With silver nearing $40 an ounce and gold passing $1,500 an ounce, business is booming for Ardie’s Coins in Billings. Owner Ardie Halvorson said business was slow only two or three days in April. “We have been busy, or busier, than our Christmas season,” Halvorson said. Halvorson said he usually sees about 120 people a day during the holiday season at his Grand Avenue store. In recent weeks, he saw at least 150 customers a day. Between 10 and 15 people have lined up before the store opens to sell or buy. Halvorson said that’s impressive, given that silver was selling for $29 per ounce in February. As of Wednesday, silver was going for $39.39 an ounce, down from $49 about a week ago. Halvorson's 20 years of experience and gut feeling tell him that it could continue to grow to between $60 and $80 per ounce by the end of the year. He said it all comes down supply and demand. “We did $1 million in business last week buying and selling,” Halvorson said. “Things are good.” Dudley Shy, a financial adviser and partner at Christensen, Shy & Associates, said fear is driving the boom of gold and silver investing. “People are seeing that dollar trade down in values to other currencies, inflation is starting to rear its head again and there are some people thinking (gold) is an inflation hedge and using it that way,” Shy said. “Gold is just one of those commodities that hedges against inflation. There are other commodities that do the same thing that actually make more sense. “But gold is what everyone has had their eye on for thousands of years, so it’s kind of the main drug of choice.” After watching over the years, Shy said he would be hesitant to call gold a good investment. He compares it to investments in the past, including tech and telecom stocks in the late 1990s and real estate during 2005 and 2006. “Those same people are probably buying gold now,” Shy said. “It is in full bubble mode right now. How long it will continue to go up and down, I have no idea. It’s probably in the late stages of the cyclical movement.” Shy said emotion is probably driving the market. “Some people are in fear of inflation eroding the value of the dollar,” Shy said. “Greed is people seeing it go up in value and seeing the big train leave the station and they want to get on it before it leaves.” He said those who are driven by fear are the most likely to buy physical gold from a coin shop or gold dealer. Others driven by greed are more likely to buy exchange trade funds that track the market and treat the gold like a stock. As an investor, he won’t be buying bricks of gold anytime soon. “I love gold — I love the way it feels, I like to hold it and look at it, but, as an investment, I’m an investor and I buy something with the intention of owning it a long time,” Shy said. “As an investor, I think gold is a stupid investment.” Investing safely People wanting to invest in gold or silver are cautioned to do so wisely and avoid scams. “They need a reputable dealer, and, if you can, deal locally,” Halvorson said. “I don’t care if you come to me or someone else, they just need to be reputable.” Some programs advertised on TV ask customers to send in their gold and receive a check later. Halvorson said he’s heard too many times about friends who never received a check. One person he knew took a silver set to a dealer traveling through town and was only offered $440. Halvorson gave him $1,446 for the same set. “You are going to get top dollar here,” Halvorson said. “And you get paid now. It’s a buyer-beware and seller-beware kind of thing.”

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