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THE
REFINED INVESTMENTS® PROGRAM
Invest
in Precious Metals with Confidence, Convenience and Safety
Prudent
investors have long been aware that precious metals can protect the value of
their hard-earned assets, but have found that purchasing gold, silver, platinum
or palladium can often be difficult, inconvenient, confusing, and costly.
Now, the Refined Investments Program has made investing in precious
metals easier and safer than ever before. This
innovative program enables you to buy and sell precious metals, enjoy secure
custody and account administration services, arrange personal delivery; and keep
track of all your holdings on one, easy-to-read, personalized account statement.
The
Reasons for Owning Precious Metals Have Remained Unchanged for 5,000 Years
Throughout
history, precious metals have proved endlessly fascinating to mankind.
Unlike any other elements in existence, their unique combination of
brilliance, scarcity, unusual workability, utility and durability imbues them
with multiple economic roles.
Precious metals simultaneously serve as money, industrial commodities and
investment vehicles throughout the global marketplace, a reality that renders
them a unique and prudent investment choice.
Through the ages, precious metals have been prized for their enduring
value and as a universal medium of exchange.
They have also long played a critical role in art and industry.
Traditionally, investors have acquired these metals as a source of
security in times of political and international unrest, or economic
uncertainty.
A
Prudent Approach to Investing
Studies
have shown that precious metals can protect your investment assets against the
ravages of inflation and safeguard your long-term purchasing power.
They can provide a vital balance to other asset classes, such as stocks
and bonds, by reducing the volatility of one’s overall portfolio resulting
from fluctuations in the securities markets.
Furthermore, under some market conditions, precious metals can outperform
stocks and bonds in the absolute sense and increase your overall total return.
In this capacity, precious metals can serve as investment portfolio
insurance. And,
due to their international nature, precious metals are essentially a global
currency offering investors a tangible asset featuring unparalleled liquidity.
Thus, for all these reasons, investment advisers commonly recommend
placing 5% to 15% of one’s investment capital in precious metals.
And while, of course, there can be no guarantee that precious metals
prices will be higher tomorrow than they are today, they do represent an
excellent investment choice for the long run.
Gold,
Silver, Platinum, and Palladium – The Investment Metals
We have seen that
precious metals can provide the investor with a safe haven in times of economic
uncertainty and financial instability and serve as a hedge against unexpected
inflation. Moreover, they’ve been described as a proven asset
diversifier that, when included in an investment portfolio, can reduce the
overall risk of one’s investment portfolio while enhancing total return.
Finally, precious metals have been cited as an excellent stand-alone
investment with capital appreciation potential based on supply and demand
fundamentals, as well as a host of other market fundamentals. Now,
let’s discuss the specific characteristics and special uses of each precious
metal to gain a better appreciation of why they’ve been described as “nature’s
unique gift to mankind.”
Gold
Gold, the most famous of all
precious metals, is acquired throughout the world for its beauty, liquidity,
investment qualities and its industrial properties.
As an investment vehicle, gold
typically is viewed as a financial asset that will maintain its value and
purchasing power during inflationary periods and times of political, social, or
economic distress, when paper currencies often decline in value or even collapse
altogether. As such, gold can
provide both individual and institutional investors alike with a portfolio
safety net that protects against sharp downward spikes in complementary assets
like stocks and bonds. While
investment demand is important, the largest use for gold is in jewelry, with the
majority of consumption occurring in the United States, Japan, Italy, India,
China and Thailand. Jewelry
production has been growing at a robust pace in the developing countries of
Southeast Asia and the Middle East since 1988.
Gold also is used extensively in electronic connectors and dental alloys.
Gold is mined in more than 76
countries around the world, and the large number development projects in these
countries is expected to keep production growing well into the next century. Currently, South Africa is the largest gold producing
country, followed by the United States, Australia, and Canada.
Since the dawn of time,
approximately 3.8 billion ounces of gold have been extracted from the ground.
And, gold being a virtually indestructible material, all but
approximately 432 million ounces (11.4%) is estimated to still exist in the form
of investment bars and coins, jewelry and other decorative items.
Silver
Once a standard in the world
monetary system, silver today plays an important role as both a financial
investment asset and industrial commodity.
Investors purchase physical silver in either bullion bar or coin form,
with the majority of the metal presently bought in the United States, Germany,
and Canada.
Investment demand for silver
also is vibrant in emerging markets. However,
in these countries, silver tends to be held in the form of jewelry, ornaments,
and religious objects that are easily melted down, recast and resold.
In terms of fabrication
demand, silver possesses many physical characteristics that make it a key
component in numerous products used in everyday living.
The main applications of silver are in jewelry and silverware,
photographic films and papers, and electrical contacts and connectors. Silver is also used in mirrors, medical instruments, dental
alloys, brazing alloys, batteries, and mechanical bearings.
On a global scale,
approximately 58 countries mine silver. The
largest silver-producing country is Mexico, followed by the United States, Peru,
and Canada. Over the past 10 years,
the amount of silver extracted from primary silver mines has fallen, while that
mined as a co-product of copper, lead, zinc, gold, and other metallic deposits
has risen.
The steady growth in silver
bearing products worldwide has also led to increases in the amount of silver
recovered from scrap recycling. Most
scrap comes from photographic materials, jewelry, and silverware.
Since 1990, there has existed
each year a growing imbalance in the amount of silver consumed throughout the
globe when compared to that produced. This
shortfall in annual silver supplies is presently being accommodated by a draw
down of the “above ground” supplies, which refers to silver already stored
in vaults around the world. Recently,
this situation has been recognized by some well known and well reputed investors
as an excellent opportunity to acquire silver as a longer term investment
strategy, a fact that would seem to indicate their belief the current deficit in
annual production supply is likely to persist, and perhaps worsen.
Platinum
Platinum is just one of six
metals comprising the category of metals referred to as the “platinum group
metals.” The other five are palladium, rhodium, ruthenium, iridium,
and osmium. The first known use of
platinum dates back to the ancient Egyptians, around the 7th century
BC. Although evidence suggests that
for many years before metal workers were aware of the presence of another metal
in gold they were working with, they were not aware that it was platinum.
The bulk of platinum, 67% of
total supply, comes from South Africa, with significant amounts also recovered
in Russia and Canada as a by-product of nickel mining.
Other notable areas of platinum production include the United States,
Finland, Australia, and the Philippines.
Today, more platinum is
consumed in the production of platinum jewelry than in any other application. Demand for platinum jewelry is particularly strong in Japan.
The second major use of
platinum is in automotive catalytic converters, which are designed to mitigate
the pollution caused by exhaust. With
tougher auto emission standards being implemented the world over, both developed
and developing countries alike are increasingly mandating the use of
platinum-bearing catalysts in newly produced automobiles.
Platinum is also widely used in chemical and petroleum refining
catalysts, as well as in the electronics and dental sectors.
Platinum’s rarity – ten
tons of raw ore must be mined on average to produce just one ounce of pure
platinum – coupled with its wide industrial usage, renders it an attractive
investment alternative to such competing assets as stocks, bonds, and
currencies. Some investors actually acquire platinum as a surrogate for
gold.
Palladium
Palladium is primarily an
industrial metal, often used in a number of products as an alloy of platinum.
Investment demand for palladium exists, although to a lesser extent than
gold, silver, and platinum. Approximately
55% of the world’s total supply of palladium is produced as a co-product of
nickel mining in Russia. The second
largest source of palladium flows from South Africa, with smaller amounts
produced in Canada, the United States, Brazil, Australia, Finland, and Zimbabwe.
The greatest use for palladium
is in electric components and connectors. Palladium
paste is used in semiconductors found in most personal computers, cellular
telephones, and in many types of electronically controlled devices.
Palladium is also combined
with gold to create dental alloys. Palladium
is mixed with gold to lighten the color of the alloy and heighten its
corrosion-resistance properties.
The third largest use of
palladium is in automobile catalytic converters, where palladium is often
combined with platinum. Also, more
palladium is now being used in stationary site catalytic devices designed to
reduce harmful emissions from certain commercial establishments, such as dry
cleaning plants.
Palladium also plays a
smaller, but highly important role in the production of jewelry, in chemical
process and petroleum refining catalysts, and in brazing alloys.
THE
REFINED INVESTMENTS PROGRAM
Open a Refined Investments
Account and all of your precious metals transactions become as simple as a
toll-free telephone call! Here’s
how the program works. As a Refined
Investments Account holder, you will receive assistance with all of your
precious metals transactions from an experienced service representative.
Every time you make a purchase, you simply select from one of three
specially tailored investment choices: the
Physical Delivery Service, the Individual Custody Service, or the Group
Ownership Service.
Physical Delivery Service
Refined
Investments Account holders choose the Physical Delivery Service to purchase and
take delivery of uniquely beautiful gifts of bullion coins and bars, or just to
have their own investments within reach. (Many
bullion coins are available in there own special presentation boxes.) If you wish to take physical possession of your precious
metals purchase, just ask to use the Physical Delivery Service of your Refined
Investment Account. Be sure to
speak to a Refined Investments service representative about what types of bars
and coins are currently available for delivery.
This Service:
- Affects physical delivery of your precious meal purchases via insured, registered mail
or courier to your designated address
- Provides a convenient, readily available, and marketable way to possess precious metals
- Features unusually beautiful gifts for that special someone on that special occasion
Individual Custody Service
When you choose the Individual
Custody Service of your Refined Investments Account, you are able to select,
buy, and store the specific type of bullion bars or coins you want to own.
The Refined Investments Program trades with metals dealers and refiners
throughout the world – which means you can choose from a wide variety of
physical bullion coins or bars available in today’s markets.
This Service:
- Affords secure storage in our commercially insured, state-of-the-art safekeeping facility
- Avoids transportation costs and delays
- Provides detailed transaction confirmations and periodic statements of account holdings
- Requires no state sales tax on purchases or storage services
- Offers delivery of metals available on request
Group Ownership Service
When you invest through the
Group Ownership Service, your purchase is combined with those of other
investors. The Group Ownership Service is the best way to buy more
precious metals for your money, because the Refined Investments Program buys,
sells, administers and insures your precious metals together with the bulk of
purchasing power and low rates.
This Service:
- Allows a minimum investment of just $100 per metals type
- Charges no fabrication fees
- Requires no state sales tax
- Accepts orders in either ounce or dollar amounts
- Features transaction confirmations and statements detailing your holdings to
1/000th ounce
- Permits access to the Refined Investment Accumulation Plan
- Affects delivery of metals upon request
The Refined Investments
Accumulation Plan is designed to offer the ultimate in convenience for those who
want to create their own personalized investment plan and build a precious
metals portfolio. By choosing the
Group Ownership Service of your Refined Investments Account, you may elect to
participate in the Accumulation Plan.
When you select the Accumulation Plan, you agree to make continuous
monthly investments of a fixed amount. Thus,
in addition to the benefits of volume purchasing power, the Accumulation Plan
lets you potentially minimize the average cost of your holdings, because the
same amount of money buys more precious metals when market prices are low and
less when market prices are high. Automatic
debiting of your credit card makes the process convenient and worry-free. And you may continue to invest for as long as you wish.
The Refined Investments Accumulation Plan is the most convenient and
disciplined way to build a precious metals investment portfolio with small,
steady and automatic purchases.
It’s
Easy and Convenient
Once your account is
established, you may invest through any of the Refined Investments Account
services either by phone or mail. Payment
may be made by cash, check, or bank wire. You
may also pay by MasterCard or Visa when participating in the Refined Investments
Accumulation Plan or selected product offerings.
As a Refined Investments Account holder, you may also take advantage of
many other exciting service features, such as periodic special offers, market
updates and exclusive product promotions.
Get
Started Now
Now that you appreciate just
how vital and import precious metals can be to your investment portfolio, and
how easy it is to acquire them, call 888-877-1782 today to open a Refined
Investments Account. The Refined
Investments Program welcomes you!
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