Gold is a unique investment, one that has served mankind well for thousands of years. From the times of ancient Egyptians, Greeks and Romans to more modern times, man has been fascinated with the beauty and magic of gold.

Gold is a store of value and a safe haven in times of crisis. Gold is rare, durable and does not wear out in the manner of lesser metals (or paper!) when passed from hand to hand. Gold is universally accepted, and can be easily bought and sold around the world.

Today, the beauty of a gold bar lies in its ability to diversify investments, protect wealth and preserve one's purchasing power against inflation.

The 10-ounce gold bullion bar of at least .995 fine purity is the standard industry unit. It is traditionally used for trading and storage, and can also be taken for personal delivery. Each gold bar is certified by a leading refiner as to weight and purity.

Also available from Advantage Metals is the 32.15 troy ounce gold “kilobar” a one kilogram bar of fine gold bullion of at least .999 purity. Manufacturers of these bars certify the weight and purity of the bullion content by imprinting their stamp or hallmark on each bar. Also available is our 100 oz gold bullion bar.

Gold bullion bars are real, tangible assets, and throughout history, have been an ideal store of value and an excellent hedge against inflation, deflation and political uncertainty. They are extremely liquid investments, easily stored and transported, and can be a uniquely private way to preserve one's wealth.

Call an Advantage Metals Account Representative today to discuss how a gold bullion investment could and possibly should become part of your investment portfolio.

Throughout history, silver bullion has served mankind as a primary monetary metal. It is durable, divisible, convenient, has utility value, and hold it's value unlike "fiat" money.

Unlike its fellow monetary metal—gold—silver is most commonly used today as an industrial commodity. Industrial demand for silver has grown consistently for the past three decades because of silver's many unique properties, including its strength, malleability, and ductility...its unparalleled electrical and thermal conductivity...its sensitivity to and high reflectance of light...and its ability to endure extreme temperature ranges.

In addition to its industrial uses and qualities, silver is also used in numerous health care products because of the unique antibacterial characteristics that it possesses.

It is estimated that more than 95% of all the silver ever mined throughout history has already been consumed by industrial use. In 1900, there were approximately 12 billion ounces of silver in the world. Today, that figure has fallen to about 300 million ounces of above-ground, refined silver. This means that at current prices, it would only take about four billion dollars to purchase all of the above-ground silver in the world today.

Silver's historic role as a store of value and investment, and its increasing demand in an environment where growing industrial use exceeds available new supplies, further suggest a bullish trend for this versatile metal.

Some of the world's leading financial analysts believe that silver is one of the world's most important commodities, with unparalleled investment opportunity for the future. Silver's unique properties, which make it ideal and essential for global industry, create a situation where there is simply no substitute.

Pure .999 fine silver bullion is available from Advantage Metals in two convenient forms:

The 1,000 ounce silver bullion bar is the standard industry unit and traditionally used for trading and storage, but can also be taken for personal delivery. Each bar is certified for weight and purity.

Also available from Advantage Metals is the 100 ounce silver bar. Numerous brands of .999 fine silver have been produced over the years, including bars from the Royal Canadian Mint, Johnson-Matthey and Engelhard.

Call an Advantage Metals Account Representative today to discuss how a silver bullion investment could and possibly should become part of your investment portfolio.

Silver Uses

Pharmaceuticals
Silver is leading a revolution in technology and medicine. The white metal's unique bacteria-fighting qualities are becoming more and more critical in healing conditions ranging from severe burns to Legionnaires Disease. In fact, the most powerful treatment for burns is silver sulfadiazine, which is used in every hospital in North America to promote healing and reduce infection. Everything from surgical threads to bandages and dressings to doctors' coats and catheters are utilizing silver. In hospitals and homes, silver in ductwork provides maximum sterile atmosphere.

Electrical
Silver is the best electrical conductor of all metals. Because it does not corrode, its use in electrical and motor control switches is universal. A fully-equipped automobile may have over 40 silver-tipped switches to start the engine, activate power steering, brakes, windows, mirrors, locks and other electrical accessories

Chemical Catalyst
Silver is also one of the few elements that improve the efficiency of chemical reactions. It is the only catalyst that will oxidize ethylene gas into ethylene oxide, the building block for polyester textiles used for clothing and specialty fabrics, and melded items like computer keyboards, electrical control knobs, domestic appliance components and Mylar tape used for all audio, VCR and recording tapes. Nanotechnology applications using silver are growing -- in computers, communications, miniature motors and switches.

Reflectants
Silvered windshields in homes, cars and office buildings reflect away some 70% of the solar energy that would otherwise pass through, thus reducing the load on air conditioners. The U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Star Program has spurred 50% increase in silver-coated glass in past six years, translating to 350 million square feet of glass, or five million ounces of silver per year.

Industrial
Silver is the ideal industrial material. No other metal has silver's combined strength, malleability and ductility, or facilitates electrical and thermal conductivity as well, or can reflect light and endure such extreme temperature changes. Jet engines of today and tomorrow can depend on silver-coated bearings for their performance and safety. All major jet engine manufacturers utilize these high-performance silver bearings, which provide critical fail-safe lubrication required by the Federal Aviation Administration.

Printed Circuitry
Printed circuit boards (PCBs) use silver for connecting paths of electronic circuitry. PCBs are essential to the electronics that control the operation of aircraft, automobile engines, electrical appliances, security systems, telecommunication networks, mobile telephones, television receivers. Most computer keyboards use silver membrane switches.

Superconductors
These low-current switches are also found in control panels of cable television, telephones, and devices using digital electronics. Superconductivity is the power transmission of the future and silver makes it faster and more effective. Silver-jacketed superconducting oxide wires can carry more than 140 times the electric load of copper wire with less than 1 percent of the weight. This wire utilizes about 1,000 ounces of silver per mile. Silver already improves performance at lighter weights and size in cables, motors, generators and transformers. Silver oxide-zinc batteries provide higher voltages and longer life for such consumer goods as quartz watches, cameras, and electronic tools. <

Electroplating
The ease of electrodeposition of silver accounts for silver's widespread use in coating. The plating thickness of some items, such as fuse caps, is less than one micron although the silver then tarnishes more easily. Coatings of two to seven microns are normal for heavy duty electrical equipment. Silver plating is used in a wide variety of applications from Christmas Tree ornaments to cutlery and hollowware.

Brazing & Soldering
Silver facilitates the joining of materials (called brazing when done at temperatures above 600oCelsius and soldering when below) and produces naturally smooth, leak-tight and corrosion-resistant joints. Silver brazing alloys are used widely in applications ranging from air-conditioning and refrigeration equipment to power distribution equipment in the electrical engineering sector. It is also used in the automobile and aerospace industries.

Coins
Silver, being a rare and noble metal, was a more desirable medium of exchange than beads, feathers, shells, and the like. Its use as a medium of exchange is known throughout all recorded history. Coins, in the sense of having an authenticating stamp on them, began to appear in the eastern Mediterranean during 550 B.C. By 269 B.C. Rome adopted silver as part of its standard coinage. Silver became the trading medium for merchants throughout the civilized world. (Gold being reserved for governments and the wealthy.) Today silver coins continue to be the medium of exchange wherever paper is not acceptable, for example, in parts of Africa and the Middle East. One example of a trade coin is the Empress Maria Theresia Taler, first minted in Austria in 1741. It was standardized in 1780 as 28 grams and 833/1000 silver (the remainder copper). Some 370 million of these 1780 dated coins have been minted up to 1996 and a large proportion remain in circulation today.

Photography
Although a wide variety of other technology is available, silver-based photography will retain its pre-eminence due to its superior definition and low cost. From it's very outset, silver halide has been the material that records what is to be seen in the photograph. As little as 4 photons of light activate silver halides which amplify that incident light by a factor of one billion times. In today's photography, silver halides are coupled with dyes that bring the color of the world around us into permanent record. An estimated 196 million troy ounces of silver were used worldwide in 2003 for photographic purpose.

Silverware & Jewelry
Silver possesses working qualities similar to gold but enjoys greater reflectivity and can achieve the most brilliant polish of any metal. To make it durable for jewelry, however, pure silver (999 fineness) is often alloyed with small quantities of copper. In many countries, Sterling Silver (92.5% silver, 7.5% copper) is the standard for silverware and has been since the 14th century.

Mirrors & Coatings
Silver's unique optical reflectivity, and its property of being virtually 100% reflective after polishing, allows it to be used both in mirrors and in coatings for glass, cellophane or metals. Everyone is accustomed to silvered mirrors. What is new is invisible silver, a transparent coating of silver on double pane thermal windows. This coating not only rejects the hot summer sun, but also reflects inward internal house heat. A new double layer of silver on glass marketed as "low E squared" is sweeping the window market as it reflects away almost 95% of the hot rays of the sun, creating a new level of household energy savings. Over 250 million square feet of silver- coated glass is used for domestic windows in the U.S. yearly and much more for silver coated polyester sheet for retrofitting windows.

Solar Energy
Silver paste is used in 90 percent of all crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells, which are the most common solar cell, according to the Photovoltaic Technology Division of the U.S. Department of Energy. And all silicon cells used in space to power satellites use silver in the form of evaporated metal to make the electrical contact. The electricity generated by photovoltaic cells is highly reliable. As soon as sunlight strikes, power begins to flow. Sunlight striking silicon cells generates electrons, which the silver conductors collect to become a useful electric current. The conductive silver, which also enhances reflection of the sunlight, is applied in the form of a glass paste with a minimum of 90 percent silver along the top and across the bottom of the silicon crystal. When fired, the silver forms a complete circuit collecting solar energy and conducting it to the power supply line. A group of roofing-tile solar cells can generate sufficient power to provide a house and also fill batteries to supply power after dark. Silver plays yet another role in the collection of solar energy: efficient reflection of solar heat. Silver is the best reflector of thermal energy (after gold).

Water Purification
An increasing trend is the millions of on-the-counter and under-the-counter water purifiers that are sold each year in the United States to rid drinking water of bacteria, chlorine, trihalomethanes, lead, particulates, and odor. Here silver is used to prevent the buildup of bacteria and algae in the filters. Of the billions of dollars spent yearly in the U.S. for drinking water purification systems, over half make advantageous use of the bactericidal properties of silver. New research has shown that the catalytic action of silver, in concert with oxygen, provides a powerful sanitizer, virtually eliminating the need for the use of corrosive chlorine.
SOURCE: www.silverinstitute.org

 

Today, platinum is a widely-used although extremely rare metal, critically important to the auto industry, the jewelry trade, and the chemical, electrical and glass manufacturing industries. Rarer than gold, it is estimated that all of the platinum ever mined throughout history would fit into a cube less than 25 feet on each side. The majority of platinum mined today comes from just two parts of the world; South Africa and Russia.

Platinum's supply/demand fundamentals are tight. In fact, according to research estimates, if platinum mining were to cease today, there would be only about a year's supply available to industry.

More than 50% of annual platinum production is used in the automotive industry. Platinum is a primary element in autocatalysts that control vehicle exhaust emissions.

Platinum's relative scarcity in the face of ever-increasing demand gives platinum incredible investment potential. Its historical price performance—at one time selling at a steep discount to gold, but today, selling at a significant premium to gold—makes platinum a provocative and attractive investment vehicle.

Platinum bullion is available from Advantage Metals in 10-ounce bars of pure .9995 fine platinum for trading or storage. Each bar is produced by a leading refiner, such as Johnson-Matthey, and certified as to weight and purity.

Call an Advantage Metals Account Representative today to discuss how an investment in platinum bullion could and possibly should become part of your investment portfolio.

One of the platinum group metals, palladium is used extensively as an industrial catalyst and is a key component in the manufacturing of automotive catalytic converters.

In the autocatalyst industry, palladium is currently a lower-cost substitute for the more expensive alternative, platinum. As this is written, palladium sells for around one-quarter the price of platinum. In late 2000 and early 2001, for example, due to supply disruptions and a resulting panic by auto manufacturers, the price of palladium reached an all-time high of nearly $1,100 an ounce, approximately the same price as platinum.

Over half of the world's annual supply of palladium comes from Russia and the amount and status of Russian palladium supplies are state secrets.

It is this historical range of prices, and the price differential between palladium and platinum at any given time, that gives palladium its attractive investment potential. The price of palladium has been, and could again potentially be, extremely volatile, providing investors with a significant opportunity for speculative profit.

Palladium bullion is available from Advantage Metals in 10-ounce bars of pure .999 fine palladium. Each bar is manufactured by one of the world's leading refiners, and is certified as to weight and purity.

Call an Advantage Metals Account Representative today to discuss whether a palladium bullion investment is right for you and how you could add palladium to your investment portfolio.