[meteorite-list] Meteorite sales falling with the stock market?

From: Mike Bandli <fuzzfoot_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Sun, 12 Oct 2008 15:24:43 -0700
Message-ID: <20081012222456.DA085105B4_at_mailwash5.pair.com>

At this point in time, my view is that the economic crisis has had little
immediate effect on the meteorite market. My observation has been that
historical and older witnessed falls continue to rise and sell quickly
(especially from the Old-World). More and more rare/historical falls are
reaching the $100+ a gram price, whereas a few years ago they were 'only'
$50/g. I believe there are several reasons for this:

1. Less museums and institutions are exchanging historical material.

2. More historical material is being sectioned down into smaller pieces and
macros making them more expensive (and larger pieces difficult to find).

3. I believe that more and more collectors are aspiring to collect
historical falls.

4. Hard Provenance. Provenance can add exceptional value to a piece and more
and more dealers are providing it pre-sale. (copies of old museum or
collector labels, chain of ownership, etc.).

On the other hand Dessert Finds, USA finds, and planetaries are cheap and
seem to be on a small decline. I believe there are several reasons for this
as well:

1. Dessert Finds: Many collectors have filled their type-collections making
otherwise rare types a little less desirable. Exceptions would be extremely
fresh material, new sub-types, or aesthetic pieces. Look how cheap CV3's
are!

2. USA Finds: There seems to have been a flood of this material over the
last few years - supply/demand. Exceptions would include ultra-rare irons,
rare localities, or old labels/provenance.

3. Planetaries: I'm not entirely sure what is happening here, but Lunars and
Martians could be purchased very cheap (in bulk) in Tucson. Perhaps supply
has overgrown demand. $1000/g planetaries are, for now, a thing of the past.
I believe that they will re-bound in several years, however, making them a
smart buy now.

These three groups may also suffer more as a result of the long-term
economic crisis as collectors begin prioritizing their collections.

I have been keeping a pretty close eye on this and it seems that eBay, for
the most part, is not the place to sell right now. The upside is that eBay
has some great bargains for buyers. As a result, I predict that more sellers
will discontinue the .99 cent selling format and begin using fixed prices on
eBay.

I also get the sense that some dealers are hoarding and/or are on selling
freezes. I haven't purchased much in the last few months only because there
is little for sale that suits my collection requirements. It will be
interesting to see where things are in February at Tucson.

Just my opinion and personal observations... Others' may be different and I
look forward to more posts on this topic.

Regards,

Mike Bandli
?


-----Original Message-----
From: meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com
[mailto:meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com] On Behalf Of al
mitterling
Sent: Sunday, October 12, 2008 2:09 PM
To: Michael L Blood; michael_w_gilmer at yahoo.com; Meteorite List
Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Meteorite sales falling with the stock market?

Hi Michael, Michael, Matt and all,

My sells have been very good this year even a good percentage over last
years sells.

--AL Mitterling
Mitterling Meteorites


----- Original Message -----
From: "Michael L Blood" <mlblood at cox.net>
To: <michael_w_gilmer at yahoo.com>; "Meteorite List"
<meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com>
Sent: Sunday, October 12, 2008 1:40 PM
Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Meteorite sales falling with the stock market?


> Hi Michael and all,
> No, you are not the only one. Aside from some outstanding
> Mali specimens at rock bottom prices (pun intended), my sales
> Are zero since the Democrats fiasco has begun.
> More in the Nov. Meteorite Market Trends....
> (howsabout others???)
> Best wishes, Michael
>
> on 10/12/08 9:27 AM, Michael Gilmer at michael_w_gilmer at yahoo.com wrote:
>
>> Has anyone else noticed a steep drop in sales since the stock market and
>> credit market woes began?
>>
>> My sales this month, so far, have bottomed out. It's the worst first two
>> weeks of a month, for sales, since
>> I started dealing meteorites in January of this year.
>>
>> At first, I thought it was just a normal "hiccup" in sales, which happens

>> from
>> time to time. But as my
>> sale offers languish without a single response, I am now starting to
>> wonder.
>> Is anyone else experiencing
>> this, or is it just me because I have a relatively-small customer base?
>>
>> Regards,
>>
>> MikeG
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> .........................................................
>> Michael Gilmer (Louisiana, USA)
>> Member of the Meteoritical Society.
>> Member of the Bayou Region Stargazers Network.
>> Websites - http://www.galactic-stone.com and http://www.glassthrower.com
>> MySpace - http://www.myspace.com/fine_meteorites_4_sale
>> ..........................................................
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> ______________________________________________
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>
> Totally Green by Twenty Eighteen!
>
> Info on Govnt. Spending (BEFORE current "Bail Out"):
> http://www.michaelbloodmeteorites.com/GvntSpending.htm
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ______________________________________________
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> Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
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>
>

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Received on Sun 12 Oct 2008 06:24:43 PM PDT