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 fears that platinum coin sales would decline, as the automotive industry consumed about a third of the platinum. Despite the sales of Platinum Maple Leafs increasing more than two-fold from 1990 to 1991 – rising from 18,000 ounces to 39,000 ounces – this was primarily because the price of the precious metal had "significantly decreased".