Costco is expanding its precious metals selection to include platinum bars

Costco The goldmine that is the precious metals market continues to be exploited. The wholesaler is expanding its range to include platinum bars made in Switzerland.

Costco announced Wednesday that in addition to its now-famous gold bars and silver coins, 1-ounce platinum bars will also be available for sale on its website for $1,089.99. The bars will only be sold online and cannot be shipped to Louisiana, Nevada or Puerto Rico, the company said. Interested shoppers will also need a Costco membership, which costs between $65 and $130 per year.

It's no surprise that the company continues to foray into the precious metals market. Gold bars launched at Costco in August 2023 and sold out within hours of restocking less than two months later. Analysts at Wells Fargo reported in April that Costco was selling up to $200 million worth of gold bars each month.

“I got a few calls that people saw online that we were selling 1-ounce gold bars,” Richard Galanti, Costco's then-chief financial officer, said on the company's September 2023 earnings call to the site, they are usually gone within a few hours and we limit two per member.”

The value of gold has increased by more than 40% in the past year and by more than 70% in the last five years. However, the price of platinum has been somewhat steeper in recent years. Platinum's value has risen more than 15% in the past 12 months, although it has fallen more than 8% since surpassing $1,100 in early 2024.

—CNBC's Jeff Cox contributed to this report.