Silver volumes down, gold sales up one per cent
Sales of Royal Canadian Mint non-circulating legal-tender coins increased five per cent in 2022 driven by the new Opulence Collection, international re-sale coins and bullion products.
The Opulence Collection, created in collaboration with Crossworks Manufacturing, a Vancouver-based company specializing in diamond polishing, features coins with rare pink diamonds from the Argyle diamond mine. The coins come with “extremely limited mintages,” according to the Mint.
In its annual report, the Mint also announced silver bullion volumes decreased two per cent to 37.1 million ounces (37.7 million in 2021) as the silver market price decreased year over year; however, this was partly offset by a one per cent increase in gold volumes (1.489 million ounces last year versus 1.470 million ounces in 2021).
The Mint’s total revenue of $3.282 million was down from the previous year.
“The financial results for 2022 were as expected, below 2021 levels, given the exceptional performance seen in 2021, and planned operational maintenance in 2022,” the report stated. “The Mint still exceeded its financial goals for 2022, as set out in the Mint’s corporate plan.”
“Although the Mint was challenged by geopolitical events, inflation, and supply chain disruptions, our ‘One Mint’ strategy gave us the agility to adjust and respond effectively to our customers’ needs throughout 2022,” said Marie Lemay, the mint’s president and chief executive. “While part of our business experienced cyclical variances, the mint, with the support of its employees, delivered strong financial results and value to Canadians.”
Other highlights of the 2022 financial results include:
- Revenue from Canadian coin circulation products and services increased seven per cent year over year from a different mix of denominations sold under an updated memorandum of understanding with the Department of Finance combined with a higher amount of metals processed through the Alloy Recovery Program in 2022, which was partly offset by lower circulation coin volumes and lower program fees.
- Revenue from the foreign circulation business decreased 45 per cent year over year after significantly lower volumes were produced due to the slower-than-expected re-opening of foreign economies post-pandemic and the rising geopolitical and economic uncertainties on the global economy.
- Operating expenses increased 13 per cent to $125.3 million due to planned temporary increases in expenses to support the digital program and business transformation, higher corporate donations driven by shareholder-directed donations, as well as increases in travel-related expenses as the mint started to transition back to in-person meetings. The increase in marketing and sales expenses was consistent with higher sales of numismatic products.
As part of its enterprise risk management program, the Mint said it continues to actively monitor its global supply chain and logistics networks in support of its continued operations.