Keqin Sun: Monthly Report of Modern Chinese Circulating Coins

Keqin Sun

Beijing has been coated by snow in December. Did it snow in your city? As a traditional Chinese saying goes, “A fall of seasonable snow gives promise of a fruitful year.” Such auspicious thought reflects the current Chinese modern circulating coin market.

This month, the major auctions were held accordingly. Collectors have demonstrated their purchasing power. The interest in the boutique sector cooled a bit as collectors preferred to bid for mid-class rarities in order to reduce the risk of investment. The performance of Chinese modern circulating coins was better than our expectations and presented an uptrend. A total of 976 lots were featured in the Coin001.com Autumn Auction. The close rate was at 98% and the total transaction amount was 8,195,000 CNY (about $1,148,422 USD).

This month, the general market performance of the 2023 Chinese Peking Opera Art commemorative coin was steady after its release. The current market price is 8 CNY (about $1.12 USD) per coin, which is quite gratifying. In addition, the People’s Bank of China released its 2024 Circulating Commemorative Coins Issuance Plan on December 7. The New Year series, National Parks series and Peking Opera Art series were still included in the issuance plan. At the same time, the 2024 New Year commemorative banknote has become a focal point in the market. The Chinese numismatic market indeed requires innovation, a fresh value system and a new development process in order to move beyond old concepts and processes.

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The Great Wall coins featured in the Autumn Auction held by Coin001.com included:

• A China 1981 Yuan Great Wall graded NGC PF 70 Ultra Cameo realized 40,211 CNY (about $5,639 USD). The surface of this lot demonstrates a finely frosted design pattern along with a mirrored field. It is unparalleled in beauty.
• A China 1982 Yuan Great Wall graded NGC PF 70 Ultra Cameo realized 31,900 CNY (about $4,474 USD).
• A China 1984 Yuan Great Wall (Shenyang Mint) graded NGC PF 68 Cameo with NGC original condition label realized 57,750 CNY (about $8,094 USD). This lot demonstrates crimson toning and a silky field.
• A China 1984 Yuan Great Wall graded NGC PF 69 Cameo realized 90,209 CNY (about $12,645 USD).
• A China 1985 Yuan Great Wall graded NGC PF 68★ realized 55,111 CNY (about $7,724 USD). This lot is the only NGC-graded example in its type that received a Star designation.
• A China 1986 Yuan Great Wall graded NGC PF 68 Cameo realized 220,000 CNY (about $30,837 USD).

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The circulating commemorative coins featured in the Autumn Auction held by Coin001.com included a set of three China 1984 Yuan – 35^th Anniversary of the People’s Republic of China (Shanghai Mint). The “Speech” and “Dancers” varieties were both graded NGC PF 69 Ultra Cameo and the “Cranes” variety was graded NGC PF 69 Cameo. This set of three contains natural luster, and they are recognized as a rare variety. This lot realized 140,800 CNY (about $19,736 USD).

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Varieties including the China 1985 Yuan 20th Anniversary of the Tibetan Autonomous Region, China 1985 Yuan 30th Anniversary of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and China 1986 Yuan Year of Peace were sold in the Autumn Auction. The price of those lots was steadily trending upward. Coins in original condition with a fascinating appearance are sought eagerly by collectors and they shared the feature of risk prevention.

• A China 1985 Yuan 20th Anniversary of the Tibetan Autonomous Region (Gift Set) graded NGC PF 69 Ultra Cameo realized 73,699 CNY (about $10,330 USD).
• A China 1985 Yuan 20th Anniversary of the Tibetan Autonomous Region graded NGC PF 69 Ultra Cameo realized 56,651 (about $7,940 USD).
• A set of China 1985 Yuan 30th Anniversary of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (Frosted Field) and 1985 Silver 10 Yuan 30th Anniversary of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, both graded NGC PF 69 Ultra Cameo, realized 99,000 CNY (about $13,876 USD).
• A China 1986 Yuan Year of Peace (Frosted Gap) graded NGC PF 69 Ultra Cameo realized 59,729 CNY (about $8,372 USD).

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A China 1987 Yuan 40th Anniversary of the Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region graded NGC PF 68 Ultra Cameo with NGC original condition label realized 140,800 CNY (about $19,736 USD). The lot demonstrates multi-color circular toning and natural condition.

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A China 1989 Yuan 40th Anniversary of the People’s Republic of China graded NGC PF 68 Ultra Cameo realized 177,100 CNY (about $24,824 USD). This lot demonstrates extraordinary position and value in the collecting community.

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A China 1998 5 Yuan Brown-Eared Pheasant (Gift Set) graded NGC PF 69 RD Ultra Cameo realized 31,020 (about $4,348 USD). A China 1996 5 Yuan Tiger (Gift Set) graded NGC PF 68 RD Ultra Cameo realized 23,650 CNY (about $3,315 USD).

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A China 1998 Yuan 100th Anniversary of Zhou Enlai graded NGC PF 69 Ultra Cameo realized 12,320 CNY (about $1,726 USD). A China 2000 Yuan 100th Anniversary of Dunhuang Caves Discovery graded NGC PF 69 Ultra Cameo realized 31,019 CNY (about $4,347 USD). The coin condition of this lot is impeccable. A China 2010J Yuan Shanghai World Exposition graded NGC PF 69 Ultra Cameo realized 9,240 CNY (about $1,295 USD).

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Throughout December, the market performance was exceptionally brilliant. The price trend of partial types performed beyond our expectations. The market experienced an integral consolidation. The pessimism gradually weakened and the value of some segmented collectible categories was preparing to bounce back. We are looking forward to the subsequent performance of the market.

The thoughts and opinions in this piece are those of their author and are not necessarily the thoughts of the Certified Collectibles Group.