This led to fears that the sale of the platinum coins would decrease, as the automotive industry was responsible for approximately a third of platinum consumption. Although the sales of the Platinum Maple Leaf more than doubled from 1990 to 1991 – increasing from 18,000 ounces to 39,000 ounces – this was primarily because the price of the precious metal had "dropped substantially".
This resulted in concerns that the sale of platinum coins would decline, as the automotive industry accounted for roughly a third of platinum usage. Despite the sales of the Platinum Maple Leaf increasing more than twice from 1990 to 1991 – rising from 18,000 ounces to 39,000 ounces – this was mainly due to the precious metal's price having "significantly decreased".