Royal Canadian Mint Proud to Report Profits and Performance for Q1 2019

OTTAWA, ONTARIO – May 21, 2019 – The Royal Canadian Mint (the "Mint" or the "Company") is pleased to release its financial results for the 13 weeks ended March 30, 2019, which provide insight into our activities, the markets influencing our businesses and our expectations for the year ahead.

"The Mint has demonstrated agility in this first quarter by capitalizing on market opportunities. Demand for gold and silver bullion is up, refining volumes are above plan and storage volumes remain steady and healthy", said Marie Lemay, President and CEO of the Royal Canadian Mint. "With the ongoing implementation of our new numismatics strategy, the Mint continues to build a strong sustainable future for all of our businesses."
 
The financial results should be read in conjunction with the Company's Quarterly Report available at www.mint.ca. All monetary amounts are expressed in Canadian dollars, unless otherwise indicated.

Financial and Operational Highlights

• Consolidated profit before income tax and other items was $10.8 million for the quarter (2018 – $6.8 million).
• Consolidated profit for the period was $7.7 million for the quarter (2018 – $4.8 million).
• Consolidated revenue increased to $350.7 million in the first quarter of 2019 (2018 - $340.9 million) as higher overall bullion global market demand led to higher bullion volumes.
• Gold volumes were 123.8 thousand ounces (2018 – 108.5 thousand) while silver volumes were 5.5 million ounces (2018 – 4.8 million).
• Sales of numismatic products were slightly behind 2018 having decreased to $27.3 million (2018 - $28.0 million)
• Foreign circulation revenue decreased 53% year over year with production and/or shipment returning to more normal levels at 194 million foreign coins and blanks compared to the exceptional year in 2018 with 505 million coins and blanks.
• Canadian circulation coin production was 70 million pieces in the quarter (2018 - 69 million pieces).
• Operating expenses remained consistent compared to the same period in 2018 at $22.4 million. Marketing and sales expenses decreased 11% due to the timing of marketing campaigns in 2019 compared to 2018 and lower distribution costs. Administration expenses increased 7% due to higher employee and consulting costs primarily to support the repositioning of the Numismatic business and the on-going leadership team transition.
• Cash increased to $83.4 million for the quarter (December 31, 2018 – $66.4 million). The Mint expects to pay a dividend to Canada in the fourth quarter of 2019 from excess cash above the level of cash required to support the Mint's ongoing operations. 

Consolidated results and financial performance

(in CAD $ millions)

(1) A reconciliation from Profit for the period to Profit before income tax and other items is included on page 10 of the Mint's 2019 First Quarter Report.

To read more of the Mint's First Quarter Report for 2019, please visit www.mint.ca, www.facebook.com/CanadianMint/, or @CanadianMint.

About the Royal Canadian Mint

The Royal Canadian Mint is the Crown corporation responsible for the minting and distribution of Canada's circulation coins. An ISO 9001 certified company, the Mint is recognized as one of the largest and most versatile mints in the world, offering a wide range of specialized, high quality coinage products and related services on an international scale. For more information on the Mint, its products and services, visit www.mint.ca.

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

This Earnings Release contains forward-looking statements that reflect management's expectations regarding the Mint's objectives, plans, strategies, future growth, results of operations, performance, and business prospects and opportunities. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words or phrases such as "plans", "anticipates", "expects", "believes", "estimates", "intends", and other similar expressions. These forward-looking statements are not facts, but only estimates regarding expected growth, results of operations, performance, business prospects and opportunities (assumptions). While management considers these assumptions to be reasonable based on available information, they may prove to be incorrect. These estimates of future results are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from what the Mint expects. These risks, uncertainties and other factors include, but are not limited to, those risks and uncertainties set forth in the Risks to Performance section of the Narrative Discussion, as well as in Note 11 – Financial Instruments and Financial Risk Management to our Audited Consolidated Financial Statements.

The forward-looking statements included in this Earnings Release are made only as of May 15, 2019, and the Mint does not undertake to publicly update these statements to reflect new information, future events or changes in circumstances or for any other reason after this date.

For more information, please contact:

Alex Reeves
Senior Manager, Public Affairs
Tel: (613) 949-5777
reeves@mint.ca