For us, 2005 was spectacular, business-wise. Of course, record sales don’t mean very much when the commodity you deal in goes up in price. We’re prouder of the fact that for the sixth year in a row we ‘pushed more units out the door,’ that is to say, sold a record number of ounces of gold.

As we begin our seventh year on the Internet, we remember the words of Mark Twain:

"When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years."

Like young Mr. Clemens, we too are sometimes astonished at what can be learned in seven years.

And next year will bring us a lot to look forward to. The Mint is already producing gold Eagles for 2006, and we will have those available about January 5th.

In addition, this week we finally learned a few details of the long-awaited .9999 pure gold bullion coin from the US Mint. The design will be a variation of James Earl Fraser’s Buffalo/Indian nickel that was produced from 1913 to 1938, only rendered in a 1-ounce gold coin.

For certain, the Buffalo/Indian design is a timeless icon of Americana, reproduced in many forms over the decades. The Mint itself recycled that same old nickel design for a commemorative silver dollar struck to raise money for the Smithsonian Institute in 2001.

We’ll see whether bringing the old Chief and Bison out of mothballs, to grace an American gold bullion coin aimed at the world market, is a success. My guess is that it will make quite a splash in the US.

We thank you all for all your support in 2005. We are looking forward to 2006, which should be another huge year in the precious metals markets. Starting January 2, 2006, we’ll be back in the saddle.

So Merry Christmas to you, Happy New Year, Solstice has come and gone and the days are getting brighter! Things are looking Up!


-Richard Smith