much progress has been made on Labelman87's Barber Quarter Collection sale preparations. Sunday afternoon brought the addition of the Coming Soon display in the upper right corner of the Blog. Blog readers are invited to scroll the box and view the collection contents. The consignor also called in after the Miata drive for a chat on marketing plans for his collection. His phone call was timely given today's planned Blog special edition dedicated to his collection. I'm enjoying working with this individual as both of us are no nonsense business professionals. The goal is well understood and we can be frank about evaluating the individual coins in his collection.

While loading the Labelman87 Collection into the COIN system, I also conducted an initial GFRC Quality Rating review and recorded the TPG holder vintage for all 101 pieces. Before we get into sharing several collection statistics, following are images of the key date 1896-S quarter graded PCGS AU58 and approved by CAC. This is a magnificent piece with choice surfaces and attractive toning.

Labelman87 Collection - Special Barber Quarter Preview

1896-S PCGS AU58 CAC 25C - Choice Original Key Date

 

Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection - GFRC Quality Rating Distribution

Loading the Barber quarter collection into the COIN system brought an opportunity to study each offering. Each quarter was quickly reviewed against three criteria; eye appeal, originality and strike. These are the same three parameters employed during the construction of my Liberty Seated dime collection and also when buying coins for GFRC inventory.

Initial GFRC quality ratings were recorded for each piece. These may be subject to change during description writing, but for now they are indicative of the overall collection quality. Let's remember that the consignment includes both the base date and mintmark set (sans 1901-s and 1913-s) and duplicates. Gem, Choice and Original quality ratings are consistent with that already in place for regular GFRC inventory. For this exercise, the Near Gem and Near Choice levels were included since these are often employed while composing short descriptions.

Gem - 19

Near Gem - 13

Choice - 57

Near Choice - 5

Original - 7

Overall, the Labelman87 collection brings a host of Gem through Choice offerings in the base date and mintmark set. The Original quality rated pieces are duplicates with dipping and subdued luster being the primarly issue for the lower rating. We must remember that every substantial collection is built via a learning curve. Early duplicates are included in this consignment as not previously divested.

 

Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection - TPG Holder Vintage and Collection Distribution

When evaluating a major collection, the TPG holder vintages add more insight into how conservative the grading may or may not have been. PCGS Gen 4.1 through Gen 4.4 holders with blue labels are recognized for conservative grading, for the most part. One has to be especially careful with PCGS Gen 5.0 holder generation pieces as PCGS went through a substantial turnover of graders during that timeframe leading to erratic results. The Gen 5.0 holders are easily recognized by their large Dupont holograms.

In the case of the Labelman87 Collection, over half of the pieces are housed in PCGS blue label holders which can be viewed as another positive aspect for the set. I've not done a breakdown of the holder vintage for the core date and mint set as compared to the duplicates.

PCGS 1.2 Rattler - 1

PCGS 3.1 OGH - 1

PCGS 4.1 (2002-2004) - 9

PCGS 4.3 (2005) - 4

PCGS 4.4 (2005-2011) - 36

PCGS 4.5 (2011-2013) - 7

PCGS 4.6 (2012-2014) - 21

PCGS 5.0 (2014-2015) - 10

PCGS 6.0 (2015-Pres) - 8

NGC - 2

ANACS - 1

 

Labelman87 Collection First Rights of Refusals (FRoRs)

Upon announcing the Labelman 87 Collection consignment in the Blog, about two weeks ago, there was a wave of FRoR emails even though I had not indicated that FRoRs were being accepted. The GFRC community is well trained and immediately submitted their targeted pieces. Once the genie is out of the bottle, it is difficult to put back. Therefore, the unsolicited FRoR emails continued to arrive and were stored in my email Inbox. Last evening, I went through all emails and recorded requests across all offerings based on email timestamp.

As of today, over 60% of the Labelman87 collection offerings have a request. Of course, there are certain dates with multiple requests while others with a single FRoR. I can say with confidence that every collector who took the time to submit FRoRs will have access to at least one coin. The distribution of First Rights of Refusals was broad based and should provide for an exciting collection rollout to the price list.

 

Labelman87 Collection New Steps

There are three remaining steps before the collection is brought to the price list. My thought is to post the core date and mintmark set first followed by the duplicates a short time later. This approach would give proper recognition to the consignor's core set and the years taken for building such an impressive collection. The core set offerings will be priced strong and best to differentiate those against the duplicates. Following are the remaining steps prior to GFRC price list rollout;

- Processing 200 coin images and building the core set and duplicates client galleries. My plan is to publish the core set client gallery in the Blog the day of price list release. Ditto for the duplicates.

- Evaluating each offering and setting recommended GFRC asking prices. Once this task is completed, a long conference call with the consignor will be scheduled to review GFRC recommended prices against those of the consignor. Consensus will be reach for each offering.

- Description will be written for all pieces in the collection. GFRC will be using a former Heritage Auctions contractor to write the descriptions.

 

Closing Comments on the Labelman87 Collection Preparations and Rollout

In many ways, the GFRC business model is breaking new ground in the numismatic industry. Transparency is of utmost importance to ensure that the sale of a major collection is well prepared and involves the consignor. Nearly all collectors with substantial numismatic properties seek a low risk divestment solution with fair monies for their cherished collections. Knowing that the collection pieces are going to other collectors and not being wholesaled to dealers is also of importance. All sales results will be available in the GFRC Sales Archive. Selling a major collection in a low risk and transparent manner is how GFRC seeks to evolve collection sales, and establishing its reputation in the marketplace. The Labelman87 Collection is an example for all to observe and learn the straightforward nature of divestment when conducted with full transparency.

Bottomline, GFRC is handling the Labelman87 Collection as a model for how I will eventually sell my own core Liberty Seated Dime date and mintmark set. I hope there are many more significant collections consigned to GFRC, before that time, and in the coming years based on integrity and transparency.

 

Global Financial News

Global equity markets are flashing red after the Iranian drone strike on Saudi Arabia's Aramco oil processing facilities. Crude oil prices jumped 15.5% overnight but have settled down to roughly $60 per barrel. I have a feeling that this drone strike will not go unanswered and more Middle East turmoil is forthcoming. The Chinese have been selling advanced drone technology to Iran leading to new attack capabilities.

Spot gold prices increased on the news are and back to $1512/oz. Bitcoin is flat at $10315 and the 10 Year U.S. Treasury yield is mostly flat at 1.84%.

There are a host of important Seeking Alpha headlines worth reading. We start with a piece that indicates the vunerability of Saudi oil facilaties to attack in a volatile Middle East.

"No matter whether it takes Saudi Arabia 5 days or a lot longer to get oil back into production, there is but one rational takeaway from this weekend's drone attacks on the Kingdom's infrastructure - that infrastructure is highly vulnerable to attack," according to analysts at Citi. "The market needs to price in a new level of supply chain vulnerability, with the speed Saudi can come back important not just for this instance but for future disruptions as well," added JPMorgan. For the global oil market, the 5.7M bpd Saudi halt is the single worst sudden disruption ever, surpassing the loss following the Invasion of Kuwait and Iranian Revolution.

China's economic slowdown deepens as industrial production growth drops. We must always question the credibility of the "official" Beijing Central Government economic reports in a state operated economy. .

Industrial output growth weakened to 4.4% in August, the weakest in 17.5 years, amid spreading pain from the trade war with the U.S. and softening domestic demand. Retail sales and investment gauges worsened as well, reinforcing views that China is likely to cut some key interest rates this week. Ahead of the data, Premier Li Keqiang said it would be "very difficult" for the economy to grow at 6% or more and that it faced "downward pressure."

It seems like distant memory when the UAW would strike against the United States automakers. The UAW is back and striking against GM on a national wide basis.

The United Auto Workers union has begun a nationwide strike against General Motors, with some 46,000 members walking off the job after contract talks hit an impasse. Shutting down North American production will cost GM about $400M/day, according to Kristin Dziczek of the Center for Automotive Research, adding that "GM has enough inventory for a short strike of one or two weeks. After that it starts to get painful." The strike does not include Ford and Fiat Chrysler, whose UAW contracts were extended while the union tries to negotiate a deal with GM.

One must respect Boris Johnson's resolve to conclude Brexit by October 31. There are many forces working against him.

"Despite the Remainer attempt to crush Brexit, I am working flat out to ensure we leave on Oct. 31," U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson wrote in The Daily Telegraph. Multiple reports suggest he will reiterate that he wants to secure a deal by Oct. 18 in his first face-to-face meeting today with EU chief Jean-Claude Juncker, but will reject any delay after Halloween. He's also prepared to go to court to fight against legal challenges from his opponents on the matter.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

Whew!

This has been a long Blog edition and time to wrap up. I'm off for a quick health walk followed by the usual morning packing and shipping.

Yes, I will be in the GFRC office the entire day loading more Dr. Glenn Peterson coins to the price list and processing Labelman87 images. I would enjoy selling a few coins on behalf of GFRC consignors. Please help the cause.

Thanks for stopping by! See you tomorrow at the Blog.

 

 

 

September 16, 2019

Liberty Seated Quarter Key Dates for Dansco Collections

Greetings and welcome to the Blog on a peaceful Sunday morning. We meet again!

Southern Maine weather has settled into a wonderful seasonal pattern. Daytime highs are in the 70s while evenings drop into the 40s. Bright sunshine continues to dominate which is ideal for GFRC photography and churning out new price list additions. Late afternoon grilling requires a light jacket as temperatures drop quickly. Dewars White Label scotch has been replaced by Jose Cuervo Tradicional as the sipping beverage. As usual, I grow bored easier with repetition and enjoy experimenting, even with afternoon liquors.

I've spoken little of the basement sound room recently, but rest assured that every day wraps up at 9:00 pm with time in front of the Focal/Naim sound system. The late evenings bring further experimentation into new musical genres. After a long day in the GFRC office, the last thing I wish to hear is rock n' roll. Quiet and comforting new age music and its variants brings peace of mind and restful sleep. How I will miss the sound system once the Florida migration arrives in early December.

 

GFRC Enjoying an Outstanding September

Operating a start-up business also brings experimentation. Yes, the GFRC business continues to be viewed as a start-up even after six years in operation. Operating a successful business requires an ability to constantly monitor what works and what does not work well in light of long term goals. When mistakes are made, it is best to determine true root causes and apply corrective actions. In the semiconductor business, one of my investigating methods was the 5 Whys. In reality, when a significant negative event takes place, asking Why five times will always lead to a true root cause and not cursory reflections. As a result of the 5 Whys, changes are made in operations or even subtle shifts in business strategies. All of this mental processing and adjustments are mostly invisible to the GFRC community.

I entered the month of September with the typical trepidations for a slow sales month. Strategies were put into place to offset low level market demands. So far, so good as GFRC is enjoying fantastic online sales at the month's mid point. Being full time in the office brought focus back to core operations. Consignments continue to arrive and are processed with Quick Turnaround Time procedures. As long as the weather cooperates, smaller consignments delivered one day can be found on the price list the following day. The GFRC community has become substantial and continually waits for better offerings to be loaded on the price list. Just one look at the 30 day price list will reveal how rapidly quality consignments are selling. Collector demand is there. Tuning business operations towards meeting that demand has been my focus without the major distractions of attending coin shows, the inherent preparations, and long distance travels.

 

Value Liberty Seated Quarters from the Orchard Collection

In a perfect world, every numismatic artifact would be highly appreciated and well preserved. Unfortunately, the world is far from perfect. Most of our surviving 19th century coinage has been mishandled for a host of reasons. Commercial circulation, blatant molestation by the inexperienced, and enhancements by the greedy take their toll on numismatic collectibles. But these collectibles live on and serve a role in the hobby. They are "value coins" and trade at discounted prices. No every collector can afford choice and gem numismatic items. The joy of collecting is frankly independent of the item being collected. Each collector works within a budget towards pursuing a hobby. Building a complete set of Liberty Seated coinage on a tight budget is possible. Choices must be made but the end results is still a sense of satisfaction with goal completion. The challenge arises in selling "value" collections.

The Orchard Collection is a nearly complete set of Liberty Seated quarters. The Pennsylvania based collector appeared at the Summer Baltimore show and asked for my help to sell his Dansco album housed collection. It is difficult to say no to collectors as I well understand the challenges of divesting collections. Therefore, GFRC took on the project and here we are today with many of the better dates from the Orchard Dansco. All have been certified by PCGS as being genuine but there are issues with many of the pieces. I've done my best to discount the offer prices to a level that represents fair value to the consignor and potential buyers.

Value Liberty Seated Quarters from the Orchard Dansco Collection

1852-O PCGS AU Details 25C                                                          1861-S PCGS EF Details 25C

    

 1851 PCGS EF Details 25C                            1855-S PCGS EF Details 25C                        1859-S PCGS VF Details 25C

            

 1862-S PCGS VF Details 25C                           1884 PCGS EF Details 25C                            1889 PCGS PR Genuine 25C

            

 

Please Help Manage Expectations

I feel a need this morning to briefly discuss the topic of consignor and collector expectations. We are all products of today's modern day Amazon and Walmart paradigm where service is instanteous. These behemoths pride themselve in providing a host of options and have well developed inventory management and delivery systems to manage the endless product variants offered to customers. The downside to modern business is automated answering services that are so annoying.

GFRC, on the otherhand, is a small company operated by one full time person along with Diane providing financial administration. The company has grown to 100+ active consignors and a broad customer base numbering in the hundreds. Operations systems have been constructed to deliver consistent quality service. The challenge lies with consignors and collectors who have special needs and requests. There are multiple individuals who want priority access to Liberty Seated dimes in my reference collection which presents an ongoing challenge. There are consignors who expect immediate and flawless execution of their consignments. There are consignors who expect courtesy services (CAC submissions and PCGS grading) on coins beyond those that are part of regular consignments. And there are those who love to help me with pointers for selling their coins. All of these are to be expected as I provide direct access and pride myself in being available to all who form the GFRC community. There is no answering service at GFRC, rather a sincere numismatist that picks up each call.

My message is to please have some empathy for my situation. Calling and emailing me several times for FRoR on a particular coin to ensure I don't forget becomes burdensome. Not only am I dealing with GFRC customers and consignors. Each day brings the phone calls from an inexperienced collector seeing a die crack on a common date Liberty Seated dime that is not explicitly mentioned in the web-book. They believe a jewel has been located and wish to be recognized. Others can't attribute a low grade Seated dime and seek my professional (free) consulting support. Then there are the Collectors Corner lurkers who email offers that are 25% off asking prices.

Thank-you for listening.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

It is a beautiful southern Maine morning and I'm heading out for an important health walk before returning to the GFRC office for another day's work.

Thank-you for stopping by at the Blog and reflecting on today's ramblings.

 

 

 

 

September 14, 2019

Only Gold CAC Approved 1855 WA Liberty Seated Quarter

and

Liberty Seated Dime Die Varieties Courtesy of Indiana Collection

Greetings and welcome to the Blog on a Saturday morning. Thank-you for stopping by!

Today's edition will be mostly quick bits n' pieces of GFRC news and information as there is a busy morning calendar that needs immediate attention.

 

Labelman87 Collection Preparation Update

Friday's southern Maine weather was absolutely ideal for outdoor photography. Temperatures were cool with cloudless skies and bright sunshine.

Within two hours, the entire Labelman87 Collection of Barber Quarters was entirely photographed and previewed on the laptop. GFRC photography is not a simple snap and go event. Rather each coin is photographed at several size settings based on the type of TPG holder and toning patterns. Old PCGS holders through 2011 are easier to photograph as the insert is a solid ring. The introduction of edge view inserts and large prongs creates lighting reflection issues that drive me crazy at times. Those holders must be imaged differently than the solid ring slabbed coins. I won't get into the technical details as it is rather boring. But mastery of the details is necessary to produce quality images.

The Labelman87 Collection is also close to being completely loaded into the COIN database. That task will wrap up today and will enable an attempt to launch the Coming Soon application at the top right portion of the Blog.

Labelman87 Collection image processing start on Sunday along with regular GFRC price list posting activities. A reasonable guess is 7 to 10 days to complete image preparation and pricing individual lots. Please check the Daily Blog frequently for rollout updates.

 

New Hampshire Coin Expo Coming Soon!

Hard to believe, but the New Hampshire Coin Expo (Manchester show) arrives in three weeks. GFRC will be located at its usual Table 701 with seven cases of quality silver type and United States gold. Following is the bourse floor map as a reminder of my location.

As a reminder, if GFRC customers wish to see certain coins in inventory at the show, please email me on your desired pieces for transport and availability.

New Hampshire Coin Expo - October 4 - 5, 2019

GFRC at Table 701

 

CAC Submission Results Arrived on Friday

The latest CAC submission contained a portion of the Copper Harbor Liberty Seated Dime Collection and three GFRC coins purchased at the CONA show. Copper Harbor did well with his pieces and will have more entries for the GFRC CAC Only set in the Open Registry. As for GFRC, I went three for three with one Gold CAC on this gorgeous 1855 PCGS AU55 quarter. The fields are mirrored along with devices that lack rub. The other two coins to receive Green Bean approval were the 1861-O W-14 PCGS AU58 CSA struck half dollar and the 1813 O-109a Single Leaf PCGS VF25 Capped Bust half.

Below are images of the 1855 Gold CAC quarter. Already, that are five individuals on the coin. I priced this one fairly resulting in a huge response for the coin.

Lone 1855 With Arrows Seated Quarter - Gold CAC Approved

1855 WA PCGS AU55 Gold CAC 25C

 

Liberty Seated Dime Varieties from the Indiana Collection

Each day brings new and exciting offerings. Below is an important lot of Liberty Seated dime die variety duplicates from the Indiana Collection. Advanced collectors reach that realization, in their collecting careers, whereby duplicates need to be divested and returned to the market for other new collectors to absorb and enjoy.

Look for these Indiana Collection offerings to reach the price list by late afternoon. Already, there are FRoRs on all but the 1839-O Huge O.

Important Seated Dime Die Varieties - Indiana Collecton

1839-O F-106a Cobweb Reverse PCGS AU58 10C

             1839-O F-108 Huge O PCGS EF40 10C                              1841 F-105 Excessively Rusted Rev PCGS AU58 10C

    

   1876-S Type 1 F-102 Raw AU50 10C                                                 1886 F-107 ANACS MS64 OWH 10C

    

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

A busy morning and day awaits me, therefore let's wrap up the Blog at this point.

Thank-you again for visiting. I look forward to your forthcoming purchase orders on a quiet mid September weekend. Please don't be bashful to email or call on coins of interest.

See you Sunday morning with more ramblings.

 

 

 

September 13, 2019

Seal Beach and Dr. Peterson Seated Halves on the Price List!

Greeting and welcome to the Blog on a Friday morning. Another work week is about to come to an end.

Southern Maine weather will be picture perfect today and ideal for photographing the Labelman87 Collection. The day starts at a chilly 44F and will warm up to a balmy 66 degrees during early afternoon. Most important are the very low dew point and clear skies throughout the day. Noon through 1:30 pm will see me in the Raymond office driveway photographing a fabulous Barber quarter collection. The Labelman87 Collection arrival could not have been better timed!

The GFRC price list is back to 97 new offerings after a busy Thursday in the office. Liberty Seated halves from the Seal Beach and Dr. Glenn Peterson collections are the newly loaded items. Following is a Seal Beach Collection client gallery to whet your appetite. Please pay special attention to the 1848 PCGS AU53 CAC half. This is a most challenging date in CAC approved AU and should not last long. The 1841 WB-1 PCGS AU55 CAC Seated half is a pretty piece that was recently upgraded thanks to GFRC locating a super AU58 for Seal Beach.

Choice and Gem Seated Halves From Seal Beach Collection

1841 WB-1 PCGS AU55 CAC 50C                                                      1848 PCGS AU53 CAC 50C

    

   1870 NGC AU58 50C                                                                 1888 PCGS MS62 CAC 50C

    

 

Today also brings CAC results for a large submission. A host of Liberty Seated dimes from the Copper Harbor Collection were sent to CAC for review along with select GFRC new purchases. Speaking of the Copper Harbor Collection, please see the next item...

 

Copper Harbor Collection on GFRC Open Set Registry

The GFRC Open Set Registry is an ideal venue for displaying a carefully constructed collection. New to the Open Registry is the Copper Harbor Collection of Liberty Seated Dimes. This individual called on Thursday concerning adding images to the collection. He was pleasantly surprised to learn that images are auto loaded for coins purchased from GFRC. All one must do is enter the coin's TPG serial number. Matt Yamatin's software links the serial number to the COIN system image database and loads the images. This is an important benefit when purchasing coins from GFRC. Customers have access to much more than just the physical coin.

To view the newly listed Copper Harbor Seated Dime Collection, just click here.

Following is a screen capture of a well populated Liberty Seated Dime leader board on the Open Set Registry.

Liberty Seated Dime w/Varieties - GFRC Open Set Registry Leader Board

 

Global Financial News

World-wide equity markets have shifted back to rally mode after the European Central Bank's incremental stimulus announcement. Now that the ECB has taken negative interest rates deeper into negative territory and has resumed QE bond buying, pressure is building on the United States dollar. As expected, President Trump immediately pounced on Federal Reserve chairman to take appropriate action at next week's Federal Reserve meeting.

Seeking Alpha reports the following from ECB Day

The European Central Bank cut its deposit rate by 10 basis points to -0.50%, while QE will be restarted on Nov. 1 to the tune of €20B per month. That amount might be a bit of a disappointment to those looking for something more dovish, but the program is open-ended, and that's going to excite the dovish fans. Speaking at a press conference, ECB President Mario Draghi said that economic risks remain titled to the downside, while growth and inflation forecasts were cut across the board (inflation in 2021 is now seen at 1.5%).

Lower interest rates drives incremental demand from cooperations but much to their own risks. Take General Electric as an example....

Looking at commodities and interest rates, physical gold continues to hold the $1500 mark and is quoting at $1515/oz. A huge crude oil overhang is holding prices down. Today's quote is $54.76/bbl. Bitcoin is quoting at $10321 though the French are taking steps to insert themselves into cryptocurrency transactions and providing government oversight. The 10 Year U.S. Treasury bond continues to climb as traders are on a risk off mood. Current quote is 1.8%

More from Seeking Alpha...

The French will block cryptocurrency development unless there is government monetary sovereignty. The last thing that European governments want is big business controlling currency.

As Facebook aims to get a payment system license from Switzerland's FINMA, France said it will block the crypto's development until consumer risk and governments' monetary sovereignty were addressed. Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire added that the EU should introduce a common set of rules to govern virtual currencies and urged for the creation of a European "public digital currency." Facebook unveiled plans for Libra in June, triggering concerns about shifting control over the economy from governments and central banks to big business.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

Yes indeed, it is Friday the 13th! Let's hope for an uneventful day in the GFRC office with no computer issues.

Time for a quick health walk on a crisp morning followed by normal packing and shipping. I've already mentioned photographing the Labelman87 Collection as the day's must do activity. Otherwise, I will be in the GFRC office waiting for your numismatic purchase order.

Thank-you for visiting the Blog and wishing everyone a great day. See you tomorrow.

 

 

 

September 12, 2019

Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection Arrives!

Greetings and welcome to the Blog on a Thursday morning. Thank-you for allowing me to be part of your day.

Working from the GFRC office has been a joy this week. Each day is predictably quiet without the stress of preparing for coin shows and the associated traveling. Some progress is being made with GFRC consignment backlog as more nice offerings are posted each day. Look for more new offerings on an ongoing basis as there is a stready flow of Quick Turnaround Time consignments along with the longer term backlog.

Holding the 100 coin level on the 30 day price list has proven to be challenging for two reasons. First is that coins roll off the price list after 30 days. Second is a great problem to have. Once a coin goes on hold, that coin is no longer available for sale and no longer counts towards the 100 piece goal. Therefore not being able to achieve the 100 piece goal might just be a good thing!

 

Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection Arrives!

Wednesday brought a substantial delivery from Doug, the mailman. Two large registered boxes containing the Labelman87 Collection were the delivery highlight along with another consignment from the Indiana Collection. After a week of tracking, the eagle has landed much to the relief of myself and the consignor.

I was busy loading new offerings to the price list so Diane had the pleasure of opening the shipping containers and organizing the collection in five PCGS blue boxes. The collection totals 101 pieces and is illustrated next. The first task is loading all pieces into the COIN system for accountability and insurance coverage. Next step is marking each coin with a sticky label designating the consignor's ID. The weather forecast indicates that Friday will be a bright sunshine day as a cold front moves into southern Maine. Therefore tomorrow's plan is to photograph the entire collection.

Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection

 

New Seal Beach Collection Consignment Too!

The magnificent Seal Beach Collection of Liberty Seated halves can be found on the GFRC Open Set Registry at this link. Seal Beach is an active collector and quickly accumulates duplicates. GFRC is blessed to be the sales agent for those duplicates. Earlier in the week, another Seal Beach shipment arrived that included the following pieces;

Seated 50c: 1841 PCGS AU55 CAC with mirrored fields and superior eye appeal; 1848 PCGS AU53 CAC choice original with steely fields covered by aquamarine-gray patina; 1870 NGC AU58 gray-gold with reverse blues; 1888 PCGS MS62 CAC satiny light gray gem for the grade.

These pieces have been photographed and should reach the price list by end of day. Now is the time for FRoRs.

 

New GFRC Purchases on the Price List

As the GFRC business expands in scope and customer base, more direct purchase or trade opportunities are appearing. The past few days brought the following pieces to GFRC inventory. These are posted to the price list and immediately available. The 1853-O F-103 dime is already on hold along with an inquiry on the 1853 Seated $1. Personally, I'm in love with the 1806 O-109 PCGS EF40 Draped Bust half due to gem eye appeal at the grade level. The 1862-S PCGS MS62 Seated half is also a wonderful example at the assigned grade.

Quality Silver Type New Purchases

1862-S WB-5 PCGS MS62 50C

                 1853-O F-103 PCGS AU55 10C                                      1806 Pointed 6, No Stem O-109 PCGS EF40 50C

    

1853 NGC AU58 Seated $1                                                             1853 PCGS EF45+ G$20

    

 

How is Dan's European Buying Trip Going?

Thank-you for asking!

I've received two positive reports from Dan in the past few days. So far, Dan has acquired nine $20 double eagles and twenty $10 eagles after looking through several hunderd offerings. At one shop, he rans into a group of spurious reproductions including 1916 and 1921 dated Saints along with six 1907 dated Indians $10.

Rose Marie and Dan and now taking time off on Lake Magiorre followed by traveling to Milan.

 

Global Financial News

Mixed is the best way to describe world-wide equity market futures on a Thursday morning. Markets are closely watching Chinese and United States posturing prior to the next round of trade negotiations in October. China is under pressure as more overseas companies are directing new manufacturing and R&D spending to countries outside of China. The primary beneficators are Vietnam, India and the United States.

Seeking Alpha headlines are pointing out an abundance of crude oil on world markets driven by growing United States output. The large crude oil overhang is pressuring oil prices with today's quote being $55.42//bbl.

Physical gold pricing continues to be firm at $1511/oz with Bitcoin relatively flat at $10,154/coin. The 10 Year U.S. Treasury bond yield continues to slow inch up. Today's quote is 1.73%.

This Seeking Alpha headlines captures the huge crude surplus on world markets.

"Booming shale production has allowed the U.S. to close in on, and briefly overtake, Saudi Arabia as the world's top oil exporter," the IEA said in its closely-watched monthly report. It comes at a time when the U.S. is actively pursuing "energy dominance," putting downward pressure on prices at a time when the market is already struggling to cope with too much supply. "The installation of the necessary pipelines and terminals is continuing apace, which will ensure that the trend continues."

OPEC+ is meeting but in a tight box due to United States crude production levels. Any production cuts will impact already burdened economies.

Traders continue to watch the World Energy Congress in Abu Dhabi for headlines that could move crude prices. OPEC+ is scheduled to hold its ministerial monitoring committee meeting on the sidelines of the conference that includes Saudi Arabia's new oil minister. "To achieve market stability, it's important we sustain a high level of cohesiveness," Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said ahead of the gathering.

Get ready for more global stimulus and lower interest rates as the ECB and Federal Reserve meet in the near term. I'm a believer in physical gold as a long term store of wealth.

The fun begins shortly with the ECB, then shifts to a likely Fed rate cut next Wednesday, as well as additional stimulus from the Bank of Japan and Swiss National Bank in the coming week. Today also marks the final stand for Mario Draghi, who had hoped to close out his eight-year term as ECB president with a modest rate increase. Investors are instead pricing in a possible restart of the central bank's QE program and deeper negative interest rates, in a final attempt to ignite growth and inflation across the eurozone. In recent years, the region has been plagued by a myriad of political challenges, Brexit uncertainty and the ongoing trade war between Washington and Beijing.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

There is no outgoing shipping today which provides incremental time for image processing and maintaining a steady flow of new offerings on the 30 day price list. We will get back to the 100 piece goal one way or another.

Yes, I will be in the GFRC office the entire day working hard on a host of consignments. Please don't be shy about making a purchase. Buying from GFRC is as simple as calling or sending an email. I'm very prompt with responses as selling consigned coins is my duty!

That is all she wrote on a Thursday morning. Again, thank-you for checking in.

 

 

 

 

September 11, 2019

Macromedia Dreamweaver RIP!

Greetings on a Wednesday morning and welcome to the Blog.

Today's Blog edition is being prepared on an old backup Dell laptop who's primary role is cropping images via Microsoft's Picture It. Yesterday, the 2003 version of Macromedia Dreamweaver finally succumbed to the steady flow of Windows 10 updates. The application launches in the background but not longer opens for regular editing. This Macromedia version has been "in the family" since building The Definitive Resource for Liberty Seated Dime Variety Collectors website over a decade and a half ago. The same software built the first generation Liberty Seated Collectors Club website before being transferred to John Frost.

I am so fortunate that the old Dreamweaver application failed in September during a quiet office timeframe. Can you imagine if the software failed during a major coin show or worst, traveling to Shanghai? Daily Blog updates would have disappeared and my well being questioned!

Last evening was dedicated to installing and learning the 2019 Adobe Dreamweaver software version on the primary business laptop. Adobe Systems bought out Macromedia for $3.4 billion during 2005 and took over the Dreamweaver software platform. The 2019 Dreamweaver version is incredibly powerful for hardcore HTML programmers and website designers. My first priority was enabling the FTP function with Hostway server. This task did not take long as the 2019 version FTP fnnction layout is fairly similar to Macromedia. Content editing is a difference story and will take several days to absorb and master.

For the balance of the week, I will be utilizing two laptops to sustain the GFRC business. The Daily Blog will be written on the old Dell laptop while FTP transfer of new coin images will be accomplished on the primary Dell system. Improvisation is critical when operating a small business with lean staffing.

 

Feedback on Len Augsburger's Video Blogging Proposal

In yesterday's Blog edition, I made mention of Len's suggestion to add a weekly video blog to current Daily Blog content. My goal for the post was to test for demand among Blog readers plus determining if there would be reasonable payback from the development effort. Several emails and phone calls arrived during the day with sincere advice.

The following email from the Motor City Collection consignor was of the majority opinion.

Hi Gerry,

As always I started my morning with your blog.

I read your thoughts on a video blog and my first thought was, "When is he going to find the time to do it?"

I believe the primary mission of GFRC is to market & sell coins. The blog is part of that concept. If there's a backlog of coins waiting to be listed on the price list, does it makes sense to add to your list of tasks? How will you do it during your busy July-August travel season? What do you, as proprietor expect to gain from it? Are any potential gains worth the time spent?

If things were really slow at GFRC a video blog might be something to consider. That isn't the case; you're already busy from sun up to Scotch / Soundroom time in the evening and sometimes beyond.

Embracing "new" technology can be a good thing - when there is time and you get a return from it that justifies the effort and time spent.

This individual's observations are indeed wise. GFRC's operations bandwidth is the core issue and not Demand Creation. GFRC could sell many more coins if there were incremental resources to conduct photography and load to the price list. Every major coin operation has a least one photographer on staff, sometimes two. At GFRC, I'm your photographer plus customer service representative, and a whole lot more.

The video blog concept will be tabled indefinitely. A sincere thank-you goes out to everyone who took the time to respond with their perspectives.

 

Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection Consignment Update

How I deplore the unpredictability of USPS registered mail! The Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection remains in transit. Packages reached the Scarborough Maine distribution center yesterday morning. A week has elapsed as the collection moves from Georgia to the Raymond Maine office. A reasonable expectation will be for delivery during today's regular USPS mail arrival.

 

GFRC Concludes a Large Trade Plus Upstate New York Collection Consignment

Tuesday brought the arrival of a significant trade and another offering from the Upstate New York Collection. All coins have been photographed. Today's goal is building a gallery for Thursday's Blog edition along with posting most to the price list. I will be multiplexing for the balance of the week between regular GFRC business activities and learning the latest version of Adobe Dreamweaver.

 

Global Financial News

Equity markets remain in an upbeat mood. The driving parameters for bullish sentiment are the upcoming European Central Bank and Federal Reserve meetings. The ECB meets on Thursday and is expected to lower European interest rates and launch more QE type stimulus. Once the ECB takes actions to weaken the Euro, the Federal Reserve must deal with a strengthening U.S. Dollar at its meeting next week. President Trump may not be pleased with ECB actions and could launch another round of tariffs. Blog readers should be watching gold's prices in the upcoming days.

The following Seeking Alpha headline captures the current market situation.

U.S. stock index futures are slightly in the green after China exempted 16 U.S. products from higher tariffs ahead of trade talks planned for next month. The exemption will include whey and fish meal, which are fed to animals, as well as some lubricants, starting Sept. 17. Hopes for a September stock rebound are also getting a boost on expectations for fresh monetary stimulus from the European Central Bank tomorrow and the Federal Reserve next week.

Looking at commodities and interest rates, crude oil is quoting at $57.89/bbl to start the day. Physical gold is just holding the $1500/oz level. Bitcoin has pulled back to $10093/coin. The 10 Year U.S. Treasury yield continues to climb and is quoting at 1.71%.

Facebook's Libra crypto currency seeks license from Swiss financial authorities. Will this be the step that finally enables cryptocurrencies as a mainstream business platform?

The U.S. is urging Switzerland to ensure its regulations governing cryptocurrencies are strong enough to prevent abuse like money laundering and terrorism, as the European banking hub prepares to host Libra, a crypto proposed by Facebook. The project - likely to be backed by the U.S. dollar, euro, yen, British pound and Singapore dollar - is seeking a payment system license under Swiss financial watchdog FINMA. Switzerland has increasingly embraced global norms of financial transparency, promoting itself as a hub for financial technology and innovation.

South Korea and Japan are involved in a high tech trade war. Japan is curbing exports of key semiconductor processing materials to South Korea.

South Korea will file a complaint with the WTO today against Japan's export curbs, accusing Tokyo of being "politically motivated" and "discriminatory" in an escalating row rooted in wartime history. Affected key materials include fluorinated polyimides, photoresists and hydrogen fluoride, which are used by chip and display makers like Samsung Electronics. "Serious damage" can result from the curbs, according to South Korean Trade Minister Yoo Myung-Hee, who also cast uncertainty into the global supply chain and economy.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

Being proactive and keeping back-up systems in place definitely saved the GFRC day on Tuesday.

Today's focus is loading more new offerings on the price list regardless of the new Dreamweaver software installation and learning curve. The 30 day price list is back below 100 coins and this bothers me to no end.

Thank-you for being part of my day and checking out these ramblings. Southern Maine will experience wet conditions throughout the day. This is ideal for staying in the office for morning shipping and afternoon price list updates.

I would be more than pleased to sell a few coins today. Please call or email as I will definitely be in the office the entire day. See you tomorrow at the Blog.

 

 

 

September 10, 2019

Relief is 100 Offerings on the 30 Day Price List!

Greetings and welcome to the Blog on a beautiful southern Maine morning.

Here I sit at the laptop with a cup of coffee and a bit of writer's block. What can I possibly share with Blog readers that is new and stimulating? There is only so much to report on concerning the Fall season transition in Maine. Politics are off limited for obvious reasons. Finally, a life that is mostly focused on handling coins is super cool but can be limiting as to topic exploration due to available time. So here I sit in the office chair wondering what to discuss on a Tuesday morning.

Today's headline was written last evening and reflects the efforts of the past few days to repopulate the 30 day price list. Having less than 100 new offerings bothers me to no end. The past 72 hours brought a concerted effort to bring the price list back to that threshold. I do feel a sense of relief this morning and will build upon the 100 piece milestone during the balance of the week. Believe me, there are many consigned coins waiting for their day in the GFRC spot light. Many are lower priced, not CAC approved, and raw. All need attention in the coming days to ensure that the entire GFRC community and Daily Blog readership have access to potential collection upgrades or filling those important holes in a Dansco or Whitman album.

 

Seth Godin's Blog: Being stuck is reasonable

I'll share a secret with you. Len Augsburger has been seriously recommending adding a once a week video blog event to the Daily Blog. Modern computer technology easily facilitates the creation of video blogs, therefore GFRC should be leveraging this communication approach. Of course, there is inertia and hesitancy on my part. A video blog means content preparations, speaking rehersals, and combing my hair in the morning before sitting at the laptop. So what would Seth Godin advise? Please read on....

Being stuck is reasonable

That’s precisely why you’re stuck. Every decision you’ve made, all the status quo you’re holding on to, the fears you have–they’re all reasonable. This is a mature, apparently safe series of choices. Congratulation on being wise and careful.

The only way to get out of the spot you’re in is to do something that feels unreasonable, that’s unreasonable in the short term, that a similar person in a similar situation would say is unreasonable.

Because if that wasn’t the case, then you wouldn’t be stuck, would you?

If you truly want to get unstuck, if you want to move to higher ground or do something more worthwhile, the first question to ask is, “Am I willing to be unreasonable, at least for a while?”

Yes, adding a video Blog feature to the Daily Blog would feel like an unreasonable inconvenience for my precious time. However, throughout my life, I've always embraced change along with striving to achieve that next step within a universe of unlimited pursuits. That my friends, is the American dream.

So what do you think? Should I embrace the concept of video blogs? What topics would readers wish to hear about? Let me know and don't be bashful.

 

Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection Consignment Update

The magnificent Labelman87 Barber Collection is slowly making its way to Maine. USPS Registered transport is the safest shipment mode but also the most frustrating. Since every shipment must be hand recorded in logbooks, movement is unpredictable and slow. Labelman87's collection is currently somewhere between Boston and the GFRC Raymond office. Hopefully, it arrives today after being mailed on September 4th.

What did arrive yesterday are Labelman87's cherished early edition Barber Quarter reference books by David Lawrence. They are the 1st and 2nd edition printings of The Complete Guide to Barber Quarters. The 1st edition, published during 1989, contains wonderful hand drawings of repunched dates and mintmark positions. The 2nd edition is spiral bound and transitions the readers to macro images for the illustration of die varieties. These books will be made available as part of the Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection sale. Each book is in pristine condition.

 

Thinking of Consigning Barber Coinage?

The Labelman87 Collection Sale faciliates a substantial expansion of the GFRC business into Barber coinage. If you know me well, once a decision is made, it is full speed ahead towards building yet another robust product line.

Last evening brought an email conversation with an unbranded GFRC consignor. This individual has been quietly supplying duplicates via GFRC's consignment program. Our conversation focused on the Labelman87 Collection Sale with the idea of addition Barber coinage content. As you can imagine, I wholehearted agreed to take on this individual's Barber quarters and a group of mint state Barber dimes.

Is there anyone else out there that wishes to consign Barber coinage duplicates in conjunction with the Labelman87 Collection Sale?

 

Global Financial News

Global equity markets are mixed as we start another trading day. Incremental economic news from China continues to point to weakened demand for manufactured goods. Prices are dropping as the U.S. trade tariffs are having an impact. Global deflation becomes a potential issue that will further pressure interest rates on the downside.

Looking at commodities and U.S. long bond interest rate, we find spot gold quoting at $1502/oz. Gold's recent consolidation in the low $1500/oz range is a very positive step towards higher prices by year end. Any trend that moves upward like a rocket eventually succumbs to gravity.

Crude oil prices continue to slowly increase with the present quote at $58.12/bbl. Some in the Democratic field will eliminate fracking. Can you imagine the pricing impact of reduced United States crude oil supplies? Russia and Saudi Arabia would be doing a happy dance!

Bitcoin is quoting at $10248/coin. Finally, the U.S 10 Year Treasury yields stands at 1.63% and reflects a slightly risk on mood among traders.

There are no Seeking Alpha headlines worth sharing this morning.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

The time is 8:10 am ET and best to hit the upload button. There is a substantial amount of packing and shipping to accomplish during the morning hours followed by an afternoon of photography if the Labelman87 Collection arrives by noon time.

Thank-you for visiting with me and taking in these daily ramblings. You can count on another edition on Wednesday morning. See you then.

 

 

 

September 9, 2019

Len Augsburger is Back with How to Price Coins

Greetings and welcome to the Blog on a Monday morning. Thank-you for making Blog reading a regular part of your day.

Now that Hurricane Dorian has passed by northern New England, seasonal weather returns to southern Maine. My fears of a cloudy week have abated with sunny conditions forecasted through early Wednesday. Since the Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection is due to arrive today, I'm closely monitoring weather conditions. First priority will be photographing the 100+ coins in that newly arrived consignment.

GFRC sales during the first eight days of September have been exceptional. In past years, the month of September brought reduced orders as collectors appeared to be involved with back to school activities. During 2019, order rates and clientelle have shifted towards an increasing number of four figure coins. Interesting, there are more collectors contacting GFRC with trades requests. In many cases, the trade coins were previously purchased from GFRC and are straightforward for developing offer prices.

The coming week will see more progress on consignment backlog now that Diane is back in the office handling administractive tasks. There are many lower priced Seated coins waiting in queue to be loaded to price list. It is best to get these processed systematically for broadening GFRC's inventory profile.

 

Len Augsburger Guest Blog: How to Price Coins

How I enjoy opening my email Inbox to find a new guest blog from Len Augsburger. Len's insightful commentaries are fueled by broad based relationships throughout the numismatic industry. Len is also a part time GFRC table assistant, and therefore has a unique vantage point into its business model and operations. In today's blogpost, Len provides his perspective on GFRC's pricing philosophy.

How to Price Coins

Whenever the well of blog ideas runs dry, count on Tony Swicer’s “Customer of the Week” column in FUN Topics to liven things up. Tony works in a retail coin operation and faithfully records customer interactions, particularly those which tend to poke a little fun at the coin-trading public. Tony’s latest installment in the Fall 2019 issue includes this gem:

“A dealer friend of mine in Arizona said he was at a coin show and offered a customer a coin for $100 that was marked $110. The guy bought the same coin down the aisle for $120. My friend asked him why. He said, “the other dealer’s coin was marked $150, so he gave me a bigger discount.”

This is reminiscent of the “Yogi-ism” (named after the New York Yankees catcher Yogi Berra) that recounts the pizza eaters dilemma: “The waiter asked me if I wanted my pizza cut into six slices or eight. I told him ‘make it six, I’m not that hungry.’ “

Both stories speak to the true nature of the consumer experience. Right now conventional wisdom tells us that older generations are more materially-driven while the millennials are experience driven. While there may be some broad truth in that, the fact is that the consumer experience has always been a vital part of retail transactions. A gallon of milk isn’t really a commodity – it’s actually a commodity plus some experience. Will you pay a couple cents more for a gallon of milk if the checkout clerk knows your name and is genuinely happy to see you in the store? Of course you will.

In Tony’s story we have a client who can buy a coin at $100 or $120. He goes for the $120 price because the dealer makes him think it is a better deal. Voila! Now the coin isn’t just a coin anymore – it’s a coin plus a story, or experience, or a slick bit or marketing. Hopefully the client gets tuned up on this point, and seeks out a refund, though in this case I’m guessing the $120 dealer (marked down from $150) is more of a cash-and-carry, no-refunds type.

All of this is to speak about GFRC pricing. GFRC is not going to wildly inflate an offering price in the hopes of finding the one unknowledgeable collector who is willing to pay it. Consignors are strongly encouraged to observe current market levels, and the commission rates are completely transparent (http://www.seateddimevarieties.com/ConsignorValue.html). Not all collectors appreciate this, and I’ve see a few visitors at the GFRC table surprised that more substantial discounting isn’t always available on their item of interest.

While GFRC is committed to operating in a low-overhead environment, don’t expect the rest of the market to fall in step. The fact is, there will always be collectors who are not completely knowledgeable enough to not overpay, and there will always be dealers more than willing to “help” them out. So – watch your auction prices, watch the GFRC sales archive, and understand that GFRC is using the exact same resources and pricing at a fair level consistent with the “lean and mean” GFRC operating philosophy.

 

A Preview of Monday's Price List Additions

The following new offerings galleries were completed on Sunday evening as a preview for today's postings to the 30 day new purchases price list. Already several First Rights of Refusal emails appeared during the overnight hour. The 1858 F-108a PCGS EF45 dime has multiple requests since being a unique piece with rotated reverse and planchet clip. This lovely dime was sourced from Bill Mackrides years ago. Bill has sinced passed, though the memories of speaking with Bill on long phone calls still remain.

If in the market for Trade Dollars, I would suggest that you give the following two San Francisco pieces serious consideration. The GFRC images are less than stellar but the coins themselves are choice with strong luster and unabraded surfaces. Following the Trade Dollars are five more Liberty Seated dime from the Gerry Fortin reference collection. All are web-book plate coins. The new images, as shown below, have already been placed into the web-book as a continuous improvement activity. We close out the galleries with a lot of three Capped Bust quarters. The 1818 B-10 and 1832 B-2 specimens offer classic old album peripheral toning.

Choice Original San Francisco Trade Dollars

1874-S PCGS AU58 Trade $1                                                   1876-S I/I PCGS AU58 Trade $1

    

 

Another Lot of Liberty Seated Dime Web-Book Plate Coins

 1879 F-104a PCGS MS65 CAC OGH 10C

  1858 F-108a PCGS EF45 10C                                                   1876-CC F-131 PCGS EF45 10C

    

 1883 F-114 PCGS MS63 10C                                                    1891-S F-104 NGC MS63 10C

    

 

More Quality Capped Bust Quarters to Consider

1818 B-10 PCGS EF45 25C

1832 B-2 PCGS EF45 CAC 25C                                                        1835 B-6 NGC AU53 25C

    

 

Global Financial News

World wide equity markets are starting the new week in an upbeat mode. Since last week's U.S. jobs creation report did not meet expectations, traders believe that another Federal Reserve interest rate cut is forthcoming. Federal Reserve chair, Jerome Powell, is under considerable pressure to cut interest rates in unison with our major trading partners. If not taking action, the U.S. dollar continues to strenghten much to the displeasure of President Trump and America's export industries. Seeking Alpha provides a concise summary with their opening headline.

Heightened expectations of central bank stimulus are pointing to a positive open for Wall Street, with U.S. stock index futures starting the week up 0.2%. U.S. jobs growth slowed more than expected in August, while Jerome Powell reiterated that the Fed will continue to "act as appropriate" to sustain the U.S. economic expansion. Data overseas also saw China's exports unexpectedly contract and the ECB is expected to unleash a barrage of stimulus measures on Thursday to shore up economic growth.

As a new week arives, crude oil prices have risen slightly to $57.09/bbl. Physical gold is currently priced at $1518/oz while Bitcoin retreated to $10230/coin. The 10 Year U.S. long bond yield is up slightly to 1.6%.

Let's have a look at more Seeking Alpha headlines. We start with the U.K. and Boris Johnson's hands being tied by the British Parliament over Brexit.

Boris Johnson will face a major setback today when an opposition measure blocking a no-deal Brexit on Oct. 31 becomes law. The prime minister has said passage of the bill leaves him with no choice but to try again to call a general election, but given the lack of support, it may prompt him to take some bizarre alternatives. Besides a vote of no-confidence in his own government, Johnson could resign and ask to be replaced with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, thereby prompting a no-confidence vote in that administration and forcing an election.

This is so typical of Chinese factories and not a unique situation. Foxconn is Apple's primary manufacturing partner in mainland China.

Following a report by China Labor Watch, Apple and manufacturing partner Foxconn confirmed they violated a Chinese labor rule by using too many temporary staff in the world's largest iPhone factory. More than half of the workforce employed in August at the facility in Zhengzhou, China, were "dispatch" workers, including student interns, though temporary hires cannot exceed 10% of total employed workers. Other alleged violations included overtime hours, false bonuses, inadequate protective equipment and not reporting work injuries.

Facebook and Google are facing antitrust investigations. There is much money to be made by investigators and lawyers!

Once lauded as an engine of economic growth, Big Tech has increasingly been on the defensive over privacy lapses and its outsized market control. On Friday, a group of seven states led by New York Attorney General Letitia James launched an antitrust investigation into Facebook, focused on the company's dominance in the industry. A second probe today will likely be announced by Texas and include up to 40 other states, examining Google's impact on digital advertising and information markets.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

So ends another Blog edition. This issue is being uploaded early as there is a ton of morning packing and shipping to process before lunch time. The afternoon hours bring price list loading followed by more image processing for Tuesday's Blog. It is a never ending cycle but still the best job of my life.

Yes, I will be in the GFRC office the entire day and available for phone orders. See you tomorrow at the Blog.

 

 

 

September 8, 2019

Wooster Collection Consignment Arrives

Greetings and welcome to the Blog on a Sunday morning. Thank-you for sharing a part of your day.

I'm pleased to report that Diane is back home and readjusting to cool Maine weather after 2.5 weeks of 100 degree temperatures in Austin. Her Southwest return flights were uneventful and on time. Our daughter Renee has recovered from the birth of our second grandchild, therefore it was time for Diane to return to Maine to enjoy the Fall season.

Today's Blog brings several topics with the first being a report from Dan White. Dan is back in Europe with his new love, Rose Marie, and on another GFRC inventory sourcing adventure.

 

Dan White Reporting from Newburyport, England

Now that Gerry is home for a month, Dan White returns to Europe on another United States gold buying trip. Before reaching the continent, there was a stop in England to celebrate the launch of Highclere Castle Gin. This is a boutique gin that will be marketed throughout Europe and the United States. Dan is an early investor in the start-up company and appears to be enjoying himself.

    

Gerry,

This is the way to hunt for coins!

Rose Marie and I started our trip to Europe with a stop in Newburyport England at the marketing inauguration of the new and tasty Highclere Castle Gin. There were around 100 guests who enjoyed an evening of at least 10 different gin cocktails. The gin is brewed with herbs and other botanicals grown on the Castle grounds. The Castle is famous for its role as the Dayton Abbey setting.

The gin is already for sale in the Northeast US and will soon be available throughout the USA and most of Europe. I can personally certify (as in certified coins) that it is a pleasure to taste and consume.

The first picture is me trying to borrow a whole bottle from the live statue in front of the Castle.

We head for Europe for some serious work tomorrow.

Dan

Not All Photography Services are the Same!

New Blog readers may wonder about the constant attention to weather conditions. One of the unique GFRC business attributes is the photography approach. All images are taken in natural sunlight to ensure accurate coloring matching. As a result, the weather plays an important role with bright sunny days being paramount for consignment processing. GFRC's return rate is less than 1% as images are exact color matches of a coin's in hand appearance. Frequently, emails arrives indicating that the received coin looks much better than the images. Of course! GFRC images are unable to capture luster. Once a coin arrives to a customer and is viewed under a light source, natural luster comes alive to the joy of the buyer.

There are times when consignors request that available PCGS TruView images are used to market their coin rather than GFRC photography. PCGS TruViews are taken with a special lighting bench and high resolution camera. PCGS also has their proprietary approach for image post processing. Below is an illustration of the dramatic difference between GFRC and PCGS photography. The difference can be summed up as follows;

GFRC - Image optimization for normal in hand viewing appearance. Color matching and density are paramount. As a result, GFRC images tend to be a bit dark with some amplification of greens hues.

PCGS - Excellent for illustrating bright light viewing experience. With multiple angled lighting sources, indoor bench setups can activate and capture luster on AU and mint state coins. Old album radial toning on circulated silver coins is also amplified. PCGS images have a tendency to be washed out due to concentrated lighting.

Unless my arm is severely twisted, it is best to stay with GFRC images since customers have become accustomed to the illustrations and well understand the coin's appearance upon arrival.

1870-CC PCGS VF35 Seated Half Dollar

GFRC Photography

PCGS TruView

 

 

Wooster Collection Consignment - Cool Die Variety Offerings

The latest Wooster Collection consignment arrived in mid July and has patiently been waiting in GFRC backlog. I'm pleased to be featuring the entire consignment this morning. Though many pieces are lower priced, the offering is replete with Capped Bust dime terminal die states and scarce Liberty Seated dime die varieties. I'm sure there will be collectors in the GFRC community seeking these type of offerings.

A portion of the Wooster Collection lot is already posted to the price list with the balance being loaded today. Already, a few FRoR have arrived during the overnight hours. Happy hunting here....

Wooster's Capped Bust Dimes - Nice Collector Grades and Cuds

1811/09 PCGS VF30 10C                                                               1822 PCGS AG03 10C

    

1820 JR-3 Sm 0 PCGS VG08 10C                       1824/2 NGC VF25 10C                                 1824/2 NGC F15 10C       

            

    1825 JR-2 ANACS VF30 OWH 10C              1833 JR-4 Cud PCGS VF30 10C             1834 JR-6 Triple Cud Raw AG03 10C

            

 1836 NGC F15 10C                                    1837 PCGS EF45 10C

       

 

More of the Wooster Collection Offerings

 1877 Type 1 F-105 Raw AU55 10C            1878 Type 1 F-102 Raw AU50 10C             1878 Type 1 F-104 Raw AU58 10C 

            

1878 Type 1 F-104 Raw EF45 10C                       1815 PCGS F12 25C            

      

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

My goodness, it is nearly 8:30 am! Best to upload today's Blog edition and start another day in the GFRC office.

It is currently raining and so much for the morning's health walk. Instead, I'll be in the office early posting the balance of the Wooster Collection to the price list. Hopefully the skies will clear during afternoon hours towards photographing several new consignments that arrived during the end of last week. More on these in Monday's Blog along with another super guest article from Len Augsburger.

Thanks again for being part of the GFRC community and visiting the Blog.

 

 

 

September 7, 2019

GFRC Consignor Proceeds Top $4,500,000!

Greetings and welcome to the Blog. It is always a pleasure to have you stop by.

I feel lucky this morning. Hurricane Dorian has picked up speed and has moved far enough off the Maine coast to prevent a washout Saturday. The weather forecast has been revised to cloudy conditions with rain showers this evening. Once Dorian moves into Canada, Sunday brings sunny conditions for southern Maine. You can be assured that much GFRC photography will occur tomorrow as next week's forecast is for mostly clouds and rain. These forecasted weather conditions could delay photography of the Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection.

After 2.5 weeks in Austin, Diane returns home during the late evening hours. Renee and Ivy are doing well; it is time for the nanny to return to Maine home. Diane's renewed admin support for the GFRC business is welcomed and will free me to focus on consignment processing.

 

China Producing Counterfeit Gold Kilo Bars?

Friday's 5 Min Forecaast newletter (a Daily Reckoning product) brought renewed insights into the handling of kilo gold bars by the megabanks and international gold refiners. Bottomline, a small percentage of kilo gold bars are being mismarked to hide their point of origin. For example, J.P. Morgan discovered several kilo bars with identical several numbers in their vaults. Money laundering by bad state actors is the top suspicion.

What is the value of a kilo of gold? Roughly $49,000 based on yesterday's gold spot price.

Following are excerpts from the 5 Min Forecast article.

Gold bars fraudulently stamped with the logos of major refineries are being inserted into the global market to launder smuggled or illegal gold,” says an article at Reuters.

“In the last three years,” Reuters says, “bars worth at least $50 million stamped with Swiss refinery logos… have been identified by all four of Switzerland’s leading gold refiners and found in the vaults of JPMorgan Chase & Co., one of the major banks at the heart of the market in bullion.”

In fact, according to Reuters, four gold refinery execs say about 1,000 such standard-size kilobars have been discovered — a tiny fraction of industry output, to be sure, that produces roughly 2–2.5 million kilobars per year. Still, the fakes are highly advanced so thousands more might be in circulation and undetected.

So why forge insignias on real gold?

“Fake-branded bars are a relatively new way to flout global measures to block conflict minerals and prevent money-laundering,” Reuters says.

While you might be familiar with blood diamonds — diamonds mined in global conflict zones and sold for the benefit of narcos, warlords or dictators… the same can be true for gold. Even uglier, these mining operations often use slave labor.

“By pirating Swiss and other major brands, metal that has been mined or processed in places that would not otherwise be legal or acceptable in the West – for example in parts of Africa, Venezuela or North Korea – can be injected into the market, channeling funds to criminals or regimes that are sanctioned.”

And the plot thickens…

“It is not clear who is making the bars found so far, but executives and bankers… think most originate in China, the world’s largest gold producer and importer,” says Reuters.

Once these gold knockoffs are sold to dealers in Hong Kong, Thailand and Japan, they enter the mainstream supply chain.

Speaking of going mainstream, the rumor mill started to churn in 2017 that J.P. Morgan had turned up at least two fake kilobars in its vaults. And get this: The fakes were only identified when it was discovered two bars had matching serial numbers.

Back to China, the Shanghai Gold Exchange — that manages the superpower’s gold market — pleads ignorance when it comes to the manufacture and transport of new gold counterfeits.

In a statement, the regulator says: “The Shanghai Gold Exchange has established a thorough delivery and storage system. The process for gold (material) to enter the warehouse is strictly managed and in compliance with the regulations.”

Meanwhile, Swiss customs reported 655 forged bars in 2017 and 2018.

Jim’s not buying it: “These pure-gold counterfeits are made in refineries in China but are stamped with the name and logo of more prestigious refineries in Switzerland such as PAMP, Argor-Heraeus, Metalor or Valcambi.

“The purpose of such counterfeiting is not to fake the gold,” he continues, “but rather to hide the provenance.

“Major refiners are committed to using gold only from conflict-free zones and not from mines where slave labor or harsh working conditions are found.

“The Chinese refiners don't care,” says Jim. “They buy gold from the least reputable sources and then try to hide the source by faking the refinery name on the bar.”

None of this surprises me.

During my six years working for CSMC Technologies in Wuxi, I had knowledge of certain Asia IC design companies and assembly houses colluding to product fake ICs that were marked with international company brands. To be straight on this topic, one of my customers in Hong Kong was copying international IC manufacturer designs. Those chips were produced at CSMC and subsequently sold to Chinese assembly houses. The Chinese assembly houses would purposely mark the counterfeit ICs with an international brand.

Now that I've been away from the semiconductor business for many years, I'm becoming more comfortable with freely discussing these types of observations. There were many battles fought during my six years in mainland China. High priority items included terminating CSMC's production of ICs destined for the People's Liberation Army research facilities and military arms producers on behalf of the United States Department of Commerce (Bureau of Industry and Security). Stopping small time counterfeit IC production was the least of my issues.

 

GFRC Consignor Proceeds Top $4,500,000

September sales results are well above forecast and I'm keeping busy. When checking the GFRC Consignor Proceeds number yesterday at the Consign link, I realized that another GFRC consignment business milestone had been attained. Now that the $4,500,000 milestone has been achieved, we are working towards the $5,000,000 goal.

A sincere thank-you goes out to the 100+ GFRC consignors who trust me to market and sell their collections or duplicates. Working in partnership with consignors, on a long term basis, is what GFRC is all about. The numismatic hobby should be fun and not stressful when divestment time rolls around.

 

Wooster Collection Client Gallery Arrives Today

We've not heard much from the Wooster Collection consignor during the past several years. This individual was an early GFRC consignor during the 2014 timeframe. Now he is back with a substantial Capped Bust dime and Liberty Seated dime divestment. The offerings are nice collector grade items including some cool Capped Bust dime cuds.

If all goes to plan, the Wooster Collection client galley will be posted before picking up Diane at the Portland airport this evening.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

My apology for the lack of coin images in today's edition. Operating the GFRC business on a solo basis and in a strong sales period limits the number of new offerings that can be processed. Again, this will change once Diane returns later today.

It is time for a shower and quick health walk before potential rains arrive. Then it is back to the packing and shipping department.

Thank-you for stopping by at the Blog.

 

 

 

September 6, 2019

Rare 1847/6 PCGS EF45 Seated Half Dollar Arrives!

Greetings on a Friday morning and welcome to another Blog edition.

There is no question that the Fall season has arrived in southern Maine. The days are growing shorter with the sun dropping lower in the sky. Temperatures have noticeably cooled with today's high forecasted at 68F.

Thursday brought an exceptional GFRC sales day. Phone and email orders arrived throughout the day for four and five offerings. The day started well with the sale of the Springfield 1864-S PCGS MS62 Liberty Seated quarter into the Golden Harvest Collection. This individual believed that a mint state 1864-S quarter would be forever out of his reach. Yesterday brought an important milestone in his collecting career. More great coins sold. The Sunset Point 1873-CC PCGS G04 quarter also found a new home. Afternoon hours brought more orders including the 1856-S PCGS MS62 dime, purchased at the Chicago ANA, and Tenafly's 1867 PCGS MS65 CAC dime. Throughout the day, other lower priced coins also sold. At 5:30 pm, the office was vacated as I moved to the outdoor back deck. It was time for well deserved scotch and nuts while grilling hamburgers and fresh corn.

 

Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection Announcement

I'm also thoroughly pleased with the favorable response to the Labelman87 Collection announcement. After reading of the collection's forthcoming availability, many Blog readers went to the PCGS and GFRC registries to check the contents. Those individuals sent along emails with their First Right of Refusal. Officially, I'm not accepting FRoR for the collection, as of this time, but recognize the widespread demand for these fabulous offerings. Once the Labelman87 set physically arrives and is processed in the COIN system, there will be an customer opportunity for a formal FRoR timeframe. Please keep reading the Blog for updates.

 

Rare 1847/6 WB-9 Seated Half Dollar Arrives

Wednesday brought the arrival of a special consignment; an 1847/6 WB-9 Liberty Seated half dollar. This is the first 1847/6 to be handled by GFRC and so pleased with the high grade and choice original condition. When inspecting this piece in hand, I ran through the parameters for potential CAC approval. Grading is spot on. Fields are lightly mirrored with not significant abrasions. Patina is crusty natural and attractive. Strike is also complete! With all the CAC parameter boxes checked, it was decided to immediately submit to CAC in the hopes of a green bean. Pricing will be determined after the approval decision. The new Palos Verdes Collection offering is available for FRoR.

Please note that the light vertical obverse streak through the cap is lighting reflection during photography.

Important Seated Half Dollar Rarity from the Palos Verdes Collection

1847/6 WB-9 PCGS EF45 50C

 

More Liberty Seated Dime Web-Book Plate Coins

In between Thursday's rapid paced orders, there was still time to photograph coins and conduct some image processing. Below are two new offerings from the Gerry Fortin reference collection. Both are web-book plate coins. These dimes were loaded to the price list late Thursday and are immediately available.

   1884 F-105 NGC AU58 10C                                                   1890-S F-106 NGC MS63 CAC 10C

    

 

More CONA Show New Purchases

How about two more new purchases from the CONA show? The 1896-O Barber quarter screams originality while the 1910 Saint Gaudens is a lovely piece with about $1500 of physical gold content at current spot price.

1896-O PCGS VF30 CAC 25C                                                         1910 Raw MS62 G$20    

    

 

Global Financial News

Equity markets continue to be in an upbeat mood to close the week. Longer term optimism has improved now that the Hong Kong protest have quieted down and China - U.S. trade talks will resume in October.

Traders are back in a risk on mode which is reflected in gold and 10 Year Treasury rates. Spot gold prices dropped overnight to $1514/oz while the 10 Year bond yield increased to 1.59%. Crude oil is priced at $56.34/bbl and Bitcoin inched up to $10714/oz.

Let's visit with Seeking Alpha and review a few headlines before wrapping up today's edition. We start with China and more economic stimulus efforts. The People's Bank of China (their Federal Reserve equivalent) has reduced reserve requirements in the banking system. This means more lending for additional apartment building construction and car loans.

Looking to further stimulate the economy, the People's Bank of China is reducing the amount of funds banks have to hold in reserve as the trade war drags on. Effective Sept. 16, the reserve requirement ratio will be cut by 50 basis points, and further reduced by 100 bps for some qualified banks. The move was the third action of its kind this year and the seventh since early 2008, releasing another 900B yuan ($126.35B) of liquidity into the world's second-largest economy.

A move is underway to return Fannie Mae and Feddie Mac to the private market.

The Trump administration has released a formal plan to return Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which back more than half of U.S. home mortgages, to private hands after more than 11 years in government conservatorship. It represents a major reversal from promises long held by leaders of both political parties to abolish the companies, and would mark an important win for investors who have been betting politicians would not follow through on those promises.

Facebook is getting into the dating business. Will people really share their dating experiences via social media? What is next, reviews and ratings for how well we perform on dates?

"Finding a romantic partner is deeply personal, which is why we built Dating to be safe, inclusive and opt-in," the company announced at a live event on Thursday. While the experience is centered on Facebook, users can connect Instagram accounts to show Instagram stories on their dating profile and connect with their followers there. The news weighed on shares of Match Group and IAC/InterActiveCorp, which both closed the session down more than 4%.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

It is best to end the Blog at this point. Buddy needs to go outdoors for his morning business. Afterwards is a quick shower and immediately back into the office for the day's shipping.

Thanks for stopping by at the Blog. There will be more new coins posted to the price list during the afternoon hours. Please check back then.

Wishing everyone a pleasant final day of the work week.

 

 

 

September 5, 2019

The Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection to be Sold by GFRC!

Greetings and welcome to the Blog on a Thursday. Thank-you for your patronage.

Today's southern Maine weather falls under the category of it does not get any better than this. Bright sunshine and low humidty will dominate the entire day with an expected high of 73F. Temperatures will cool quickly towards an overnight low in the 40s. For those who might be curious, some seasonal color has appeared. The large sugar map along the driveway is already shifting to yellows and crimson. The tops of the burning bushes have already begun their Fall season transition.

Seth Godin: The end of reputation

Before moving into today's main Blog event, I'd like to share a blogpost from Seth Godin. Dear readers, this is a sobering post by Godin that reflects the perils of modern life in an advanced technology world. Little opening commentary is needed on my part. Please have a read followed by a short moment of contemplate. Now more than ever, face to face dealings based on honesty and trust are paramount. Basic human relationships take time to acquire and cultivate. Yes, there are many technology enabled shortcuts to quickly expand our human relationship network. Listen to Seth Godin and keep you guard up if relying on the shortcuts.

The end of reputation

AI can now easily (8 seconds) change the identity of someone in a film or video.

Multiple services can now scan a few hours of someone’s voice and then fake any sentence in that person’s voice.

Open publishing on platforms like the Kindle means that there’s no gatekeeper to verify the source of what you read. Perhaps there’s already a fake Kindle book by “Malcolm Godin” and “Seth Gladwell”. I wonder if it’s any good or if someone simply wanted to fool a search engine?

Don’t buy anything from anyone who calls you on the phone. Careful with your prescriptions. Don’t believe a video or a photo and especially a review. Luxury goods probably aren’t. That fish might not even be what it says it is.

But we need reputation. The people who are sowing the seeds of distrust almost certainly don’t have your best interests in mind–we’ve all been hacked. Which means that a reshuffling is imminent, one that restores confidence so we can be sure we’re seeing what we think we’re seeing. But it’s not going to happen tomorrow, so now, more than ever, it seems like we have to assume we’re being conned.

Sad but true.

What happens after the commotion will be a retrenchment, a way to restore trust and connection, because we have trouble thriving without it.

 

A Marvelous 1871 Seated Dollar from the Peak Collection

Before today's significant consignment announcement, one additional CONA show consignment warrants special attention.

The Peak Collection consignor is another individual from the high tech industry who also happens to have one foot planted in America and the other in Taiwan. His hobby passion is Liberty Seated dollars. GFRC is blessed to be handling his duplicates as upgrades occur. At the CONA show, my friend stopped by the table and handed off this marvelous 1871 PCGS AU58 CAC Seated dollar. Though 1871 is a "common With Motto date", the preservation state is far from common. Frosty luster dominates during bright light viewing. As usual, the reddish toning is amplified on the GFRC images. It is much more subtle in hand. This gorgeous dollar has a JUST BUY IT NOW recommendation.

1871 PCGS AU58 CAC Seated $1

 

GFRC Secures Exceptional Labelman87 Barber Quarter Consignment

It is with great pride that I announce that GFRC has been selected to market and sell the Labelman87 Barber Quarter Collection as listed on the PCGS Set Registry.

The Labelman87 Collection currently ranks 8th on the Current Finest list for Barber Quarters. The set is 97.3% complete with the 1901-S and 1913-S dates missing. In my conversations with the consignor, he made it clear that compromising his quality and eye appeal standards to acquire these two key dates was not in the cards. The set's weighted grade point average is an impressive 59.1. But more importantly, the set has a 69% CAC approval rate across his 100+ core set pieces and duplicates. This metric speaks volume as to the overall quality and consistent eye appeal.

For the passionate AU58 CAC collectors in the GFRC crowd, the Labelman87 Collection contains 48 pieces that will be under substantial demand.

In preparation for his set divestment, Labelman87 also posted his core date and mintmark set into the GFRC Open Set Registry. This marvelous collection can be viewed by clicking here. His set credentials are most impressive! The GFRC Weighted Grade (60.4) is higher than PCGS (59.1) since GFRC rewards CAC approved entries with bonus points.

Rating: 57.0

Complete: 97%

Weighted Grade: 60.4

CAC Approval: 81%

The Labeman87 numismatic properties are currently in transit to the GFRC office and expected to arrive by the weekend or shortly thereafter. The first step will be loading the entire 100+ piece collection into the COIN system and launching the Major Collection preview tool at the upper right corner of the Blog. Afterwards, photography and image processing will commence.

At this time, I am contemplating two sales of the Labelman87 Collection. The first sale will capture the core date and mintmark set. The second sale will feature his duplicates and may include other Barber quarter consignments. More details will be shared in the next two weeks. Each sale will be launched in the Blog with traditional Client Galleries so get ready!

 

Global Financial News

Global equity markets are in an upbeat mood after an announcement of resumed China - U.S trade talks scheduled for October in the United States. Seeking Alpha captures this event in its opening headline.

Markets spent all of August fishing for an upward catalyst and it looks like they finally caught a big one. Stocks are continuing a rally that builds on yesterday's gains as the U.S. and China announced they would hold talks in October in Washington. Deputy-level officials will work together in mid-September to lay the groundwork for the meeting. The Shanghai Composite closed up 1% on the news,

Looking at our favorite commodities and the long bond, crude oil prices jumped on positive trade news to $56.08/bbl. The 10 Year U.S. Treasury bond yield also increased to 1.51% due to lower demand. I firmly believe that physical demand is primarily being driven out of Asia with pricing continuing to hold at $1549/oz. Bitcoin is up slightly at $10623/coin.

Brexit is an absolute mess and so difficult to comprehend without a working knowledge of U.K. parliamentary procedures. Bottomline is that forces are out to derail Boris Johnson's October 31 Brexit strategy.

Boris Johnson failed in his bid to call a snap general election on Wednesday, boxing in the U.K. prime minister over his Brexit strategy. Next steps? The government could try to bypass legislation requiring a two-thirds majority to approve a snap election, and while it's unlikely, Johnson could call a vote of no confidence in his own government and then call on his MPs to abstain. Whatever the case may be, the uncertainty weighed on U.K. stocks today, with the FTSE 100 falling 0.7%.

Who's really paying for tariffs?

Shortly before fresh U.S. duties on $112B of Chinese goods went into effect last weekend, Target sent a memo to hundreds of its suppliers, warning them that it would refuse to "accept any cost increases related to tariffs." "Our expectation is that you will develop the appropriate contingency plans so that we don't have to pass price increases along" to customers, wrote Mark Tritton, chief merchandising officer.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

The 8:00 am publishing deadline has arrived and best to hit the upload button.

September sales are off to a strong start with a sincere thanks to everyone who placed orders in the past four days. Maintaining that momentum requires a constant flow of new offerings to the 30 price list. I'm committed to this task.

I will be in the GFRC office throughout the day and available for your phone or email orders.

See you tomorrow at the Blog....

 

 

 

September 4, 2019

Rolling Out Consignments and CONA New Purchases

Greetings on a Wednesday morning and welcome to a well prepared edition of the Blog.

Client galleries abound in today's edition as a result of Tuesday's uninterrupted time in the GFRC office. Yesterday's photography sessions were numerous due to huge puffy clouds separated by short gaps of bright sunshine. Early afternoon brought constant movement into and back from the the front yard towards capturing those precious sunshine gaps between the clouds. Multi-tasking between image processing and photography was the scenario. When a huge cloud blocked the sun, I sat at the laptop formating images. When gaps appeared, there I was with the camera and photostand shooting images. With serious determination, the challenge was surmounted. I'm pleased to be offering Blog readers a broad range of images that will become price list additions today.

Since clouds and thunderstorms will dominate today's southern Maine weather, much of my day will be spent in the office. Today's afternoon and evening goal is loading a host of coins to the 30 day price list and returning to the 100+ new offerings threshold. Morning hours will focus on shipments and a CAC submission. The life of a coin dealer is fairly predictable when not attending coin shows.

I'm out of ideas for today's preamble, so best to move to a review of new consignments and CONA purchases.

 

Fresh Liberty Seated Quarters from the Springfield Collection

The Springfield Collection consignor is back with another installment from his Liberty Seated quarter collection. His latest divestment starts with a frosty original 1864 San Francisco strike graded PCGS MS62. For readers who don't have an intimate knowledge of Seated quarters, 1864-S is a key date in Mint State with only four pieces certified. There is this MS62 example followed by two MS64s and an MS64+ in the PCGS population report. The balance of the offerings a more "common" dates, but in choice original preservations states with attractive toning. First Rights of Refusals are recommended as I expect several of the offerings to be on hold by end of day.

1864-S PCGS MS62 25C - Key Date and Important Opportunity!

1873 Open 3 PCGS AU55 25C                          1874-S PCGS AU55 25C                              1876 PCGS MS61 25C        

            

1876-CC PCGS MS64 25C                          1876-S PCGS AU55 25C

      

 

More Great Type Coins from Running Boar Collection

I first met the Running Boar Collection consignor at the CONA show several years ago. This individual was struggling with locating a rewarding numismatic collecting goal and sought mentorship. We've worked closely together to reshape his collection and sell all pieces that were no longer core to revised goals. At the 2019 CONA show, this individual was pleased to be on the right collecting path and was having fun with the hobby.

Following are the last pieces from this individual's restructuring project. The 1831 PCGS EF45 CAC quarter is a gem at the grade and will not last long on the price list. The 1903-O Barber is also attractively toned after spending time in an old paper album.

1831 Lg Letters PCGS EF45 CAC 25C                                                   1903-O PCGS EF45 50C        

    

 

CONA Show New Purchases

Since being single handed at the CONA show, there were no opportunities to walk the bourse in search of new purchases. The limited number of new purchases were those that walked up to the GFRC booth. A few vest pocket dealers and collectors brought coins for consideration. Given my reputation for handling top quality early type and being a fair buyer, there were multiple buying opportunities. I'm most pleased to be showcasing three special new purchases.

We start with a gorgeous 1861-O CSA W-14 (Bisecting Date Crack/Speared Olive Bud) half dollar that is accurately certified at the PCGS AU58 grade level. This is a brilliant frosty piece with just a hint of faint toning. Strike is boldly executed on this condition census example for the W-14 die pairing. Also purchase was a really cool 1855 With Arrows quarter. What is so cool about a common 1855 quarter you might ask? The fields are sharply mirrored resulting in serious proof-like fields under the semi-transparent toning. This piece is off to CAC today. We close new purchases with another cool coin; an 1813 O-109a Single Leaf reverse Capped Bust half. In its terminal die state, the O-109 reverse die is lapped leaving minimal olive leaf details. This die variety/die state is recognized by PCGS and is an R5 rarity.

1861-O CSA WB-103/WB-104 W-14 PCGS AU58 50C - Condition Census

               1855 Arrows PCGS AU55 25C                                      1813 O-109a R5 Single Leaf PCGS VF25 50C

    

 

Liberty Seated Dime Duplicates from the Cleveland Collection

After purchasing a gem 1874-CC PCGS VG10 CAC dime at the Chicago ANA show, time arrived for the Cleveland Collection consignor to transfer a group of Liberty Seated dime duplicates to GFRC at the CONA. Following is that consignment in its entirety. Showcasing his divestment is an AG03 1874-CC duplicate that seeks a new home. This original example features much honest wear and darker blue-gray patina along with embedded gold. The date and mintmark are well defined. This piece is ideal for those that wish to take a first step in filling the daunting 1874-CC hole found in many Seated Dime date and mintmark set collections.

1874-CC ANACS Blue Label AG03 10C - The Key Date

The Cleveland Collection offerings continue with two wonderful CAC approved branch mint dimes. 1851-O is a challenging New Orleans date in EF when choice original. At the AU grade level, few are even seen. Then there is an undegraded 1864-S dime that resides in an NGC VF35 holder. I doubt that either dime will be around for very long.

1851-O F-101 PCGS EF45 CAC 10C                                                   1864-S F-101 NGC VF35 10C

    

The remaining Cleveland Collection offerings are duplicates from his Top 100 Varieties and Ultimate sets. The 1842 F-103a was previously purchased from GFRC.

1841 F-105 PCGS EF40 10C                      1842 F-103a PCGS AU53 10C                      1844 F-102 PCGS VF30 10C

            

        1845-O F-101c PCGS VG10 10C                  1874-S F-102 PCGS VF35 10C             1878-CC F-101 ANACS VG08 OWH 10C

            

 

Thursday Brings a Substantial GFRC Consignment Announcement

Yes indeed, it has been awhile since GFRC launched the sale of the Sunset Point Liberty Seated Quarter Collection. I pleased to announce that GFRC has been selected to handle a major PCGS Set Registry collection. The 100+ piece collection has been shipped and should arrive to the GFRC office by the weekend.

Based on recommendations from several GFRC clients, this new consignor made the decision to divest his substantial collection via GFRC rather than an auction house. Thursday brings the full announcement.

 

Global Financial News

There is significant news from Hong Kong during the overnight hours. HK government leader, Carrie Lam, announced the withdrawal of the Chinese mainland issued extradition bill. This bill resulted in three months of protest and damage to Hong Kong's pristine subway system. Seeking Alpha captures this development.

The Hang Seng index soared nearly 4% during Wednesday afternoon trade after leader Carrie Lam announced the withdrawal of a contentious extradition bill. The measure sparked a nearly three-month-long protest crisis that has roiled the city's economy, with last weekend seeing some of the fiercest battles between police and protesters. Railway operator MTR, which has been hit by disruptions in its operations and damage to its infrastructure, jumped 6.4%, while embattled airliner Cathay Pacific's shares surged 7.2%.

Commodities and the long bond interest rate are mostly flat to start another Wednesday. Crude oil is down slightly at $54.25/bbl. Spot gold remains in a breakout mode with slow steady increases. The current quote is $1548/oz. BItcoin is also up at $10,471/coin. Finally, the 10 Year U.S. Treasury bond yield is quoting at 1.49%.

China is facing mounting economic headwinds with annual 6% GDP growth being at risk. This is probably why I saw a renewed apartment building boom when in Shanghai and surrounding provinces during early August visit. The Beijing central government must maintain jobs and spending throughout the country. Building more apartment buildings is a well known approach for stimulating economic growth.

As a result of escalating tariff war risks, Oxford Economics, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, and Bloomberg Economics have all cut their forecasts for Chinese GDP growth in 2020 to below 6%. In addition, BofA's Helen Qiao and others are warning that the government's current approach to stimulus is proving insufficient. "The key reason for delayed policy response is policy agencies are waiting for the instruction from top decision makers to shift policy stance towards easing," she wrote in a note.

Did you know that China has banned gold imports? This item from another financial newsletter that is read on a daily basis. The Daily Reckoning's 5 Min. Forecast brought this commentary on Tuesday.

“About three weeks ago,” our macro maven Jim Rickards tells us, “I was flooded with inquiries concerning an announcement by China that they were banning imports of gold.”

On the surface, it makes no sense. As we’ve long chronicled here, China’s central bank has tripled its gold reserves over the last decade — and that’s just the official numbers. So did Beijing suddenly lose interest in accumulating gold?

Hardly, says Jim. “The announcement had nothing to do with gold and everything to do with capital controls and trying to preserve China's depleting reserves of hard currency. China's reserves dropped over $1 trillion in 2016 due to capital flight. Excluding precautionary reserves to bail out its banks and certain illiquid assets, China has only about $1 trillion left to defend its currency and pay for imports.

“China is suffering a dollar shortage today both because of capital flight and because its trade surplus is drying up due to Trump's tariffs and the trade war. Banning gold imports was a way to hang onto dollars.”

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

I hope you've enjoyed today's edition as much effort went into preparations. The time has arrived to hit the upload button followed by a shower. The balance of the morning will be dedicted to packing and shipping along with assembing yet another CAC submission.

Afternoon hours will see me in the GFRC office writing a host of price list descriptions. Please consider interrupting me with purchase requests via phone or email. I will be all ears.

Thank-you for checking in at the Blog.

 

 

September 3, 2019

Time to Rebuild the GFRC 30 Day New Products Price List

Greetings from the Maine GFRC office and welcome to the Blog.

Yesterday's southern Maine rains have cleared with lovely blue skies on hand at 7:00 am.

Labor Day Monday brought a long day in the coin office, but there was a constant smile on my face. Gone is the stress to accomplish a host of tasks before the next coin show or traveling event. I'm pleased to report that the GFRC office is 100% operational, organized, and back to normal operation. "Organized" is a code word for being able to find every piece of inventory quickly rather than sending out a search party to rummage through the gun ammo safe.

The most pressing priority, for the balance of the week, is rebuilding the 30 day price list. How I hate seeing only 65 listings on that list. I'm much more comfortable when that price list has greater than 100 items. There will considerable photography and image processing efforts in the coming days.

Seth Godin's Blog: This one simple trick makes everything faster and easier

A week has passed since checking in on Seth Godin and his daily words of wisdom. The following blogpost immediately captured my attention as consistent with a personal philosophy. Attempting to locate shortcuts is a time trap. Attempting shortcuts against a well defined business process is a fool's errand. Shortcuts bring quality risks when outcomes turn out to be substandard.

Don't get caught in the shortcut trap, especially in numismatics. There is no shortcut for building a quality set with long term financial appreciation potential. As I constantly remind most anyone who will listen, there is no Santa Claus in numismatics. The best quality coins, with long time value, are purchased by those with keen knowledge and insights. Running around a bourse floor with a Greysheet and reading TPG labels is indeed a shortcut for building a great collection. Yes, value buying is a shortcut. Be prepared for the disappointment when realizing that value buying was a trap.

This one simple trick makes everything faster and easier

Here it is, tested, effective and worthwhile:

Stop chasing shortcuts.

Personal finance, weight loss, marketing, careers, beating traffic, relationships, education–everything that matters to someone often comes with heavily promoted shortcuts as an alternative.

Fast, risk-free, effortless secrets that magically work, often at someone else’s expense.

But if the shortcuts worked as promised, they wouldn’t be shortcuts, would they? They’d be the standard.

A shortcut is not an innovation. It’s not a direct path, either. Those work, but they require effort, risk and insight.

If you can’t afford the time and effort to do it right, you probably can’t afford to do it over after you realize that the shortcut was merely a trap.

 

New Hampshire Collection Consignor Retires as Daily Blog Proof Reader

An email arrived Monday evening announcing that his days as the Daily Blog proof reader have come to an end. Actually, this individual has been on holiday for the past two weeks, leaving me to my own grammar vices. Seriously, the New Hampshire consignor has had a profound impact on my writing skills. Systematic grammar and punctuation mistakes were identified and corrected. Gone are long rambling sentences without commas or semicolons. Hypens became understood and applied. Missing words in sentences were also a chronic issue as I think faster than my fingers can type. That systematic issue has been recognized and is being managed.

I cannot thank the New Hampshire Collection consignor enough for his persistent tutorials which resulted in improved writing skills. It is doubtful that my composition skills will ever approach that of Len Augsburger, but the gap has been closed. Following is the New Hampshire Collection consignor's closing words as my grammar mentor.

Hi Gerry,

My coin involvement/interest has been at a low ebb for the past 2 or 3 months, so I think it's time to sign off from the proof reading. The improvement in the Blog has been significant, so you really don't need the help. I have very much enjoyed doing it. Your business is clearly the most forthright and customer-focused I've ever seen in the coin market. It's been a pleasure being able to contribute in a small way. I will continue collecting, but will be less active since the few items I want are few and far between in the quality I look for.

Thanks for letting me be involved!

 

Time to Rebuild the GFRC 30 Day New Products Price List

Yes indeed, it is time to rebuild the 30 Day Price List back to my 100 coin comfort level. A returning CAC submission along with several consignments will be a first step towards that goal. Following are a few new additions to consider. First up is a strictly original 1896-S Barber half that was acquired at the Chicago ANA. This lovely piece is already on hold and heading into an advanced silver and gold San Francisco mint collection.

1896-S PCGS AU53 50C - On Hold

 

Gerry Fortin Reference Collection - Important Web-Book Dates and Plate Coins

Rummaging through my personal collection's inventory box resulted in locating two pieces that were previously photographed. Those images presented an opportunity to add new offerings to the price list. The 1867-S F-101 PCGS AU58 dime is a serious offering. Already, there have been four requests on the coin with the first person deciding to make the purchase at $2900 asking price. The 1885 F-101 proof dime is a superb gem with brilliant reflective and frost luster. I've priced this piece fairly as it deserves a new home with a loving collector.

1867-S F-101 PCGS AU58 10C                                                   1885 F-101 PCGS PR66CAM CAC 10C

    

 

Last Susquehana Collection Offering Sees Pricing Reduction

The Susquehana Collection consignment arrived during the 2018 Philadephia ANA. The consignment including twenty raw pieces that had been purchased from Bowers & Ruddy during the 1970s. After one year of effort, GFRC is down to the last piece in the offering. The consignor issued a substantial pricing reduction to wrap up the consignment sale.

The new $580 sale price is a bargain given the quality. Greysheet bid is $650 as a reference. Any dealers reading the Blog?

1830 Small 0 O-104 PCGS AU58 50C - A Steal at $580! CDN Bid is $650

 

Global Financial News

September is typically a turbulent month for equity markets with 2019 bringing trade war uncertainties plus months of rioting in Hong Kong. Argentina has instituted capital flight controls as its economy tanks. With considerable global uncertainties, safe haven assets continue to shine.

Physical gold continues to consolidate in the low to mid $1500 range; today's quote is $1540/oz. The 10 Year U.S. Treasury bond, another global safe haven, is yielding a low 1.48%. Crude oil prices have dropped to $54.50/bbl and Bitcoin has gained ground to $10,348/coin.

Let's review several Seeking Alpha headlines that capture current global uncertainties. The Chinese Yuan is rapidly losing ground to the U.S. Dollar.

Trade war gloom is pointing to a 200-point decline for the DJIA at the open as China lodged a tariff case against the U.S. at the WTO, a day after the world's two largest economies imposed new duties on each other's goods. The Chinese yuan also fell to its lowest level in more than a decade in offshore trading, nearing 7.2 versus the greenback. More trouble? Sources told Bloomberg that Chinese and U.S. officials are struggling to agree on scheduling for a planned meeting later this month.

Argentina implements currency controls after peso loses 25% of its value in a month. Gone is Argentina's status as an emerging market country.

The spiraling economic crisis in Argentina has prompted the central bank to slap capital controls on businesses as the peso lost more than a quarter of its value since primary elections last month. Exporters will face limits of five days to repatriate foreign currency, while institutions will need authorization of the bank to buy dollars in the forex market, except in the case of foreign trade. The decision reverses one of the first big achievements of President Macri who removed strict capital controls after taking power in December 2015 (the restrictions had prompted the MSCI index to strip Argentina of its status as an emerging market, demoting it to a frontier market).

Huawei continues to make notable progress with 5G infrastructure rollouts regardless of U.S., Japan, and Australia restrictions.

Huawei has scored more than 50 commercial 5G contracts globally despite being blocked from some major markets amid continued pressure from the U.S. This puts the company ahead of its closest competitors, with Nokia (NYSE:NOK) in July saying it had 45 commercial 5G deals, while Ericsson's latest published number was 24. Europe has become a key battleground with several countries still weighing up their 5G position on Huawei, which is already blocked in the U.S., Japan and Australia.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

A busy morning awaits me. CONA checks must be deposited at my local BoA branch along with retrieving a week's mail. There is a returned CAC submission to be processed and photographed. Several shipments require packaging before heading out the door. Best to wrap up the Blog here and get on with a new day.

Thank-you for checking in at the Blog. Wednesday's Blog will be less rushed with new consignment announcements.

Wishing everyone a great start to September!

 

 

 

September 2, 2019

Long Awaited September Downtime in GFRC Office Arrives Plus Other Ramblings

Greetings from the Maine GFRC office and welcome to the Blog. Happy Labor Day to everyone!

Relief is the operative word to start today's ramblings. Relief that two months of constant traveling and rushing to maintain the GFRC office has concluded. September brings a much deserved slower pace in the office. The next coin show is the NH Coin Expo in early October. Staying put in Maine for a month provides time for an annual physical health check, returning to regular exercise routine, stacking firewood, and catching up on a substantial consignment backlog. Let's recap Waldo's travels during the months of July and August towards an understanding of my incredible relief on this Labor Day Monday.

 

GFRC's Non-Stop July - August Schedule

July 2019

- July starts with air travel to Vancouver and Alaska glacier cruise. To maintain security and not disclose my whereabouts, I prepared a host of coin images to maintain the Blog during the "vacation" as a precaution. While on the cruise, the Blog is still written and published on schedule. Coin orders continue to arrive online and are serviced regardless of sketchy internet bandwidth off the Alaska coast.

- Upon returning from Alaska, it is time to drive from Maine to Florida for the Summer FUN show. After two days of driving, Dan and I enjoyed a strong show and good time together. The English Pub on International Drive became our evening hang-out. Then comes another two days of driving back to Maine. Unfortunately, the GFRC lucky jade coin was left behind in the security case at Summer FUN due to some rushed booth teardown and packing.

- Once back from Summer FUN, Matt Yamatin is busy with GFRC website software developments including SSL Certification. Those updates are implemented and debugged.

- The Yamatins return back to Beijing on the last Monday in July. Two days later, Gerry undertakes a long flight to Shanghai with the usual jetlag to overcome.

August 2019

- After dropping off coin orders in Shanghai and conducting business development, I return to the United States with only five days to recover and prepare for the Chicago ANA. This ANA show brings the the announcement of my retirement as LSCC President along with hosting the club's annual event.

- The following week starts on Monday with air travel to Chicago for a long ANA show that brought mixed bourse floor sales results. To reach GFRC's August sales goal, a revised strategy is adopted on the fly. All new ANA purchases are immediately loaded onto the price list while still working the show booth. GFRC makes a definitive decision to move to Ultra Premium section for 2020 Pittsburgh show and ongoing. No more Premium booth for this rare coin dealer.

- Within several day of the Chicago ANA show, our second grandchild (Ivy Fortin) is born to Renee and Mike. Diane immediately flies to Austin to support Renee's recovery and assumes Ivy's nanny duties. Gerry takes on all aspects of the GFRC business including payment processing and order packing/transfers to USPS.

- Several days after returning from the Chicago ANA, here I am loading Christmas In August Sale listings in the COIN database. The sale goes off smoothly with a substantial number of shipments on Saturday and Monday. Tuesday is inventory preparation day for the Central Ohio Numismatic Association show.

- The month of August closes with a roadtrip to Columbus OH for the CONA show. The trip takes two days to Dublin including booth setup this past Thursday. After a decent show, a thirteen hour return drive on Sunday closes two months of non-stop activities.

I hope this two month review explains the absolute relief being felt this morning!

 

LSCC September E-Gobrecht is Published

Sunday brought the publication of the September 2019 E-Gobrecht edition. This latest issue is a no question must read for all LSCC members. Kudos to LSCC Editor, Bill Bugert, for preparing another great issue. We've grown to expect no less.

Access to the August edition is available by clicking here or on the following cover page image. Len Augsburger provides an excellent recap of the club's annual meeting events. John Frost, LSCC Educational Director, was heavily awarded at the Chicago ANA for his remarkable research and exhibits on the life of William Barber. John received the LSCC's annual Kamal Ahwash award. The came more from the ANA. The article, “Reimagining the Barbers,” which appeared in the August 2018 issue of The Numismatist, was selected by a panel of judges to receive two awards: the second-place Heath Literary Award, and the second-place Wayte and Olga Raymond Memorial Literary Award for original research in U.S. numismatics.

 

CONA Show Summary

I'm quite pleased with CONA show sales results and looking forward to the 2020 event at the new Embassy Suites location. But CONA is much more than just numismatic sales. The CONA organization is unlike any other in numismatics. CONA brings a chance to reunited with good friends including Stephen and Lexa Petty among others. Saturday evening in the CONA hospitality suite brought a amazing discussion with Steve from Hungary. Steve and I are both from the electronics industry with colorful stories to share due to surprising parallels. Each of us spent time working in Communist regimes with unspoken political and professional challenges. Many war stories were shared that evening while sipping tequila. The evening turned out to be incredibly memorable!

At the CONA show, GFRC sold a balanced mix of Liberty Seated coinage and United Sates gold. Friday sales were nearly all Liberty Seated while Saturday's sales were essentially all United States gold. A few new purchases were made along with insourcing a strong consignment from the Cleveland Collection. Overall, I'm happy and pleased with the CONA event. GFRC managed to achieve its August sales goal even with a disappointing Chicago ANA show.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

Southern Maine weather is cool, cloudy and damp after overnight rains. This is just fine by me as a health walk is next on the day's schedule. The out-of-state tourists have departed and road traffic should be more conducive for walking. Afterwards, the balance of the day will be spent in the GFRC office. The CONA show inventory must be merged with those coins that remained behind in the office safe. Consignments will be loaded into the COIN system and another CAC submission will be prepared for Express shipment on Tuesday.

September brings the traditionally slowest sales month of the numismatic year. To counter the lack of online sales, I will be working diligently to rollout a host of new consignments towards that month's sales goal. Look for some special offers too!

Thank-you for visiting with me on Labor Day Monday! I will be back on Tuesday with new ramblings. See you then.

 

 

 

August 31, 2019

Busy GFRC Friday at CONA

Greetings once again from Dublin, Ohio and welcome to the Blog.

Composition of today's Blog edition will be a tad delayed as I slept in and enjoyed a peaceful breakfast. It is already 7:45 am with the bourse floor opening to dealers in 15 minutes. It is best to setup the GFRC booth first followed by writing the Blog from the bourse.

45 minutes later....

Alright! The GFRC booth is operational and time to write today's Blog edition. Friday was an excellent day with well attended LSCC regional meeting and a strong sales day.

Bittersweet is the best way to describe hosting the 2019 CONA regional meeting. Friday's session was my last as LSCC president. Since all attendees, except Dale Miller, were not present at the Chicago ANA annual meeting, it was decided to share that meeting's presentation. After introductions and a group photo (thank-you to Gerry Tebbens), Gerry and Dale reviewed the healthy status of our fine organization and the topics that were discussed at the annual meeting. Two of the attendees immediately signed up for club membership! Following is the CONA meeting's group photo with the two new club members to my immediately left.

2019 CONA - LSCC Regional Meeting Attendees

Image courtesy of Gerry Tebbens

GFRC CONA Show Highlights

I went into the CONA show with subdued expectations as GFRC's inventory is tuned for speciality collectors rather than casual individuals. It does not take many sales to enjoy a strong day but advanced collector turnout is paramount. I'm pleased to report that the collectors did attend the CONA show with Liberty Seated coinage being the hot product line. GFRC sold into the five figures with the notable sale being the Saw Mill Run 1864-S PCGS EF40 quarter finding a new home. Past CONA shows have always seen strong United States gold sales but that product line was quiet on Friday. Other than someone being thoroughly excited about seeing an 1839-O Classic Head $2.5 with medal turn reverse in the wild, there was no interest in this inventory. Hopefully Saturday will bring out individuals who are attracted to the yellow precious metal. Unfortunately, Ohio State is an home for a college football season opener, therefore expectations are for a quiet Saturday.

 

Happenings at the GFRC Table!

GFRC is excited to report the purchase of a condition census 1861-O W-14 CSA struck Liberty Seated half dollar graded PCGS AU58. W-14 is the 1861-O die marriage combination of the WB-103 Bisecting Date Crack with the WB-104 Speared Olive Bud. This die pairing is much rarer than the W-11 CSA Obverse or the W-13 Bisecting Date Crack. PCGS has graded two specimens at the AU55 level with none finer. This PCGS AU58 example is frosty original with brilliant original luster and boldly detailed attribution points.

The morning hours brought collector consulting and the sharing of bad news. A GFRC customer arrived with a partially filled Dansco Liberty Seated half dime album and was interested in selling. I was hesitant as most pieces were common dates and valued under $150. With a huge consignment backlog to process, the last thing I needed was more lower priced half dimes. The collector was persistent and pointed out that his 1866 half dime would make my time worthwhile. The 1866 half dime was pulled from the album page and inspected. The strike was uncharacteristically mushy on both sides. I focused on the date digits and immediately recognized the date punch utilized by modern Chinese counterfeiters. Yes, the collector's 1866 half dime was a modern counterfeit that had been toned an even gray. How I hate to break bad news to collectors. I inquired about where this piece was purchased and the reply was a flea market. The collector believed he was securing a deal at $400 for a raw EF45 1866 half dime. This is a lesson for everyone who reads the Blog. If a purchase is too good to be true, then stay away. There is no Santa Claus in numismatics.

One of the LSCC regional meeting attendees arrived to the GFRC table during the afternoon hours. He was excited to share a Liberty Seated coin that he picked out of a junk box decades ago as a teenager. After being away from numismatics for an extended period, he was back to the hobby and looking forward to special insights on his junk box "find". After a long preamble of his collecting career, he produces the coin. Was it a special Liberty Seated quarter trial strike? Nope. It took a moment to identify the piece as an 1861 transfer die contemporary counterfeit struck on brass with a large hole.

Finally, let's share a noteworthy Liberty Seated dime consignment from the Cleveland Collection. The Cleveland Collection has been actively upgrading and generating noteworthy original duplicates. Following are the individual pieces in this consignment. Please note the release of an 1874-CC dime graded ANACS AG03. This key date specimen is strictly original and ideal for someone wishing to fill that impossible hole in their date and mintmark set. As usual, FRoR are suggested.

Liberty Seated 10c: 1841 F-104a PCGS EF40 crusty original gray; 1842 F-103a PCGS AU53 Top 100 #21; 1844 PCGS VF30 original gray; 1845-O PCGS VG10; 1851-O PCGS EF45 CAC choice original light gray; 1864-S NGC VF35 CAC choice original gray and undegraded; 1874-S F-102 PCGS VF35 original light gray; 1874-CC ANACS Blue AG3 choice original gray; 1878-CC F-101 ANASCS VG08 OWH choice original dark gray

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

Best to end these Saturday morning ramblings at this point and get this edition online.

Sunday's journey back to Maine will start very early, and as a result, there will be no Blog edition published on Sunday morning.

Thank-you for following the GFRC adventures of the past two months. I'm pretty much worn out and looking forward to being home for a solid month come Monday morning.

 

 

 

August 30, 2019

Fun Time in the CONA Hospitality Suite

Greetings from Dublin, Ohio and welcome to another Blog edition.

How I enjoy being back with the Central Ohio Numismatic Association folks and their well managed coin show. More on that topic in a moment...

The drive from an undisclosed I-90 hotel location to Columbus (Dublin) was uneventful and relaxing. Everyone should be aware of I-71 from Cleveland to Columbus and the regularly spaced state troopers quietly waiting in the median strip for the excessive speeders. One has to be really dumb or inattentive to get pulled over on this roadway. The Ohio State troopers are easily seen from long distances and are more of a traffic control strategy rather than trying to write speeding tickets. The MDX strolled along at a steady 75 mph and all was fine.

CONA show dealer setup started at 3:00pm. Since working alone, Booth 323 setup took several hours with the end result looking organized and attractive. Since being thoroughly consumed with booth setup, there was no opportunity to walk the bourse floor towards locating new inventory. Unfortunately, there is nothing to report for new purchases. Let's me assure you that upcoming September consignments will more than make up for the lack of CONA new purchase activity.

Interestingly, the CONA show finds itself in a transition phase. Each year, a few local club members decide to vacate their tables and are backfill by national dealers. The 2019 CONA events brings Dalton Coins, Coleman Foster and RARCOA to the bourse which obviously increases the amount of quality coins being offered. Come 2020, the CONA show will move from its long standing Crowne Plaza Hotel to the nearly Embassy Suites. The CONA staff indicates that the Embassy Suites venue will be an upgrade with larger ballroom and more hotel amenities. Hotel room prices at the Embassy are just a few dollars more than the Crowne Plaza. The Crowne Plaza will be closed for over a year for renovations.

Thursday wrapped up with several hours in the CONA hospitality suite with a well stocked bar. The opening image captures some hardcore CONA Green Hats as the day wraps up. After taking this image, it was time for your blogger to return to his hotel room and summarize the day's events.

 

GFRC Sells The Balance of Love Token Consignment

I'm pleased to report that GFRC has sold the balance of a large love token consignment as one lot at the CONA show. This love token consignment has been featured on multiple occasions in the Blog. The nearly 100 piece lot is heading into a massive collection being assembled by a passionate individual.

 

Global Financial News

World-wide equity markets are upbeat as another trading week wraps up.

Commodities prices have stabilized while long bond interest rate is up marginally.

Physical gold has moved down from recent new highs with a morning quote at $1535. Crude oil remains in a tight trading range at $56/bbl and Bitcoin is flat at $9559/coin. The 10 Year U.S. Treasury yield is up to 1.52%. Looking at a few Seeking Alpha headlines...

Standard & Poor's calls 'default' in Argentina

Argentina's decision to "unilaterally" extend maturities on its short-term debt constitutes a "default," according to Standard & Poor's, which slashed the country's long-term foreign and local currency issue ratings to CCC - "vulnerable to nonpayment." The downgrade came after Argentine bond prices fell and country risk soared to levels not seen since 2005 on Thursday amid fears of a full-blown financial crisis.

China telecom giant Huawei is launching a 5G phone while facing potential criminal charges in the United States.

Apple isn't the only one launching a phone in the coming weeks. Huawei is pushing ahead with its flagship Mate 30, with or without Google services (due to a possible blacklist), which will be able to connect to 5G mobile networks. The device will be showcased in Munich on Sept. 19. U.S. prosecutors are also reportedly looking into additional instances of alleged technology theft by Huawei, potentially expanding beyond existing criminal cases against the Chinese tech giant.

Boris Johnson is brilliant handling the Brexit process towards a Halloween conclusion.

Boris Johnson's Brexit team will meet with EU officials at least twice a week in September to break the current impasse, although both sides appeared to play down the chance of an imminent breakthrough. Ahead of the showdown, Scottish Judge Raymond Doherty refused to block Johnson's plan to suspend Parliament, dealing a blow to lawmakers who argued that there isn't enough time to thwart a no-deal Brexit.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

The time has come to end today's ramblings. There is a very busy day ahead with the bourse opening at 8:00 am for dealer setup followed by an LSCC regional meeting at 9:00 hosted by your's truly. This meeting and the upcoming Winter Baltimore regional event will be my last appearances as LSCC president.

I'm hoping for a strong sales day as Friday show attendance is always stronger than Saturday. Sunday brings a 14+ hour non-stop drive back to Maine.

Thank-you for checking in at the Blog.

 

 

 

August 29, 2019

Time for the Central Ohio Numismatic Association Show

and

GFRC Open Set Registry Attains 1000 Set Goal

Greetings from an undisclosed I-90 hotel and welcome to the Blog.

Most of today's Blog is being written on Wednesday evening after a day's long drive. The roadtrip has been uneventful with moderate traffic. How I enjoyed not needing to drive through Hartford CT and crossing the Tappan Zee Bridge. Instead, today's journey took the GFRCmobile down to I-90 in Massachusetts followed by a westward trek into New York towards Buffalo. I skipped lunch and enjoyed a quick Mexican restaurant dinner before retiring to a comfortable hotel room. All that is left in my numismatic day is writing the Blog.

Seth Godin: Where’s the freakout line?

It has been a few days since visiting with Seth Godin and reviewing his blogposts; so why not this evening? Sure enough, one of his many blogs caught my attention and brought a chuckle. Godin has it right with the freaking out line with respect to speaking in front of an audience. Audience size does not matter if you are a confident speaker and have a firm grip of subject matter. Throughout my semiconductor and numismatic careers, I've presented to groups ranging from several individual to a conference room of 100+ people. The techniques are the same with larger audiences requiring more vocal projection. Audience size should not matter as your message is the same for a single individual or for hundreds of people. Sure, the larger the audience, the more opportunities for challenging questions at the end of the presentation; so be ready!

Where’s the freakout line?

Giving a talk to three people is easy. No sweat. Giving it to 100 costs you a night’s sleep.

Sending an email to six colleagues is normal. Sending a note to a list of 400 is cause for concern.

Where, exactly, is the line?

Is an audience of 21 different from 24?

If you spend some time looking for the line, perhaps you’ll discover that there’s rarely a reason to freak out. It’s just one more than the number you’re fine with, after all.

 

Central Ohio Numismatic Association Show Setup Arrives

Thursday brings a busy day. The balance of the roadtrip to Dublin Ohio will consume the morning followed by CONA show setup during the afternoon hours. GFRC has eight double row slabbed boxes of coins plus 100+ raw pieces including a sheet of Liberty Seated dollars. I've also brought the balance of a love token collection that has been featured in the Blog on occasions. Dale Miller will be attending the CONA show on Friday and has volunteered to be my table assistant that day.

CONA Show - GFRC at Table 323

GFRC could easily fill fifteen display cases with its broad based inventory. Therefore having only six cases at CONA meant much picking and choosing when pulling inventory on Tuesday. This time around, I pulled inventory first from the largest denominations and worked my way back to the smallest denominations. As a result, I ran out of space at the Liberty Seated dime series. To ensure that no one is confused, here is a summary of CONA show inventory.

- Nearly all United States gold inventory

- Sixteen Gold CAC pieces

- All Liberty Seated and Trade dollars

- A strong selection of Draped, Capped Bust, Liberty Seated and Barber halves

- Ditto for all quarters designs from Draped Bust to Standing Liberty

- A solid inventory of Liberty Seated dimes but sorry, no Capped Bust or Barber dimes

- Double row slabbed box of freshly discounted coins that I want gone from inventory.

- About 100 raw coins including a 2x2 page of Liberty Seated dollars plus a double row 2xx box of love tokens.

GFRC will be positioned at Booth 323 and ready to sell, buy and insource consignments. I have a feeling that Friday will be a super busy day since there are already several consignment transfer appointments for Friday afternoon.

I'm looking forward to seeing local friends and customers plus hanging at at the CONA hospitality room on Thursday and Friday evenings.

 

GFRC Open Set Registry Achieves 1000 Set Goal!

Ask and you shall receive? Yes indeed, it did not take long for the GFRC community to achieve the 1000 set goal. Several existing customers responded to my plea and took immediate action. The result is over 40 sets being added in less than a week's time.

A sincere thank-you to those individuals who added their sets towards the 1000 set goal. Also thank-you to everyone who is an active Open Set Registry participant. Sorry but there are no formal luncheons or top set prizes for the GFRC Registry. This application is designed for fun in sharing one's collection. The automatic loading of images for GFRC purchased coins is a special benefit that other registries do not provide.

 

Substantial GFRC Consignment Announcement on September 4

I'm pleased to share that discussions have been ongoing with a new GFRC client concerning the divestment of a substantial PCGS Registry set. Look for a detailed Blog announcement on September 4 concerning a marvelous 80 piece silver set that will be offered during the early October timeframe. This consignment also falls into the category of ask and you shall receive! Please check back on September 4.

 

Global Financial News

U.S. equity markets are upbeat as optimism grows for a U.S. - China trade war truce and the call for renewed negotiations.

Spot gold is holding recent gains and quoting at $1546/oz to start the day. For those who are curious, the current melt value of a $20 Saint or Lib stands at $1505!

Crude oil remains in its tight trading range with a quote of $56.06/bbl. Bitcoin prices continue to be volatile and now on the downside at $9473.

We find the 10 Year U.S. Treasury yield at 1.47% to start the day. Speaking of long Treasury yields, Seeking Alpha is reporting that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is considering issuing 50-year and 100-year bonds.

The 30-year U.S. Treasury yield surged almost 8 basis points to 2.048% late Wednesday on news that the Treasury Department was assessing market demand for 50-year or 100-year bonds. Issuing the long-term debt would limit the cost to taxpayers of plugging the almost $1T annual budget deficit and could provide returns to pension funds despite falling yields. "If the conditions are right, then I would anticipate we'll take advantage of long-term borrowing," Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told Bloomberg.

The Iranians are hurting for hard currency and pushing Europe for a credit line.

Europe should either ask Washington to restore sanctions waivers for Iran's oil or provide a credit line to the Islamic Republic if it wants to save the nuclear deal, the country’s deputy foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said in an interview to state TV. Iran has previously said a "third step" of fresh nuclear deal breaches will be taken on Sept. 6 unless a new understanding between Tehran and the European sides is achieved.

Speaking a lacking hard currency, Argentina is attempting to restructure its IMF debt as unable to make short term loan payments.

Argentina is looking to restructure its debt with the IMF and bondholders in an effort to stem a confidence crisis that has upended the country’s financial markets. The nation will now delay $7B of payments on short-term local debt due this year and will seek a "voluntary reprofiling" of $50B of longer-term debt, as well as postponement on the repayment of $44B of loans from the IMF. The move will probably be judged as another sovereign default, although Argentina is at the moment only seeking a voluntary extension of repayment times, rather than "haircutting" interest payments or the size of its debt.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

The time has arrived to pack the laptop and wrap up the last driving leg to Dublin Ohio. CONA show setup is at 3:00 pm. This allows ample time to check into the Crowne Plaza Hotel and secure lunch before being back on a bourse floor.

Thank-you for checking in at the Blog.

 

 

 

August 28, 2019

Traveling to the CONA Show Plus a Winesteven Guest Blog

Greetings and welcome to another Blog edition as written on a Tuesday evening.

Wednesday brings an early day's start for westward travels towards the state of Ohio. Initiating a long driving with a good night's sleep is desirable and just safe driving common sense. To that end, I've decided that waking up early on Wednesday morning to sit at a laptop for several hours composing another Blog edition is just not in the cards. I'm to the point of needing some downtime to catch up on homestead chores and just enjoying nature. September cannot come quickly enough. All that remains is the CONA coins show.

As is typical before traveling to a coin show, Tuesday was spent organizing GFRC inventory and preparing sufficient items for populating six CONA display cases. That task is done and the bags are packed. Once this Blog edition is wrapped up, the laptop is powered down and stored for transport.

Winesteven Guest Blog: Two CAC Value Publications Compared

The Winesteven Collection consignor comes to my aid with a timely guest blog. The CAC pricing challenge is garnering significant attention of late. With the debut of the CDN's "The CAC Rare Coin Market Review", there are several competing CAC price guides in the market place. Our dear friend provides his insights and commentary concerning two competiting publications.

As noted by Gerry in his blog the other day, CDN recently came out with their first issue of a publication that provides values for coins with CAC’s – The CAC Rare Coin market Review. A separate publication, published monthly by Mark Ferguson, is called CAC Market Values, and started around the beginning of 2016. Following are my observations comparing them with each other.

1. The CDN publicarion is published quarterly, and the CAC Market Values is published monthly. The CDN annual subscription rate is approximately $30, and the annual cost of the monthly CAC market Values is about $99.

2. The CDN publication provides a single value for each entry, where CAC Market Values provides a range of values for each entry. This range of values throws out outliers, but in theory attempts to reflect the real-world range, since some coins with CAC’s are graded by NGC, and others by PCGS. Like it or not (and I believe it’s unfortunate) today’s market often values an IDENTICAL coin in these two holders w/CAC’s differently, and this range tries to take that into account. More importantly, as we all know, coins with CAC’s for a specified date and grade vary quite a bit in eye appeal, and in theory, this range tries to take that into account as well. I believe we all must still do our own pricing research, but I believe one of the main purposes of each of these two publications is to try to save us some time in conducting our pricing research. For me, the monthly publication of CAC Market Values comes closer to that goal by providing their range, as opposed to a single price point for each date and grade in the quarterly publication of CDN. Just my opinion.

3. Due to spacing limitations, the CAC Market Values provides value ranges by date and grade for about 21 different Mint State series (the most “popular” ones, such as Lincoln Cents, Buffalo Nickels, Mercury Dimes, Standing Lib and Washington Quarters, Walkers and Franklins, Morgan and Peace Dollars, Indian Head Quarter Eagles and Half Eagles and Eagles, Liberty Double Eagles and Saints, and early Silver and Gold Commemoratives, plus about another half dozen or so – but NOT Liberty Seated series). Additionally, every other month it publishes price ranges for eight different popular Proof Series by date and grade. Those Circulated and Mint State series not covered by date (such as Liberty Seated coins) are shown monthly in a detailed format by grade and TYPE only, not by date. On the other hand, the CDN publication provides values each quarter in every series by date and grade. As such, in my opinion, for those looking for values by date in series other than the most popular two dozen or so, the CDN publication provides for that much wider reporting by date. This is so true for those looking for data by date for Liberty Seated coins.

4. Grade Range – The CDN publication provides for many more grades on the lower end, where the publication of CAC Market Values provides higher grades. For example, with Morgan Dollars, the CDN quarterly publication starts at VF20, and goes up to MS67. The monthly publication of CAC Market Values starts Morgan’s at MS63, but goes up to MS68 where there is enough data for dates to produce a reasonable range. For Indian $10 Eagles, the CDN provides values from AU50 – MS66, where the monthly publication provides value ranges by date from AU58 – MS67. As such, for those interested in CAC coins in lower grades, the CDN publication might provide better information. For those interested in higher grades, the CAC market Values might be better.

5. Plus Grades – CAC does not recognize plus grades (that is, if a coin in a slab with a plus grade has a CAC, CAC is NOT saying that coin is solid for that grade with the plus – they are saying that coin is solid for that whole number grade). However, like it or not, the market does recognize plus grades, and sometimes the “premium” paid/received for a coin with a plus grade can be significant. Other times, not nearly as much. This blog is not to debate that, but to make a VERY important point: The CDN publication does not provide any values for plus grades, while the CAC Market Values does indeed provide plus grades, in typically the most common grades with pluses. For example, with Saints, in addition to providing value ranges by date for all of the whole grades from MS62 – MS67, value ranges for plus grades by date are also provided for 64+, 65+, and 66+. Again, the CDN quarterly publication does not include values for any plus grade. For me, having that information on values of plus grades is VERY important to me, as a large part of my collection consists of coins in plus grades. For some of you, that might not be important.

If you’re still awake and reading, and your eyes have not yet glazed over, I’ll conclude: For me, I’ll continue subscribing to both publications, as I believe they are both of value.

 

GFRC Sells Two Liberty Seated Dime Web-Book Plate Coins

A serious Liberty Seated dime specialist was well aware of GFRC's attendance at the CONA show. He requested access to a group of Seated Dime web-book plate coins. I managed to locate two out of six pieces on his want list. These two dimes were photographed on Tuesday and posted to the price list. As of late Tuesday evening, both pieces are on hold.

Newly Offered Liberty Seated Dime Web-Book Plate Coins

                    1856-O F-108a NGC MS64 10C                                     1891 F-106 Raw MS62 10c - Ahwash Plate Coin

    

 

Global Financial News

The yellow precious metal continues to move upward given global trade wars and a large debt overhang that dedicates negative nominal interest rates. As of Tuesday evening 8:30 pm, gold is quoting at $1545/oz with the $1600 threshold being only 3.5% away. Kitco's 5 year technical chart captures gold substantial breakout. From this point, I can easily imagine gold breaking through the $1600 mark within weeks. Once through $1600/oz, the potential upside could take us to $2000/oz as there are no technical barriers. Mainstream investors, hedge funds, and banks are realizing that gold is one of the few physical asset options for protecting establish wealth against wild currency swings or the corrosive impact of negative interest rates.

Kitco's Gold Pricing - 5 Year Technical Chart

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

Today's edition is a bit abbreviated and your understanding is appreciate. Wednesday brings a long journey through New England, New York, and Pennsylvania. I will be making an overnight stop in an undisclosed location followed by arriving into Dublin by early Thursday afternoon..

Thank-you for checking in at the Blog.

 

 

 

August 27, 2019

GFRC Seated Dollars at CONA

Greetings and welcome to the Blog on a Tuesday morning. My appreciations are shared for your ongoing patronage.

Southern Maine weather has been absolutely ideal for late August. Starting on Saturday, dry air and early Fall temperatures have made health walks and hanging outdoors so comfortable. Unfortunately, life has been consumed with the GFRC Christmas In August Sale and now, CONA show preparations. I hope this weather pattern will hold into the first half of September.

Speaking of the Christmas in August Sale, essentially all orders will be shipped as of this morning. There is one order from a new customer that awaits check payment. Otherwise, all other purchases will arrive to well established GFRC customers before Labor Day weekend.

 

Central Ohio Numismatic Association Show Arrives on Friday

Today's attention shifts to inventory selections and packing for the upcoming CONA show. An inventory display strategy has been devised and will look like this;

Case 1: Better United States Gold

Cases 2-5: United States Type Coins including Early Copper, Capped Bust, Liberty Seated and Barbers.

Case 6: Raw Coins, Discounted Items, Love Tokens

GFRC will arrive early to the bourse on Thursday afternoon. I will be located at Booth 323 in the larger ballroom and immediately by the first entrance door. Since operating on a solo basis, most of my time will be at the booth and not walking the bourse. GFRC needs to move along consignor coins at this show. Therefore I will be pricing accordingly.

 

A Host of Liberty Seated Dollar Dates at CONA Show

Selling the growing accumulation of raw Liberty Seated dollars is one of the CONA show goals. To that end, I've placed the lot in a 2x2 sheet along with featuring each piece in today's Blog. Please see the below gallery.

This offering is ideal for those assembling Dansco or Whitman bookshelf collections where strict originality is not the imperative. Bookshelf collectors typically focus on two parameters; eye appeal and purchase price. Some coins with light cleanings are uncertifiable, on a technical basis, but remain attractive pieces of United States history. The pricing gap between top tier TPG certified coins and raw pieces, with minor issues, has is substantial and can be leverage to a Dansco album collector's favor. This is especially true for key dates. GFRC will be offering 1870-CC, two 1871-CC and 1872-CC dated Seated dollars at Booth 323.

Wide Ranging Liberty Seated Dollar Dates at CONA Show

18 Better Date Raw Liberty Seated Dollars

 

             1840 Raw VG10 $1                                    1843 Raw G06 $1                                1845 Raw AU53 Cleaned $1    

            

       1847 Raw AU50 $1                            1850-O Raw VF35 Cleaned $1                    1855 Raw VF30 Cleaned $1

            

  1859-S Raw F12 Cleaned $1                          1859-O Raw AU50 $1                          1868 Raw F12 Cleaned $1    

            

 1869 Raw AU53 $1                              1870-CC Raw VG08 Cleaned $1                     1871 Raw EF45 $1    

            

  1871 Raw EF45 Cleaned $1                            1871-CC Raw VF30 $1                             1871-CC Raw VF25 $1   

            

          1872-CC Raw VF35 $1                            1873 Raw AU50 Cleaned $1                       1873 Raw VG10 Cleaned $1   

            

 

Original 1873-CC PCGS VF25 Seated Dollar with Kam Ahwash Insert

Along with the raw Liberty Seated dollars, GFRC will be displaying this wonderful 1873-CC PCGS VF25 specimen. The original handwritten Kam Ahwash flip insert is included for pedigree validation. The consignor wishes to sell this piece in the near term towards home improvement project funding. Serious offers are requested as I will be in a dealing mood on this piece.

1873-CC PCGS VF25 Seated $1 at CONA

 

GFRC Open Set Registry - Close to 1000 Set Goal!

In Saturday Blog, I made mention that the GFRC Open Set Registry contaIns 952 sets. I went on to challenge the community to a 1000 set goal by end of year thinking this should be easily achieved. Never under estimate the power of Daily Blog publicity....

This morning's Open Set Registry check brought a pleasant surprise. Total sets has climbed to 991 across 111 participants leaving just nine more sets to go during 2019. The time has come to look beyond the 1000 set goal.

From the GFRC Email Inbox - Why Participate In The Open Set Registry?

An interesting email arrived during the overnight hours concerning Set Registry participation. Privacy and security is paramount for this individual per the below correspondence. He raises the question of how GFRC protects each account users' information.

For users to access their GFRC website account, there are only two pieces of information required; email address and password. Less information is the best strategy, therefore GFRC does not request or store other personal information. Major hacks of financial companies or government agency databases target sensitive personal information including social security number, account numbers, mailing address, and the like.

Again GFRC only stores a user's email address and password. Individuals are always cautioned to generate unique passwords for each online account. LastPass.com is a fabulous password vault and automated generator of highly secure passwords. I use LastPass as my primary online password control system and recomend that others, with security concerns, also use LastPass.

Gerry,

You have been mentioning the GFRC Open Set Registry in your blog the last few days, what's all the fuss about and why would I want to list my collection?

I always believed that the fewer people that knew about my collection, the better. Though I enjoy it, I do not share it for fear of the person who's motives are less than pure. Yes, it is stored in a safe, but any safe can be cracked by the right person given enough time. But if no one knows to look, I have less to be concerned with.

Furthermore, I share nothing on the internet. Yes, you will find a little about me on Linked-In (very little), but I have no Face Book page, no Twitter account, nothing. Heck, I don't even have a smart phone and I like it that way. Sharing my collection on-line is a scary proposition for someone like me and I suppose I am not alone.

I know my collection would be no where near the top of those listed, nor will it likely ever get near the top, but it is also likely no where near the bottom. I do have a curiosity as to where it may fall. But, what are the benefits of listing my collection and what would you do to help alleviate one's fears of sharing a collection on the internet where information lasts forever and is shared with the entire world? I know my collection name is generic, but if a hacker wants to get into your server and obtain my information, they likely could. It seems that no system is hack proof today.

Just one irrational collector's thoughts in a world where privacy seems to no longer have any value.

One final thought... Yes, personal privacy is difficult to maintain in the modern technology age. Each individual must come to grip with the fact that privacy is a thing of the past unless living is the remote back country of the western states. Have you ever Googled your name or street address? Google satellite imaging will pinpoint your address via overhead map and guide anyone to your home. We must acknowledge this fact and the potental risks.

The harsh reality is that personal privacy rights have been eroded in the last decade. Life on the interent brings a host of benefits and conveniences. It is best for every collector to have a coin collection security plan including bank safety deposit box, substantial home safe, and a security/fire alarm system. Peace of mind far outweights the cost for these items.

 

Global Financial News

Seeking Alpha's Wall Street Breakfast newsletter was published one hour late today with very little content. Someone must have called in sick with no one there to backfill the job....

Let's have a quick look at commodities and long bond interest rate before calling it a day at the Blog.

Physical gold prices have pulled back a bit after Monday's sharp increases. The latest quote is $1539/oz. Crude oil continues to trade in a tight range at $54.23/bbl. Bitcoin is flat at $10,164/coin. The 10 Year U.S. Treasury bond yield remains low at 1.51%.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

Today's primary task is CONA show preparations. I will be in the office most of the day sorting through inventory and deciding what to bring to Dublin Ohio. But first is the opportunity for another vigorious health walk given the cool morning temperatures.

Again, thank-you for stopping in at the Blog. Please consider a purchase from GFRC's vaste inventory. Ongoing sales help sustain the motivation for piblishing the Blog and also funding Matt and his continuous website improvements.

See you tomorrow.

 

 

 

August 26, 2019

Significant Activity at the GFRC Open Set Registry

Greetings and welcome to the Blog on a Monday morning. Thank-you for stopping by!

My day starts at 5:00 am since the Blog must be written followed by a long morning in the packing and shipping department. The Christmas In August Sale has ended with a number of GFRC clients pleased with their discounted purchases. Attention immediately shifts to the Central Ohio Numismatic Association (CONA) show in Dublin, Ohio and ensuring that a show specifc inventory strategy is properly executed.

Southern Maine weather is ideal for late August. The seasonal transition is a tad early this year. Overnight temperature dropped quickly into the low 50s requiring some windows to be closed to preserve the day's solar gain. This morning's low stands at 46F and is a reminder that firewood must be stacked in the grarage after the CONA show event. Monday's forecasted high temperature is only 74F. Low 70s are ideal for a bank and post office run in the top down Miata.

 

Blog Reader Feedback: What's All This Fuss About CAC'ed United States Gold?

A wave of emails arrived concerning yesterday's essay on the current tiered numismatic marketplace and difficulties with pricing top tier CAC approved coins.

A new GFRC client shares his thoughts. I had the pleasure of meeting this individual for the first time at the Chicago ANA event.

Hello Gerry,

I enjoyed today's Blog post. As you know I am new to your site. I'm sure your post will bring on much discussion. The same can be said if you do a blog on raw vs graded coins. I like how you separated collections into tiers. Where many struggle is being in one tier and reading about people who enjoy collecting coins in another tier.

As you saw from my first purchase from you, I like CAC Gold. If you look at the sets I am building in your registry set tool I hold mainly CAC gold. The people at CAC are very strict with green beans and gold. I have seen a lot of over-graded TPG coins but very few unworthy CAC gold coins. Sure there are some out there, but limited. I see CAC as a second opinion. I have a dealer I have been working with for over 6 years. I trust him as much as CAC and do buy non-CAC coins from him. In time I'm sure you will learn my likes and dislikes and offer me coins you know I will like.

We need to do as much as possible to make collecting coins inclusive and welcoming. The hobby needs that. Great coins deserve higher prices. Often that is a coin with a green bean on it. In the end, I'm not paying extra for that sticker rather the higher quality coin with the sticker.

There are many collectors/hoarders out there that just want coins. Mistakenly, in my opinion, they want one price for coins regardless of quality. I have read a number of comments like this when I would frequent coin community websites.

I head to work around 6am each work day so during the week I usually have to wait until lunch time to read your blog. It is an enjoyable part of the day. I appreciate the time you dedicate to writing it and the coin collecting hobby as well.

The Running Boar Collection consignor offers the following commentary. Please note his CAC centric screening and collecting strategy.

OK Gerry, my thoughts?

You hit the nail on the head about the tiers. This is a completely different market than in the 90's. TPGs and CAC have propelled it to new strata. I've bought all in on CAC. While I do see plenty of coins with stickers I do not like, it narrows the number of coins for me to research. Since I do not have the time or resources to gamble, I prefer to minimize my risk as possible. I'd rather consider a population of 10 than one of hundreds trying to find a gem. More cost effective for my resources.

The bottom line is if you like the coin be aware that you may not get 100% of your cost back. However your collection should be about enjoying the coins you decide to own not what they might appreciate to in the future. I am SO much happier with the coins I decided to keep. I sacrificed some really nice pieces but I consolidated to a much more satisfying position.

Another beneficial effect of CAC for me was to more critically assess the non-eligible coins I collected. Examples would be U.S. Tokens and coins of the British empire. I narrowed those down striking a balance between rarity and eye appeal. That market is completely different all together however the CAC lesson can be applied to some degree.

Tenafly also sent along his perspective on the new CAC Rare Coin Market Review.

Hi Gerry,

I received my copy of the CAC Rare Coin Market Review the other day and was pleased that this finally came out. There's been other similar CAC value publications showing values along with commentary. What jumps out to me from your 1851-O AU55 2006-2019 list from Coin Facts is that there's only 2 CAC '51-O eagles which sold during that time period. A quick perusal of the CAC pop sheet shows 15 which were CAC'ed in AU55; that number surprised me a little. However, only 2 AU55's were found which sold according to Coin Facts data. Even if another 6 were sold and not documented in Coin Facts during that time period, where are the other 7? Obviously CAC didn't begin until 2007 (according to my CAC coffee cup!) so most of the 15 didn't exist for that whole '06-'19 period.

A statisticians nightmare!

This publication puts the top tier (as put in the blog) in much clearer perspective to all collectors, and as always it's "whatever floats your boat" when it comes to collecting. As always, the market will sort this out.

 

GFRC CAC Price Research Application

A quick reminder that GFRC offers a CAC Price Research application on the website's top banner bar. This application launches a search of the GFRC Sales Archive and extracts CAC approved lots by date and denomination. Pricing statistics are provides along with a tabular presentation of CAC approved sales.

The CDN CAC Rare Coin Market Review price guide is a huge step forward, but I will continue to use GFRC's own sales database when pricing Liberty Seated coinage. Once GFRC's CAC approved United States gold volume increases, this research tool will provide customers with additional validation of market price guides.

If you've not taken a test drive of the CAC Price Research application, just click here and enjoy researching your favorite dates. Below is an extract for 1849 Liberty Seated half dollar date that is a bit dated but illustrates the reporting format and application ease of use.

 

Significant Activity at the GFRC Open Set Registry

A few days back, I highlighted the fact that the GFRC Open Set Registry was approaching the 1000 set milestone and challenged the community to reach this threshold by end of 2019. This challenge appeared doable with some increased attention and Daily Blog publicity.

I'm pleased to report that two GFRC clients took the request to heart and loaded their substantial collections during the weekend. The GFRC Open Set Registry tally now stands at 972 collections with 28 sets to go. Yes, we can do this with your help.

LABELMAN87 Barber Quarter Collection

The Barber coinage category received a much needed boost when LABELMAN87 posted his substantial Barber quarter collection. His set jumped to the top of the leader board with impressive statistics. His set is 81% CAC approved with 97% complete rate and a 60.4 weighted grade level. Diving into this set, one sees a host of AU58 CAC entries with only the 1901-S and 1913-S dates missing. You are invited to view the this exceptional new posting by LABELMAN87 by clicking here.

Forest Hill San Francisco Mint Collection

The Forest Hill collector is a passionate individual who is pursuing San Francisco mint sets in silver and gold. His goals are substantial. On Sunday, Forest Hill loaded his Liberty Seated sets across multiple denominations. He immediately jumped to the top of the Liberty Seated quarter leader board with a 100% complete set and 42.8 weighted grade. This is no small feat for the Liberty Seated quarter series. His Liberty Seated quarter San Francisco set can be viewed when clicking here.

Gerry Fortin Updates Core Liberty Seated Dime Set

2019 has brought two upgrades for my core Liberty Seated Dime date and mintmark set. They are the 1856-S PCGS MS63+ CAC and 1891-O PCGS MS66 CAC acquisitions during the summer months. Though Tom Bender remains well ahead of me in first place, the gap is not insurmountable in the CAC only registry. There are several "common" dates that could be source with CAC approval to close that gap. My ongoing challenge is locating the right pieces that match my decades long philosophy of acquiring dimes with well balanced eye appeal, originality, and full strikes. The full strike criteria precludes so many candidates even with CAC approval.

Last evening, the Fortin set was updated in the Open Set Registry. If interested in viewing the set's latest composition, just click here!

Gerry Fortin Liberty Seated Dime Date & Mintmark Set Upgrade!

1891-O F-101 PCGS MS66 CAC 10C

 

The Rascal is Back - Releasing an 1860 Web-Book Plate Coin

Over the past several years, I've made a concerted effort to divest pieces from my reference set. That process continues but is hampered by the success of the GFRC business and ongoing client consignments. Currently sitting in queue is a marvelous group of 1875-CC and 1876-CC web-book plate coins that were recently graded at PCGS followed by CAC review. These will debut in the September timeframe.

While mulling around the GFRC safe on Saturday, I ran into the 1860 F-108 web-book plate coin and took quick images. Now this piece is for sale and loaded to the price list. For Blog readers who are not Liberty Seated dime specialist, this offering is significant for several reasons. First is the F-108 die variety. Nearly all 1860 dimes with be found with a high level date with F-108 having an obvious low date position. This die variety is infrequently seen with the PCGS MS64 CAC offering being the finest known to me. This offering also has a significant pedigree: the Dr. Tim Cook Collection. I bought this dime at the 2005 Central States show via Heritage Auction sale. Nearly 15 years later, it is time to release this noteworthy dime back to the market.

1860 F-108 Web-Book Plate Coin

1860 F-108 PCGS MS64 CAC 10c Ex. Dr Tim Cook Collection

 

New Jersey Collection - Better Date Liberty Seated Dollars

At the Chicago ANA, the New Jersey Collection consignor was active on the bourse and at the LSCC club table. He visited with GFRC on Tuesday and dropped off three additional Liberty Seated dollars for immediate sale. Though each piece has minor issues, the dates and grades are significant. Due to nearly all 1856 dated Seated dollars being exported to Asia, few survivors are known today. Below is an important opportunity for a Dansco or Whitman bookshelf collectors to fill that difficult hole.

New Jersey Collection - Better Date Liberty Seated Dollars

1856 Raw AU50 Details Cleaned $1 - Rare Date

   1845 Raw AU53 Details Cleaned $1                                           1869 Raw AU53 Details - Filed Rim $1

    

 

Global Financial News

Asia markets and the Chinese Yuan took a beating during the overnight hours after President Trump responded to China's latest tariff increases. Trump took additional steps to increase tariffs on all Chinese imports by an additional 5%. But more importantly, President Trump is signaling U.S. companies to exit mainland China as the upcoming trade war could get rough. Given my years of doing business in China and being screwed on more than one occasion by corrupt locals, I'm applauding President Trump for his hard counter punches. The Chinese carefully study their adversies for weaknesses. Kindness and flexibilty are an obvious weakness to be leverage for Chinese business goals. Swift and tough counter punches gain respect. If you've been to local Chinese markets and watch men fight with bare fists over a sales or pricing issue, with respect through power being the normal mode of operation. Westerners fail in mainland China if they view Chinese people with Western eyes.

Ok, enough said here.

Commodities, interest rates and currencies are volatile at the moment. Physical gold jumped to a high of $1573/oz as Asians quickly moved into larger gold positions due to trade war uncertainties. The rush to financial safety has the U.S. Ten year long bond yield down to 1.45%. Bitcoin is flat at $10,372/coin with crude oil still in a tight trading range at $54.82/bbl.

Let check Seeking Alpha headlines for an analysis of the latest China - U.S trade war impacts. The Chinese Yuan suffers heavy losses to historic lows.

China's yuan plunged to an 11-year low against the dollar in onshore trade and tumbled to a record low in offshore trade, as the U.S.-China trade war sparks wild swings with a resolution unlikely to be reached soon. The onshore yuan fell 0.9% to 7.1448 vs. the dollar, its weakest point since February 2008, while the offshore yuan - which trades more freely - dropped to as low as 7.1858 vs. the dollar, its weakest in the nine years since the Chinese government allowed the currency to trade in Hong Kong and elsewhere outside mainland China. "China's economy is slowing, so the yuan will only fall further unless authorities take steps to stop it," according to Takuya Kanda of Gaitame.com Research Institute in Tokyo.

President Trump gains leverage in the China - U.S. trade war after closing a trade deal with Japan. The Japanese agree to purchase U.S. agricultural goods that China was attempting to leverage against Trump.

The U.S. and Japan have reached a trade agreement in principle that would pave the way for more U.S. farm exports to Japan, President Trump announced after meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Abe at the G-7 summit in France. As part of the deal, Japan agreed to buy a significant portion of the U.S. corn surplus. U.S. tariffs on imported Japanese cars would remain but not increase, and other U.S. tariffs would be dropped. The deal also covers industrial tariffs and digital trade. Trump said a formal agreement could be signed next month at the United Nations General Assembly. It is not clear if an agreement would require ratification by Congress.

President Trump drops the hammer on China. The pundits can argue if Trump has the legal authority but in reality, U.S. companies are seeing the writing on the wall and quickly working to relocate supply chains out of China.

The most worrisome - and confusing - part of President Trump's Friday tweetstorm may have been his declaration that U.S. businesses operating in China were "hereby ordered" to look for alternative locations. Trump claimed he could use the International Emergency Powers Act of 1977 to force companies to move their supply chains out of China, but he later said he has no plans to do so for now, a point emphasized on the Sunday TV talk shows by U.S. Treasury Secretary Mnuchin and economic advisor Kudlow. The president has no authority to simply order companies out of China, but the Act could allow him to block imports and freeze Chinese assets; such action would trigger an automatic override vote in Congress and prompt challenges in the courts. The tariff escalation already is a negative overhang for overall markets, particularly shares of semiconductor and retail companies, and an emergency declaration would further weigh on the markets.

UBS stays long gold, hikes price outlook to $1,600

Gold will extend its recent gains as the U.S.-China trade dispute slows growth, risking a deeper slowdown and inviting more central bank easing, UBS analysts say in predicting the yellow metal may hit $1,600 per ounce within three months. "Gold has demonstrated its safe-haven qualities and we stay long the metal, a trade we initiated in mid-May," according to the latest report from UBS's wealth management unit. UBS has a three-month trading range of $1,450-$1,600, plus a six-month forecast of $1,600 and 12-month view of $1,650, after both the half-year and 12-month outlooks previously were set at $1,500 per ounce.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

Whew! This has been a long Blog edition and sincerely hope that GFRC community friends have enjoyed the content. It is time for a shower followed by a morning of packing and shipping Christmas In August Sale orders.

I will be in the office for most of the day and looking forward to your potential new purchases. September is just around the corner and the slowest numismatic sales month of the year. Look for GFRC's upcoming strategy to maintain sales momentum during this traditionally slow sales timeframe.

 

 

 

August 25, 2019

What's All This Fuss About CAC'ed United States Gold?

Greetings and welcome to a Sunday Blog edition. Sincere thanks go out to regular readers for taking time to read my daily ramblings. Hopefully, these blogposts provide an appreciation for our hobby along with educational content on a variety of topics.

The Christmas In August Sale ends this evening at 9:00 pm ET.

After a robust start to the sale on Friday, Saturday has been quiet other than a substantial number of Quick Ship orders entering the USPS system by noon time. Afterwards, a good friend and rock concert buddy visited the basement sound room. We spent nearly four hours enjoying the Focal/Naim electronics. Each person took turns selecting a music track they wished to audition on the system. After an hour of our favorites, music selections became a free flowing connected journey. One song triggered a response track which was followed by other. We wandered musically through the 1970s and 1980s exploring rock, hardcore jazz and funk.

Sunday brings the final day of the Christmas In August Sale with many values to consider. If in the market for Liberty Seated or Capped Bust coinage, the sale may contain some quality offerings at compelling reduced prices. I'm looking forward to your orders throughout the day followed by closing the sale at 9:00 pm ET.

 

Wrapping Up Chicago ANA United States Gold New Purchases

After the long music session, it was back to the GFRC office to wrap up image processing for the last of the Chicago ANA new purchases. First priority was posting attractive United States gold and have those pieces in inventory for the Central Ohio show. Below is a diverse lot of ANA new purchases for your consideration. Four pieces are at CAC for review with results due on Wednesday. The 1855 Type 2 G$1 Princess did not last long and is already on hold.

Chicago ANA - United States Gold New Purchases

1869-S NGC MS62 G$2.5

    1894-S PCGS MS61 G$5                                                           1832 PCGS MS64+ CAC G$10

    

 1851 PCGS MS63+ G$1                     1855 Type 2 NGC AU58 CAC G$1                    1907 PCGS MS64 G$2.5

            

 1907 NGC MS64 G$2.5                         1881-S PCGS MS64 CAC G$5                           1899 PCGS MS64 G$5

            

 

What's All This Fuss About CAC'ed United States Gold?

The numismatic market continues to operate as a tiered system. Unless market participants and buyers have a keen knowledge of the system's structure, confusion can easily become an issue during transactions. To help simplify this discussion, let's consider the definition of "tiered". A quick Google search produced, "having a number of levels or grades within the hierarchy of an organization or system" which accurately describes the state of the market in 2019. As a dealer constantly buying and selling, I see four distinct tiers as follows;

CAC Approved Coins - The upper tier of the market. In this tier, accurately graded and strictly original coins with above average eye appeal are traded. CAC's review consistency is quite throughout but occasionally, I see coins that are not worthy of the sticker. No company that relies on human subjective evaluations can be perfect, therefore acknowledging some outliers is warranted before moving further with this essay.

Accurately Graded TPG Holdered Coins - This is the middle tier of the current market with substantial volumes being constantly bought and sold. This tier contains fairly graded original pieces with varying degrees of eye appeal. Originality can be subjective at this level along with wider grading opinion variations. Much of CoinFacts' auction records are populated with coins at this tier level.

Overgraded, Problematic or Ugly TPG Holder Coins - As we descend the tiered levels, we arrive to a place where less desirable coins trade. These are coins that somehow managed to be certified but have issues. One can locate some acceptable pieces in terms of originality, but typically these are overgraded. Many have been over dipped including 20th century silver and numismatic gold pieces. Carefully restored coins also resided at this level as some will sneak through the TPG service. Finally, the blatant TPG overgraded mistakes find a home at this level.

Raw Coins With Issues - The final tier is composed of coins that are unable to be TPG approved. As time moves along, most coins that can or are financially worthwhile to be slabbed will be slabbed leaving those with issues for value buyers. Of course, there is the financial justification threshold where some raw coins are not worth grading, typically coins under $250. These might be nice and original leading to a value for selective collectors. The other exception is always a fresh old time collection that arrives to market. Most smaller coin shows will features coins at this tiered level. Finding home for these types of coins is difficult with pricing mostly continuing to decline.

How in the world can casual collectors accurately price or determine fair value for coins that trade are different tiers? That my dear readers is a significant challenge for our hobby. Collectors are not the only individuals who struggle with establishing competitive pricing. Many dealers also find themselves in this quandry given the many pricing guides vying for market acceptance.

This essay is being written as a result of a conversation with a GFRC customer who was questioning the high asking price for an 1851-O PCGS AU55 CAC $10 eagle that was purchased at the Chicago ANA show. Our GFRC friend has been in the market for two years and mostly relies on CoinFacts auction records for establishing fair value. His approach is reasonable and similar to that of GFRC. But once again the devil is in details and therefore, this lengthy discussion.

1851-O PCGS AU55 CAC G$10 - Priced at $2825

Our friend is assembling a $10 Liberty United States gold set with emphasis on CAC approved coins. This is a wise strategy. Now the challenge lies with arriving at fair purchase prices given increasing premiums for CAC approved United States gold. Case in point is the 1851-O $10 Liberty in question. GFRC has listed the piece at $2825. The PCGS Pricing Guide shows $2025 as retail pricing at the AU55 grade level and $2325 for AU55+. The new CDN retail pricing guide for CAC only coins lists $2750 for a CAC approved AU55 specimen. By the way, for those who were not aware that CDN has published it first edition of the "The CAC Rare Coin Market Review", following is an image for your awareness. I'm absolutely thrilled with this development since GFRC handles a host of CAC approved coins. The new CDN guide will minimize the ongoing CAC price researching efforts.

CDN's New CAC Retail Price Guide

 

At this point in the essay, we have PCGS retail pricing guide and the new CDN CAC guide to help interpret the top three numismatic market tiers. Definition of the top CAC tier is becoming clearer with the CDN guide. Previously, CoinFacts and its host of auction records captured an amalgamation of market tiers. Buried in the CoinFacts record are coins from the top CAC Approved tier down through the Overgraded, Problematic or Ugly TPG Holder Coins tier.

To reinforce this point, I pulled all PCGS AU55 graded sales records for the 1851-O $10 Liberty date using the CoinFacts app. The sales records span the 2006 through 2019 timeframe. Once the list was compiled, I checked every entry for potential CAC approval and marked those entries with a bold "CAC" designation. There are only two auction records for the 1851-O $10 date with CAC approval. When examining auction images for coins trading at the $1400-$1650 level, it was immediately apparent that these pieces were at the Overgraded, Problematic or Ugly TPG Holder Coins tier. Non CAC approved coins in the Accurately Graded TPG Holdered Coins tier traded anywhere from $1800 to $2900. The two CAC Approved entries realized prices of $2100 and $2990.

1851-O G$10 PCGS AU55 Prices Realized - 2006 thru 2019

 

Is GFRC's 1851-O PCGS AU55 CAC $10 Liberty gold piece fairly priced for overall quality and eye appeal? GFRC customers must be the judge based on the supplied information in today's Blog. I've done my best to explain the tiered structure of our numismatic landscape and resulting subjective pricing challenges.

Please send your thoughts and feedback via email as I'm sure a few readers will have their own opinions. Those will be shared within Monday's edition.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

The time has arrived for a health walk and shower. The balance of the day will be focused on wrapping up order shipments for the Christmas In August Sale and preparing inventory for the CONA show.

Please consider a purchase or two in the Christmas In August Sale. See you tomorrow at the Blog.

 

 

 

August 24, 2019

A Robust Start to the Christmas In August Sale!

Greetings and welcome to the Blog!

A southern Maine cooling trend is upon us and I'm loving it. Current 6:00 am temperature is 53F with a hint of Fall in the air. The GFRC office windows are closed until the later rising sun warms the atmosphere. Days are obviously growing shorter as September is just a week away.

Christmas In August Sale Update

Robust is the best term I could locate to describe the initial day of the Christmas in August Sale. A host of GFRC customers jumped in early and purchased a broad range of discounted offerings. Most purchases are priced in the $75 to $300 range which is fine by me. There is a host of consigned inventory to backfill these sold items once cleared from the inventory boxes. The sale of four figure priced coins has been limited, but overall I'm quite content with the first day's action. To that end, the following update was posted Friday afternoon in the Blog.....

Friday lunch time arrives and I'm pleased to report that initial Christmas In August Sale results are off to a rapid start. Below is a quick snapshot of accumulated orders since midnight. Someone is going to be busy this weekend in the packing and shipping department!

I've also updated the Christmas In August special price list and marked all lots that are currently on Hold. This will save time with customers requesting potentially sold lots.

Please keep those orders coming!

Friday Early Afternoon Christmas In August Sale Orders

 

Central Ohio Numismatic Association (CONA) Coin Show Arrives This Week

Attention quickly shifts to the upcoming CONA coin show in Dublin Ohio later this week. GFRC will be located at its usual Table 323 within the larger ballroom. Plans are to arrive early on Thursday afternoon, quickly setup and then walk the bourse in search of potential new inventory.

If planning to attend CONA and wishing to see certain items in GFRC inventory, please email me during the next 48 hours with specific requests. With only six display cases of space, offered GFRC inventory will be a subset of that on the website. I will make a point of packing requests in a separate box and holding in the security case for those customers.

Traveling to CONA also brings an opportunity for upper Midwest collectors to transfer consignments. If you are planning to transfer a new consignments, please let me know in advance via email to ensure enough doube row slabbed boxes and transporting luggage are prepared. Consignment transfers are best accomplished on Friday afternoon or during Saturday show hours.

As a reminder, GFRC will not be attending the CONA show on Sunday.

CONA Coin Show - GFRC at Table 323

August 29 - 31, 2019

 

Planned GFRC Inventory at CONA

What can CONA show attendees expect when visiting with GFRC? GFRC will have six cases at CONA. There will be four cases packed with quality Capped Bust and Liberty Seated coins. Better date United States gold across all denominations along with a few $20 bullion type gold pieces will fill a single case. The last of the six cases will be dedicated to net priced coins in the $50 - $2500 range. Many are priced at GFRC cost or at substantial reductions as ordered by consignors and consistent with Christmas In August Sale pricing levels.

This inventory profile should provide a broad range of offerings for intermediate to advanced collectors along with discounted quality type coins for dealers and value buyers.

 

GFRC Open Set Registry Update

The past few months have brought a new wave of Open Set Registry users and I could not be more pleased with the development.

For those who are new to the Daily Blog or GFRC website, the Open Set Registry platform is like none other in the numismatic industry. This online platform allows collectors to display their sets in a pseudo-competitive manner but without Third Party Grading holder restrictions. Open Set Registry truly means open for all to use whether set coins are certified or raw. The Registry also offers a CAC only module for advanced collectors.

GFRC Open Set Registry Status - 952 Sets!

Since the Open Set Registry launch during mid 2017, slow steady progress has been made towards a goal of 1000 listed sets. A recent spat of new users has brought us closer to that goal with today's total at 952 sets. Of the 952 registered sets, 64 are CAC only. Would it be possible to attract another 48 listed sets by the end of 2019? I don't see why not and will be using the quiet September and October office months to share updates and will highlight some awesome sets in the Registry.

One important Open Set Registry benefit for GFRC customers is the automatic posting of images if listed coins are purchased from the GFRC price list. Those images are stored in the GFRC database and have multiple uses in the Sale Archives, Gallery and Open Set Registry applications.

Wanted - Barber Coinage Sets for the Open Set Registry

Becoming an Open Set Registry user is simple. First step is to create an account at the MyAccount link. Once a registered GFRC user, the MyAccount screens will guide you to the Open Set Registry. If needing help, don't be bashful to email for advice or guidance. I'm committed to the 1000 set goal and will help enable those who wish to participate.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

Since securing an early start to the day, the Blog publishing time is 7:00 am. Next up is a health walk given the cool morning temperature. The balance of the morning will have me in the packing and shipping department.

I will be in the GFRC office until 2:00 pm. Afterwards, a rock concert music friend arrives for a three hours session in the basement sound room.

Please keep those Christmas In August Sale orders coming.

Thank-you for checking in at the Blog.

 

 

 

August 23, 2019

Christmas In August Sale Weekend Arrives

plus

More Chicago ANA New Purchases

Greetings and welcome to the Blog on a Friday morning.

The final week in August arrives with a welcomed cooling trend. The southern Maine seven day weather forecast calls for ongoing sunny skies with day time highs in the mid 70s. Daily health walks will be a priority before driving to Columbus Ohio for the CONA show come middle of next week.

The Christmas In August Sale is underway. Purchase requests started to arrive at midnight and continued into early morning with 17 coins already ordered. Customers on the west coast have the advantage during the sale kick-off given the 9:00 pm starting time. As Friday morning kicks in, east coast and midwest customers will be making selections and issuing their orders.

I will be monitoring Christmas in August Sale orders throughout the day and during the weekend. Confirmation emails with purchase invoices will be prompty issued along with the sold items pulled from inventory and prepared for shipping. GFRC's Quick Ship program will be used extensively for placing purchases into the USPS system. Once customers commit the mailing of payment or issuing Paypal funds transfer, orders will be immediately shipped. My goal is to have 80% or more of Christmas In August Sale orders shipped before leaving for the CONA show.

 

Seth's Blog: Make a habit/break a habit

A fair number of recent Seth Godin blogposts have featured an underlying theme on positive habits. He opins that establishing positive habits, and sticking with them, leads to long term positive changes. Whether it is exercise, reading or diet, bringing about slow positive change is easier to accomplish than dramatic lifestyle shifts. Please read on...

Make a habit/break a habit

If you’re trying to help yourself (or those you serve), the most effective thing you can do is create long-term habits. They become unseen foundations of who we will become.

The goal of running a marathon in six weeks is audacious, but it’s not a habit. You might succeed, but with all that pressure, it’s more likely you’ll simply abandon the project.

On the other hand, the goal of running to the mailbox (at least) and back for 50 days in a row is the sort of habit that might stick.

The same goes for education (“we do flashcards every day” is very different from “I need to cram to learn quantum mechanics for the test.”)

And it goes double for our lifestyles. If you can replace a bad habit with a good one, you’ll live with the benefits for decades.

The challenge is to set up systems that are likely to create habits, not sprints that lead to failure.

 

Rolling Out More Chicago ANA New Purchases

Now that the Christmas in August Sale is upon us, today's attention shifts to the remaining Chicago ANA new purchases and consignments. Last evening, five significant offerings were processed and added to the price list. Full descriptions are due today. The new offerings include a rare 1870-CC Liberty Seated half dollar with old album toning. The 1870 Carson City date is a series key with only the formidable 1878-S and underrated 1873 No Arrow Open 3 dates but less available. This piece was particularly difficult to photograph due to a sharp coloring transition from in hand to bright light viewing. I'm sure that many Liberty Seated half dollar collectors would enjoy owning this mid circulated grade specimen. Yes, the retail price is substantial due to key date status. Lay-a-ways are an alternative for bringing this one home.

GFRC is also pleased to be offering an 1814 STATESOF Capped Bust dime that resides in old PCGS AU53 holder. This is a crusty original example with few certified in all AU grades. How about a nicely toned 1845-O Seated half graded PCGS MS62? The mirrored fields are truly enjoyable. Two lovely United States gold pieces round out the presentation. The 1839-O Classic Head $2.5 quarter eagle, with medal turn reverse alignment, is listed as a Mint Error on the NGC holder. The 1851-O $10 eagle is a sweet original CAC approved piece and will not last long on the price list.

Important Chicago ANA Early Type Purchases

1870-CC PCGS VF35 50c

1814 STATESOF PCGS AU53 10C                                                      1845-O PCGS MS62 50C    

    

 

More Eye Appealing United States Gold to Consider

1839-O Rotated Rev NGC AU58 G$2.5                                                    1851-O PCGS AU55 G$10

    

 

Global Financial News

Today's Seeking Alpha headlines are dull with little worth sharing, or at least lacking my interest.

Physical gold continues to consolidate above the $1500/oz level. Today's opening quote is $1505. Bitcoin is also holding the $10,000 level with a current quote of $10,117. Crude oil prices are also in a tight trading range and priced at $55.28/bbl.

Interestingly, the 10 Year U.S. Treasury bond yield has increased to 1.64% during the past 24 hours.

Major industrial nations are holding a G7 meeting this weekend in France; expectations are low.

World leaders will start arriving in Biarritz, France today for the G7 summit scheduled for August 24-26. The summit takes place amid growing concerns of a global economic slowdown and an escalation of the U.S.-China trade war. Expectations are running low that any sort of official coordinated statement will be issued from the event, although some of the one-on-one meetings could be dramatic. The meeting marks a changing of the guards of sorts. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has lost influence ahead of her departure, while Italy just saw its prime minister resign. Boris Johnson will rep Britain amid the Brexit turmoil, and Donald Trump strolls in looking for allies in the fight against China's trade practices.

Hong Kong protest continue with the China government attempting to use western social media for disinformation campaigns.

YouTube became the latest social media company to disable content related to the Hong Kong protests, disabling 210 video channels linked to coordinated disinformation. The company say it found the use of virtual private networks and other hallmarks of accounts trying to hide their origin. The move follows similar China-related actions by Twitter and Facebook this week.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

Writing today's Blog edition has been a bit of a struggle. I was up until Thursday midnight to ensure that the Christmas In August Sale kicked off properly. After a short night's sleep, composing another Blog edition was necessary and accomplished with limited energy. As Seth Godin advises, one must stick with positive habits as a lifestyle but some days are more difficult than others. Sticking to it is the imperative.

Thank-you for checking in at the Blog. I will be inhabiting the GFRC office chair for most of the day and responding to sale orders.

Current morning weather conditions are ideal for a health walk and best to get on with another busy day. See you tomorrow.

 

 

 

August 22, 2019

The GFRC Family Has a New Member - Ivy Elanor Fortin!

and

Christmas In August Sale Arrives at Midnight

plus

Larger Denomination Chicago ANA New Purchases

Greetings and welcome to another Blog edition. There is much to share in the next hour or so.

The GFRC Family Welcomes Ivy Elanor Fortin

With great joy, I announce the arrival of a second granddaughter. Ivy Elanor was born to loving parents Renee and Mike on Tuesday evening. Renee's pregnancy was text book perfect along with the delivery. Everyone is in excellent health with Renee returning to Austin suburb home today. I'm currently home alone with our dog Buddy as Diane took an early Southwest flight to Austin on Wednesday. I'm sure that Renee will enjoy having a full time nanny as she recovers from the delivery.

Ivy Elanor Fortin

Born to Renee and Mike - 9:19 pm Tuesday August 20, 2019

 

Christmas in August Sale Arrives at Midnight - 570 Lots!

Yes indeed, the annual Christmas In August Sale has been well prepared and is queued for a midnight launch. Most of Wednesday was spent loading sale reductions into the COIN system along with a thorough debug of the listings. By end of day, there were 570 discounted items in the database. Notable is the amount of four figure priced coins being discounted and the presence of larger pricing reductions. Regardless of the minimum 8% pricing reduction requirements, consignors are wholehearthedly supporting the event. Many consignors have taken pricings reductions to 15% and even 20% or more.

At this point, I believe that all consignor discounting instructions are properly loaded. If you did not receive a confirmation email, then your instructions were not executed with my apology. I diligently worked through the email Inbox yesterday for capturing guidance from all sale participants.

I'm also pleased to report that Matt Yamatin's recent software upgrades to the GFRC Open Set Registry have also been installed into the Christmas In August Sale programming. The special price list download speed has been dramatically improved. Gone are the 20 second waits for the price list to download. New download times are less than 5 seconds for 570 lots.

This weekend sale with be exciting as consignors wish to move along their aged coins on the GFRC price list. Please remember that an aged coin does not imply an inferior coin. Matching coins between buyers and sellers is an imperfect science. Of course, the gem original and JUST BUY IT NOW coins typically don't last long. However, it is commonplace for choice original coins to sit on a price list for a year of more waiting for the right buyer to arrive. It is the demand side of the equation that holds these lovely pieces back from a quick sale. When asking prices drop closer to wholesale levels, demand increases as reliable value buyers will appear and scoop up a bargain. Such is the coin business and its thrill of the hunt!

 

Christmas in August Sale Instructions

Accessing the Christmas In August Sale price list is as simple as clicking on the black banner at the top of each GFRC price list page or the Daily Blog page. Once the countdown clock reaches midnight ET, a separate price list will be available for download and shopping. Many of you have participated in a GFRC sales event and are old pros with navigating the special price list and its format. For those who are relatively new to the GFRC website and its sales operations, up next are usage instructions.

Accessing the Christmas In August Sales List

- Click on the Christmas in August white lettering on the black banner and wait for the price list to load. Please have patience when first downloading the Christmas in August sale price list. The entire list and all coin images are downloaded at one time. Download time is much improved for this sale and should be less than 5 seconds. Of course, the download time is variable based on internet service provider and your access device bandwidth. With local Spectrum ISP, the GFRC download took under 5 seconds.

- Once in the price list, click on the product tabs to access individual price lists. DO NOT USE THE BACK BUTTON as this will take you outside the sale list and requiring another download. When clicking on an icon image for high resolution photographs, these will open as a seperate session in your browser. Once done viewing the high resolution image, please close that session which places you back in the sale price list.

All GFRC Consignors Notified of Christmas in August Sale Participation

To ensure that no consignor has been left out of the sale, I've sent a confirmation email to each consignor indicating that their pricing reductions are loaded. If not receiving a confirmation email by end of day Wednesday, discounting instructions have not be loaded. If this is the case, then no problem, there is still an opportunity on Thursday to capture last minute reductions and GFRC loading oversights. Please contact me immediately to ensure that your reductions are properly captured. There will be no additions to the sale list after 6:00 pm ET today.

When Does the Christmas in August Sale Go Live?

The Christmas In August Sale price list link will appear automatically at 12:00 PM ET (9:00 PM PT). The link is located at the top of each GFRC website page where the countdown clock is currently marking the time remaining. The sale will continue through Sunday 9:00PM ET (6:00 PM PT).

How Do I Purchase Lots?

Purchasing lots via the Christmas In August Sale price list is no different than making a normal GFRC purchase. Customers can click on the shopping cart to launch a purchase email. Otherwise, simply send me an email and list the desired lots (denomination, date, mintmark and price). All emails will be processed in the order received to determine sale lot allocations. Phone calls are welcomed starting at 8:00 am on Friday, Saturday and Sunday mornings. Starting Friday morning, I will be contacting buyers with purchase invoices and immediately preparing shipments.

Will Lay-A-Ways Be Available for Christmas in August Sale Items?

Unfortunately no....the Christmas In August Sale is a cash and carry event. Regular GFRC payment terms will apply. Paypal usage will require a 3% adder to the combined purchase and shipping cost total with no exceptions. Credit cards usage is also possible with same 3% adder.

When Will Christmas In August Sale Lots Ship?

GFRC has a tight shipping window due to the upcoming CONA show on Labor Day weekend. Orders paid via Paypal, and those from well known customers on the "GFRC Quick Ship" program, will see their orders shipped on Monday and Tuesday. For new customers paying via check, those orders will ship the Tuesday after the CONA show (September 3) since Monday is Labor Day holiday.

 

Rolling Out More Chicago ANA New Purchases

Now that Christmas in August Sale preparations are completed, focus shifts back to offering more Chicago ANA new purchases. I worked late into Wednesday evening and prepared the following gallery of larger denomination pieces. GFRC only purchased two Bust halves at the Chicago show. The gem 1826 half is already on hold leaving this crusty original 1806 O-114 Prime die state example for customer consideration. The O-114 Prime die state indicates no traces of the long die crack that spans the reverse during later O-114a die state.

GFRC pledged to increase Trade dollar inventory and was an active buyer at the ANA show. Below are four hand selected new purchases. One of the purchases is an 1877-S Trade dollar with three reverse chop marks. Look for these items to reach the price list today.

Larger Denomination Chicago ANA New Purchases

1807 O-114 Prime PCGS VF35 50C

              1877 PCGS AU55 Trade $1                                               1877-S Chop Mark PCGS AU58 Trade $1

    

    1877-S NGC AU58 Trade $1                                                       1878-S PCGS MS62 Trade $1

    

 

Global Financial News

The day starts with Asia equity markets being in the red along with United States futures. Traders seek new assurances that central banks will continue to be accomodative along with progress on trade disputes. Today's Seeking Alpha headlines failed to delivery news that would enable traders to move back to a risk on mode.

Commodity and interest rates have barely moved since yesterday. Physical gold is down slightly to $1508/oz along with crude oil being marginally down to an even $56/bbl. Bitcoin is holding the five figure mark at $10,038/coin. The 10 Year U.S. Treasury yield is flat at 1.57%.

Boris Johnson is receiving an EU cold shoulder concerning Brexit.

The prospect of a no-deal Brexit is growing after Germany's Angela Merkel gave Boris Johnson 30 days to solve "backstop" disagreements, while the reaction was harsher in France. Ahead of a meeting today with Johnson, French President Emmanuel Macron bluntly ruled out any further talks on the divorce deal. He sees no reason to grant another Brexit delay unless there was a "significant political change" in Britain and warned that the U.K. risked being subordinated by the U.S if it crashed out of the EU.

Zero or Negative yield long bonds continue to ramp outside of the United States. Are deflation fears mounting across the global?

Negative yields may be taking their toll on investor demand, as the world's first 30-year bond offering a zero coupon struggled to find buyers. Germany sold only €824M of the notes maturing 2050, falling far short of its €2B target. A zero-coupon, 0% long-term bond is not without precedent - with the country selling 10-year, 0% paper in April 2015. Signals that the global bond rally may now be sputtering given that more than $16T of securities around the world have negative yields.

There will be no formal agreements announced at this weekend's G7 meeting.

This weekend's G7 summit is set to end without a joint communique for the first time since the gatherings began in 1975, after French President Emmanuel Macron decided to abandon the tradition due to "a very deep crisis of democracy." He cited the U.S. decision to withdraw from Paris climate accords as one example of why it would be difficult to display a united front. Alongside environment and trade, analysts expect Brexit, inequality, the possible reinstatement of Russia to the "G8" and tech giant taxation to dominate the meeting.

 

Wrapping Up The Blog

Another long Blog edition is completed. It is time for a shower followed by the day's packing and shipping.

I will be in the GFRC office throughout the day loading more Chicago ANA new purchases to the price list and attempting to organize the large amount of consignor inventory that awaits my attention.

Please remember that the Christmas In August Sale arrives at midnight eastern time. Have fun shopping!