Platinum BULLION

investing in Platinum

Platinum's rarity as a metal has caused advertisers to associate it with exclusivity and wealth. "Platinum" debit cards have greater privileges than do "gold" ones. "Platinum awards" are the second highest possible, ranking above "gold", "silver" and "bronze", but below Diamond. For example, in the United States a musical album that has sold more than 1,000,000 copies, will be credited as "platinum", whereas an album that sold more than 10,000,000 copies will be certified as "diamond". Some products, such as blenders and vehicles, with a silvery-white color are identified as "platinum". Platinum is considered a precious metal, although its use is not as common as the use of gold or silver. The frame of the Crown of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, manufactured for her Coronation as Consort of King George VI, is made of platinum. It was the first British crown to be made of this particular metal.

Platinum is used as an alloying agent for various metal products, including fine wires, noncorrosive laboratory containers, medical instruments, jewelry, dental equipment, electrical contacts, and thermocouples. Platinum-cobalt, an alloy comprised of roughly 3 parts platinum and 1 part cobalt, is used to make extremely strong permanent magnets. Platinum-based anodes are used in ships, pipelines, and steel piers.

Platinum's supply/demand fundamentals are tight. In fact, according to some estimates, if platinum mining were to cease today, there would be only about a year's supply available to industry. In contrast, above-ground supplies of gold would last nearly a quarter of a century.

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.

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 of hydro-carbons, carbon monoxide, oxides of nitrogen and particulates. Autocatalysts convert most of these emissions into less-harmful carbon dioxide, nitrogen and water vapor. As developing countries such as China and India introduce new environmental legislation to combat air pollution, the demand for autocatalysts—and extremely limited supplies of platinum—is sure to increase.

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

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

BIC Account Representatives are normally available between 5:30am and 5:00pm Pacific time each Monday through Friday (except national holidays)...and on many weekends.

Give us a call...give our service and products a try...and compare our prices. You'll see why BIC has been America's trusted name in our specialty… bullion trading.