the day before all non essential store (precious metal brokers) closed here I went to two and the asking price for silver was double the online spot for physical 1 ounce coins (not a high grade collectors coin just silver rounds)
It looks like it’s still close to that online at the large sellers, like apmex and Kitco.
For example, the spot price for silver is around $15, but the cheap, generic silver rounds are at $20 an ounce, 25% premium. American Eagles 40% premium.
I've heard that retail sellers deliberately milk the "it's the end of the world" narrative. They price gouge under the guise of "See! The price of physical gold is dislocating from paper money!"
Premiums on physical silver are always pretty ridiculous, even in non-pandemic times. I've always preferred gold because the margins are a lot more reasonable.
