Palladium Coins and Bars

As it does with platinum, Independent Living Bullion offers palladium coins and bars as an investment alternative to the more popular precious metals -- i.e. gold and silver. Availability of palladium coins and bars is also fluid, and customers looking to buy palladium coins online should call one of Independent Living Bullion's helpful and no-pressure precious metals specialists at 1-800-800-1865 for current selection and pricing.

Palladium's main application, like platinum, is catalytic converters for automobiles. But it also has a growing number of uses in other industries -- such as with the electronics, alternative energy, and dental markets.

Even though it has in the past actually sold for a higher price than platinum, today the price of palladium coins and bars is less than half the price of platinum. One would think these two metals would sell for about the same price -- given the similar properties and similar applications and since annual palladium production is about equal to that of platinum production (around 6 to 8 million ounces a year).

Since palladium can also be used as a catalyst in the emissions-reducing devices, many automakers have opted to invest in using palladium over platinum in recent years since the palladium price per ounce has generally been so much lower. Outside of a short-term price spike in the year 2000, when fears of shortages drove the price to $1,000 an ounce when the likes of General Motors and Ford stockpiled huge amounts of the metal, palladium prices per ounce have remained below the price of platinum per ounce. At the very least, an improvement in the price of palladium versus platinum is a strong likelihood.

The palladium:platinum ratio gives commercial users a strong incentive to switch out of platinum and invest in palladium where possible.

Geopolitical issues could drive the price of palladium higher in years to come. Most of the world's palladium production comes from Russia and South Africa -- two countries that appear to be on shaky ground both economically and politically.

Concerns about power outages disrupting production (which has happened in recent years), nationalization of mines, and/or governmental restrictions on exports could cause shortages and eventual spikes in the future price of palladium.

As such, a decision to buy palladium coins may turn out to be an extremely profitable investment for those who accumulate it in bullion form. Or, at the very least, palladium provides investors with an additional option to protect one's assets in a world of central bank money printing and currency devaluation.