Australia ushers in the ‘Year of the Horse’ – and precious metals are galloping ahead

It has become something of a tradition: by late summer, the Perth Mint unveils the investment designs for the coming year. Since 1 September 2025, the bullion issues for the Year of the Horse from the Australian Lunar Series III have been confirmed. The coins will once again be struck in gold, silver and platinum. Gold issues will include, among others, 1 oz, 2 oz and 10 oz coins, silver ranges from ½ oz to 1 kg, and a 1 oz platinum version is also announced. The impressive 10 kg silver coin is scheduled separately and will be released at a later date.

Why Lunar coins are so popular

Lunar programmes combine annually changing motifs with a traditional legend in which twelve animals determined the order of the zodiac through a mythical race. This gives collectors a clear chronological logic and investors a recognisable product line with consistently high minting quality.

The popularity of the Perth Mint’s series is also due to the strict mintage caps on the standard 1 oz versions – currently 300,000 pieces in silver and 30,000 pieces in gold. The series’ global appeal is linked to its early and consistent implementation, systematically developed by the Perth Mint since the 1990s.

The reverses of the 2026 issues feature a dynamic horse design in motion. The artwork is by Ing Ing Jong, who has created several previous editions of the series. For silver, a separate design has been created, while the gold motif is shared with the platinum coin.

Why silver investors had double cause to celebrate on 1 September

The success story of the Lunar coins is also a striking illustration of the success story of gold and silver themselves. From today’s perspective, it seems almost unimaginable that in early September 1999, the price of a troy ounce of gold stood at €290 and silver at around €5. Yet, at the very moment the new Lunar coins were launched in September 2025, both gold and silver were setting fresh record highs.

Since the introduction of the euro, gold averaged around €250 per ounce in the late 1990s. During the financial crisis, the upward momentum accelerated, peaking at over €1,350 per ounce in September 2011. After a correction, the euro gold price temporarily fell below €1,000 in the mid-2010s. With the pandemic, gold reached new euro highs in August 2020 of between €1,630 and €1,740. In 2024 and 2025, records above €3,000 per ounce followed.

Silver moved along a similar path. After 1999, it remained for years in the low single-digit euro range, trading around €3.90 per ounce in the mid-2000s. Its strong rally culminated in spring 2011 at around €32 per ounce. In the years that followed, silver hovered for a long time above €12 per ounce, before surging again in 2024 and 2025. On 1 September 2025, the euro silver price marked a new all-time high of €34.65 per ounce.

Since 1999, the price of gold has more than tenfolded and silver has risen sevenfold. Those who invested in Lunar coins of gold or silver in recent years have seen handsome increases in value. Many motifs, such as the Tiger or the Dragon, enjoy particularly strong demand due to their symbolic importance in Chinese culture and have long since detached from the metal price in terms of market valuation.

International perspective

The “Australian Lunar Coin Series” of the Perth Mint is now in its third cycle: Series I from 1996 to 2007, Series II from 2008 to 2019, and Series III since 2020. Originally designed as investment products with annually changing zodiac motifs, the series quickly developed a collecting dynamic that went beyond the pure metal value. Early issues from Series I are particularly sought after today, as the actual mintages of many denominations, especially the standard 1 oz gold and silver coins, were well below the current limits of 30,000 (gold) and 300,000 (silver), which supports the market prices of the early years significantly.

The Perth Mint’s Lunar series is considered the pioneer of the “Lunar coin” theme, but several other mints now run their own programmes. The Royal Australian Mint has announced a 2026 Lunar investment series featuring the Fire Horse. The Royal Mint in Britain has also issued Lunar coins for investors in the past. The Royal Canadian Mint continues its annual Lunar-themed issues in silver and gold, with the 2026 editions already listed in shop archives as of 2025.

Symbolism of the Horse

The 2026 design is expected to draw additional demand. In Chinese culture, the horse symbolises vitality, speed and endurance. The zodiac sign is associated with qualities such as independence, vigour and a strong love of freedom. The year 2026 is classified in the elemental cycle as the Year of the Fire Horse, linked to particularly dynamic and passionate energy. These associations explain why horse motifs are often interpreted as symbols of forward motion and why such designs are sought after as good luck charms or symbolic companions for the start of a new year.