By Jim Fehr - North American Certified Trading

Which are the best markets today? With all the touting that goes on, it’s important to always keep in mind that no one knows which coins will perform best. Based on the history of the certified rare coin market, however, some areas appear more promising than others.

You probably already know which coins have been doing exceptionally well over the past five to ten years but lets take a look at them again.These are series that are widely collected by date or have such a strong collector or numismatic appeal that they have risen repeatedly over the past decade and still seem to be a good value today.

1. Key Date Coins; XF to MS65.

The best performing area of the rare coin market for the past nine years running. Think maybe they are topping out? Prices seem a bit silly relative to other coins? Acquisition cost relative to bids are too high? Well it doesn’t matter. These coins are the best, rarest, most known and most sought after, and they are being bought up by coin buyers with the deepest of deep pockets. They are desirable, rare, and not often seen for years at a time.They rarely go down and if they do it’s proportionally less to the rest of the market. This all translates to plenty of upside.

2. Early Walking Liberty Halves, MS64 and higher.

Rare date Walkers prior to 1929 have seen modest price increases over the last three years, but have done very well over the last ten. Rare dates from 1916 to 1928-S in gradesMS64 and higher are constantly in demand and are always on dealers want lists. Among the earlier dates, 1917-D , 1917-S , 1918-S, 1919-D, 1919-S, 1920-D, 1920-S, 1921-P, D and S, 1923-S and 1928-S are dates that inMS63 and higher grades have seen the strongest demand and the biggest price jumps in the series over the last nine years. A 1921-D in MS65 now trades for two half times more than it did in 2002 (more…)

More than 130 collectors and dealers from around the country attended the Professional Coin Grading Service luncheon at the Florida United Numismatists convention in Orlando, January 11, 2008. Collectors Universe, Inc. President and PCGS co-founder, David Hall, and PCGS President, Ron Guth, discussed the history of coin grading, the possible future of grading, and answered questions from the audience.

Hall emphasized to the audience composed of members of the PCGS Set Registry, PCGS Collectors Club and PCGS authorized dealers, “We seek your input. We seek your help. It’s your grading service.”
Among the topics addressed by Guth and his comments:

• Computerized Grading: “Maybe someday, down the road.”
• Coin Recognition Software: “We are building a digital image database of rare coins.”
• Fractional grades: “MS-61.5? I’m not sure how possible that is.”
• 100-Point Grading Scale: “The 70-point grading system is so entrenched and big, it would be difficult and confusing to convert (to 100 points). It could wreck the market.” (more…)

In celebration of the 10th Anniversary of the Platinum American Eagle Bullion Program, the US Mint is issuing a special commemorative set. The Mint will be selling a limited edition two-coin platinum set. This set includes a proof 2007 W $50 Platinum American Eagle and, for the first time in the history of the program, a reverse proof 2007 W $50 Platinum American Eagle.

Coins from these sets will be pedigreed as EAGLE 10TH ANNIVERSARY. A special NGC commemorative label will also be available. Because the regular proof version of this coin is available individually from the US Mint, special instructions must be followed in order for coins to qualify for this pedigree. Coins must remain in the sealed shipping boxes used by the US Mint, and the entire unopened package must be forwarded on to NGC for certification. NGC must open these boxes in order for the coins to qualify for the EAGLE 10TH ANNIVERSARY. The reverse proof version does not require this special handling, and will be eligible for the EAGLE 10TH ANNIVERSARY label and pedigree even if submitted without its original packaging.

US Mint coin boxes and certificates will be returned to the submitters. Note that the Mint’s shipping boxes are not returned.

Additionally, these coins must be submitted using the Modern Special Tier or higher level service, and submitters requesting this designation and special label must submit these coins on their own submission invoice. The five coin minimum for Modern Special Tier will be waived for submissions of Platinum 10th Anniversary Eagles, and the 10th Anniversary coins cannot be mixed with other coins to qualify for this pedigree. (more…)