Spot price

Working knowledge

What you pay is spot plus a premium covering refining, minting, distribution and the dealer's margin. What you receive on a sale is spot less a spread.

The premium is larger on small items and smaller on large bars, which is why a one-ounce coin and a hundred-ounce bar do not price alike.

Advanced

The quoted futures price refers to a defined deliverable specification — fineness, bar size, approved refiner, approved vault. Anything outside that specification prices off it, not at it.

Physical premiums widen when mint capacity or logistics tighten, independent of the spot quote. In stressed periods spot and street price can diverge noticeably.

Professional practice

Basis, lease rates, and location differentials all sit between a screen quote and a delivered bar. For sizeable transactions the relevant number is the all-in delivered cost per fine troy ounce.

Compare dealers by asking each to quote as a stated percentage over spot per product, then compare those percentages. That converts a sales conversation into arithmetic.

Where people go wrong

• Assuming spot is your buy price.
• Comparing quotes without normalising for product, quantity, shipping and insurance.

Related claims we have checked

• “Gold always goes up, so it cannot lose you money.”