STG, is it just me.

[HighlandTiger]

Silver to Go has always been looked as the place to go for cheap bullion , but I've noticed in the last few weeks that their prices are not as competitive as they were a few months ago. Some prices have risen, even though silver spot has dropped.

 

When it is cheaper to buy 5 ASE's from the UK's HGM (with 20% VAT added) than it is to buy from STG without VAT, (£86.18 and £88.51 respectively), then I start to wonder.

 

Add to that the high price, compared to other European dealers for the PM lunar goat.... mmmmm 

 

Perhaps Livia could enlighten us, on their pricing criteria. 

 

[Danny-boy]

As has been said many times before, you need to shop around.

You are very unlikely to find a vendor that is cheapest across the board.

[Stretch]

I'd definitely say that about Europe silver bullion but STG seem ok bearing in mind your not paying vat. Obviously you need to buy in a reasonable amount because of the delivery charges. 55oz seems to be where it's at if your on a budget with STG which suits me as its similar to an oz of gold what I'd normally be buying if I had no access to vat free silver.

[Stretch]

I remember pricing up 60 Philharmonics with Europe silver bullion last year then comparing the price with Atkinsons with vat. The saving was about £40 so hardly worth it. That's not the case with STG where vat savings are very significant.

[Cornishfarmer]

I remember pricing up 60 Philharmonics with Europe silver bullion last year then comparing the price with Atkinsons with vat. The saving was about £40 so hardly worth it. That's not the case with STG where vat savings are very significant.

If you pay Europe silver bullion in euros rather than pounds you get a vastly different rate

[StackemHigh]

STG is still quite a new company. With that in mind where would we have been shopping 2 or 3 years ago? 

 

As for TAX from these German companies do they not pay 7% TAX rather than TAX free. Estonia may very well be different.

 

Shop about for the deals and buy when the prices are keen.

 

You know when a deal feels right instinctively. A couple of £ here or there shouldn't bother anyone on a large order.

[silversword]

When you are buying only 5 coins from STG, you are then adding £3 per coin with shipping. This means you need to pick a coin on which the VAT is less than £3 in order to see any saving, so anything above £14-odd is not going to work out well for you. Logically the more coins you buy, the more savings you see as postage costs per coin come down in relation to full VAT per coin, that is why I generally never order less than 10oz, and prefer to order more. I can't see how STG can be blamed for this.

[Pipers]

You have to buy at least 20 coins really to make it worth while.

 

There are small traders on the forum who are quite cheap for small quantities.

[StackemHigh]

Klacey, Arshimo and Davepanda are a few that spring to mind.

[HighlandTiger]

When you are buying only 5 coins from STG, you are then adding £3 per coin with shipping. This means you need to pick a coin on which the VAT is less than £3 in order to see any saving, so anything above £14-odd is not going to work out well for you. Logically the more coins you buy, the more savings you see as postage costs per coin come down in relation to full VAT per coin, that is why I generally never order less than 10oz, and prefer to order more. I can't see how STG can be blamed for this.

I wasn't blaming STG, it was just an observation. I have been following prices on about a dozen bullion websites for months now, and until very recently STG has by far and away been the cheapest for everything. 

 

However in the last few weeks I've noticed prices havn't fallen as much in line with the spot price. I'm sure that prices today are slightly more than when the spot was similar a few months ago. 

 

It may be as stocks are running low on certain lines and with the 2015's coming in soon, that prices on existing stock have had a little price hike. I don't have a problem with that, supply and demand and all that, but it does mean I'll need to be smarter with my buys around july, august next year. 

[Pete]

When the latest RCM bald eagle coin was announced for pre-ordering, I posted a thread on the forum that STG were about €1 more expensive than Aurinum. Within 24 hrs the STG price dropped to just below Aurinum's so I ordered 2 tubes.

Keep an eye on prices and I am sure STG aim to be the lowest but maybe only just.

I always check prices using a few dealers before buying.

[Stretch]

Funny you should mention actually HT as I did check maples this morning when spot had dropped to £11.56 and the STG price hadn't changed from £13.76.

Not to sure how often prices are updated with spot on STG?

[Carpe Diem]

Not to sure how often prices are updated with spot on STG?

 

when spot rises, they're fast.  when spot falls, they're not so fast.

 

Or maybe I'm paranoid.

[FTYBR]

As the spot price smashes get more and more frequent, I wouldn't be surprised to see more online dealers un-tagging sale prices from spot. As ever, they'll pitch it at a level where it's competitive but still creates a reasonable demand for both buyers and sellers. Keep shopping around.

I'm sure their buy-back prices follow spot though! #arbitrage

[ArthGoch]

 

 

As for TAX from these German companies do they not pay 7% TAX rather than TAX free. Estonia may very well be different.

 

 

 

European legislation allows for VAT to be applied against the margin between the buy price and the sales price on certain categories of items and subsequently not on the total sale. Thus 19% on a total sale of £100 ( £19) is a lot higher than the 19% applied on a profit margin of say £10 and  which would be circa £1.90p

 

https://www.gov.uk/vat-margin-schemes/overview

 

Like the LVCR, each state member has discretion on how this is applied and what categories are eligible. HMRC decided that VAT applied on the margin was allowable on secondhand collectables, but in the next breath exempted precious metals from the relief. Germany on the other hand does allow margin VAT on collectables, inclusive of coins, and hence their dealers have remained competitive vis-a-vis Estonia/non EU dealers and post the Tax Harmonization in January. ( The 7% you reference was pre the enactment of the legislation) 

 

On bullion, (read bars and rounds,) Germany do levy the full sales VAT of 19%. The price list on Geiger Edelmetalle is a good reference as they clearly show the 19% items and those which are not 

[Pete]

"HMRC decided that VAT applied on the margin was allowable on secondhand collectables, but in the next breath exempted precious metals from the relief"ll

 

No surprises then ...

"If it can be taxed it WILL be taxed" - maybe there is a poster pinned to all HMRC entrances to remind our civil servants to collect their taxes from the peasants.  Sherriff of Nottingham never died.