Costco Now Offering Gold Bars, Finds Them Hard to Keep in Stock

September 29, 2023

By Hubert Walker for CoinWeek ….

Taking advantage of the hot market for emergency preparation goods, the Washington-based warehouse club store Costco is now offering its members the chance to buy 1oz gold bars at its stores and online.

But in a scenario familiar to many who’ve tried to buy gold and other products directly from the United States Mint, the bars are selling out within hours of new stock becoming available.

Since mid-summer, Costco has been selling the famous Lady Fortuna 1oz gold bar from PAMP Suisse in Switzerland – as well as 1oz gold bars from the Rand Refinery in South Africa. These 24-carat, .9999 fine gold products are available only to people and households who pay an annual membership fee to shop at Costco stores in the United States and around the world. One must log into their Costco account in order to see pricing for the gold bars, but customers have shared images online that seem to give a current online price of $1,979.99 USD for the PAMP Suisse bar. Shipping insurance (two to three business days via UPS) is included in that price, so in-store pricing could be lower if you can find it in stock.

But even at that non-refundable price, the company has needed to apply a two-bars-per-membership purchase limit. The spot price of gold at the time of publication on September 29, 2023, was $1,882.50.

At the fourth quarterly earnings call for the company’s fiscal year that was held on Tuesday, September 26, the corporation’s Chief Financial Officer Richard Galatini stated that the gold bars are selling well, with inventory quickly selling out again once it is replenshed.

Beyond general good news regarding the company’s growth and performance over the last year, Galatini also reported that the cost of membership will be increasing soon, as it does every five or six years. The price of a Gold Star membership currently stands at $60, while an Executive membership costs twice that at $120.

Costco was ranked #5 in the National Retail Federation’s 2023 list of the Top 50 Global Retailers.

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