2010 American Gold Buffalo Bullion Coins Sold Out

Just when things seem to be improving with the US Mint's bullion situation, it always seems that another sell out, suspension, or depletion takes place. According to a statement released to authorized purchasers today, the 2010 Gold Buffalo bullion coins have sold out. Additional inventory of 2010-dated coins will not be made available.

The latest figures indicate that 209,000 of the one ounce coins have been sold since the start of sales on April 29, 2010. This number may not reflect the final total, but it is the number currently provided on the Mint's website.

The US Mint had managed to bring their bullion offerings closer to a state of normalcy this year, which led to progress with collector offerings. The Gold Buffalo and fractional Gold Eagles had been released earlier in the year, and rationing was lifted first for Gold Eagles, then for Silver Eagles. Until now, the only bullion product still disrupted was the Platinum Eagle, which has not been offered in bullion format since late 2008.

With the 2010 Gold Buffalo sold out, the US Mint is now missing two products from their bullion line up. Collectors are also still awaiting the release of the 2010 America the Beautiful Silver Bullion Coins.

The sell out of the bullion version of the Gold Buffalo does seem to make the availability of the 2010 Proof Gold Buffalo more uncertain. However, there's no telling how many of the proof coins the US Mint has left and how long they might last. In 2009, the US Mint sold out of the bullion version of the Gold Buffalo on December 4, 2009, but it took until March 29, 2010 for the proof version to sell out. Last reported sales for the 2009 Proof Gold Buffalo were 49,388.

In recent weeks, the pace of sales for the 2010 Prof Gold Buffalo has showed a marked increase. Over the past four weeks, sales of 5,426 coins were recorded. As of September 19, total sales had reached 31,896.