U.S. COIN DEALERS ENTERING CHINA MARKET

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V20 2017 INDEX E-SYLUM ARCHIVE

The E-Sylum: Volume 20, Number 16, April 16, 2017, Article 11

Another trend we've seen play out of the past several years is the rise of the Chinese coin market. As the country grows more wealthy, its citizens have caught the bug for silver, gold, and Chinese coins old and new. The major U.S. auction firms have been in that space for years, but now smaller dealers are getting in on the action, and the Chinese are gaining interest in U.S. coins as well. Here's another item from Coin Dealer Newsletter. -Editor

The CDN Editors had occasion to attend the Hong Kong Coin Show on April 7-9 in conjunction with the release of our newest pricing newsletter, the Goldsheet. The Goldsheet covers the pricing of certified modern Chinese Panda coins, and area which has seen increasing demand over the past two decades.

For most of our American readers, the Chinese market is completely foreign, both literally and figuratively. Americans may be surprised to hear that the rare coin market in Hong Kong and mainland China is incredibly robust and active. The team at Stacks Bowers jumped from the Baltimore show sales straight to Hong Kong to hold a series of live auctions here starting with classic Chinese coins and ending with contemporary Panda-era issues.

The question for us at CDN is what degree will collectors of Chinese certified coins cross over to U.S. coins, and visa versa. There are already dozens of U.S. coin dealers who have made this leap, including Greg Krill of North Bay Rare Coins. Greg has seen the benefit of dealing in both areas, and we expect many more will follow. From an American perspective this market is still in its infancy and there is plenty of potential for dealers to get started here.

Gerry Fortin Rare Coins (GFRC) is one of those dealers making the leap. Having worked and lived in China for a time, he's better positioned than most to take that leap. He sets up a mini coin show and gives talks to introduce Chinese collectors and investors to the U.S. market. I encouraged him to mention The E-Sylum and the Newman Numismatic Portal to these information-hungry newbies; what better way to bone up on numismatics - coins, tokens, medals, paper money and all? I reached out to Gerry and he provided the following picture and details. Thanks! -Editor

We had a successful GFRC-sponsored show yesterday (Saturday). Six more people arrived after this picture was taken. Strong attendance and reasonable sales. Today I spent the morning at the Yunzhou Antique Mall in Shanghai doing wholesale business with local dealers. All business is US silver and gold type coins.

I've worked in China since 1999 and lived mostly full time between 2006 and 2012. During the 2010 - 2012 timeframe, many Saturdays were spent in the Yunzhou Antique Mall learning how China dealers operate and building relationships. GFRC currently visits China twice a year. The next visit is the Shanghai coin show at the Yunzhou Antique Mall during the middle of November.

To read the complete article, see:
ASIAN COIN MARKET COMES INTO FOCUS (http://blog.greysheet.com/2017/04/13/asian-coin-market-comes-into-focus/)