Gaining 11 percent since the beginning of the year, gold prices are following an upward trend and continue to hit historic highs, the impact of which is also apparent on the number of gold coins produced by the mint. According to statistics from the office, a total of 344,130 gold coins were minted in May, down from 945,133 in the preceding month, registering a 63.6 percent fall. Last year, the office minted 819,248 gold coins in May, 58 percent more than a year later. Eighty-four percent of gold coins minted last month were in the form of quarter-piece coins (çeyrek altını), the price of which has recently approached TL 110, whereas a Cumhuriyet altını sells for four times this figure.
The first five months of the year saw gold coin production up compared to a year ago, rising by 15.8 percent to 3.73 million pieces. In the January-May period of last year this figure was 3.22 million. The first five months of the year also saw the smallest gold coin, çeyrek altın, account for the largest part of gold production, with a share of 73.4 percent of all gold coins produced.
