‘Three Wise Men’ Warn Crash Coming, Own Gold

Published here: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-03-31/%E2%80%98three-wise-men%E2%80%99-warn-crash-coming-own-gold

'Three wise men' are warning that the next financial crash is coming and that one of the ways to protect and grow wealth in the coming crash will be to own gold.

The men who have recently warned are Jim Rogers (video below), Martin Armstrong (blog below) and Tony Robbins (video below). Each come from somewhat different backgrounds and are respected experts in their respective fields.

Each has different views in terms of asset allocation and how best to weather the coming financial storm but all are united in believing that gold will act as a wealth preservation tool and will likely rise in value when other assets fall.

Jim Rogers is a world renowned investor who co-founded the Quantum Fund with fellow investor George Soros.  He is an investor, traveler, financial commentator and author who believes that this will be the 'Asian Century.'

In his usual plain speaking, honest manner, Jim Rogers warned on Bloomberg TV that

"the Federal Reserve... has no clue what they are doing. They are going to ruin us all." 

Central banks have driven rates to all time record lows and in the process, debt has "sky-rocketed."

Rogers slams the 'counterfactual' arguments that things would have been a lot worse if the Fed had not done all this, "propping up zombie banks and dead companies is not the way the world is supposed to work. ... It's been nine years and we have nothing to show for it [economically] except staggering amounts of debt."

Rogers is pessimistic about the outlook for America and thinks that Donald Trump will see the US continue on the path to bankruptcy - a path set by Bush and Obama before him.

He concludes the Bloomberg interview ominously by saying that "this is all going to end very, very, very badly."

In recent years, Rogers has consistently said that he wants to own more gold and silver and will continue to accumulate the precious metals on any price dips.

Watch Rogers on Bloomberg TV here

Financial analyst and trends forecaster, Martin Armstrong warned on his Armstrong Economics blog this week that governments are in increasing trouble and people will start to lose confidence in their governments:

"Gold and the stock market will take off when people realize that government is in trouble. When they lose confidence, that is when they will start to pour into tangible assets."

 

  

Armstrong is nervous about gold in the short term and thinks it could fall as low as $1,000 per ounce prior to surging to as high as $5,000 per ounce in the coming years.

Tony Robbins, performance coach and self help guru has warned that "The Crash is Coming."

Robbins, who is focusing more on finances and wealth in recent years and in his latest book, 'Money: Master The Game', says plan now for what's to come. Things may be looking rosy on Wall Street as of late, but the crash will come.

 

 

"We are in a really artificial situation. There is a new high, on average, every month. Feds around the world have been printing money," said Robbins in a tv interview.

Robbins has long advocated owning gold as part of a diversified portfolio and has cited Kyle Bass, Marc Faber and more recently Ray Dalio as his financial gurus. In his recent book, Robbins cited Dalio and recommended an asset allocation strategy that involves a 7.5% allocation to gold.

All Seasons strategy via Ray Dalio via Tony Robbins

---

Given the increasing risks of another financial crash, the warnings from these very different three men should be taken heed of. They underline the importance of being prudent, of real diversification and of owning gold.

The smart money sees what is coming and is once again preparing.

 

Gold and Silver Bullion - News and Commentary

Gold to edge up in 2017 as risk-averse buying offsets oversupply - GFMS (Finance.Yahoo.com)

Gold firm despite dollar strength; political uncertainty supports (IndiaTimes.com)

Massive debt increase forecast by Congressional Budget Office (CBSNews.com)

EU to Trump: Mess With Brexit and We’ll Mess With Texas (Bloomberg.com)

The Fed Is Bedeviled by Keynes's Paradox (Bloomberg.com)

'The Frame' - 150 Metre High Gold Plated Towers in Dubai

Low interest rates are likely to drive fresh investment in gold (Reuters.com)

Jim Rogers Says Fed Has No Clue, Will 'Ruin Us All' (Bloomberg.com)

Savers and Retirees "Impossible" Financial Choices To Make (Bloomberg.com)

CBO Warns Of Fiscal Catastrophe As A Result Of Exponential Debt Growth In The U.S. (ZeroHedge.com)

Why Brexit Makes Gold A Buy (Nasdaq.com)

Dubai begins GOLD-PLATING £35m frame, half the height of the Eiffel Tower designed to offer the perfect view (DailyMail.co.uk)

Gold Prices (LBMA AM)

31 Mar: USD 1,241.70, GBP 9,996.46 & EUR 1,161.98 per ounce
30 Mar: USD 1,250.90, GBP 1,005.72 & EUR 1,165.34 per ounce
29 Mar: USD 1,252.90, GBP 1,007.71 & EUR 1,161.19 per ounce
28 Mar: USD 1,253.65, GBP 996.15 & EUR 1,154.49 per ounce
27 Mar: USD 1,256.90, GBP 1,000.49 & EUR 1,157.86 per ounce
24 Mar: USD 1,244.00, GBP 996.20 & EUR 1,150.82 per ounce
23 Mar: USD 1,247.90, GBP 997.95 & EUR 1,157.93 per ounce

Silver Prices (LBMA)

31 Mar: USD 18.06, GBP 14.50 & EUR 16.91 per ounce
30 Mar: USD 18.10, GBP 14.53 & EUR 16.85 per ounce
29 Mar: USD 18.13, GBP 14.58 & EUR 16.81 per ounce
28 Mar: USD 17.94, GBP 14.29 & EUR 16.53 per ounce
27 Mar: USD 17.94, GBP 14.25 & EUR 16.51 per ounce
24 Mar: USD 17.63, GBP 14.11 & EUR 16.31 per ounce
23 Mar: USD 17.55, GBP 14.04 & EUR 16.27 per ounce

Recent Market Updates

- Brexit Gold Buying – UK Demand for Gold Bars Surges 39%
- ‘Most Secure Coin In the World’ ?
- Gold Bullion Coin Worth $4 Million, Stolen in Berlin Museum Heist
- Gold, Silver Rise 2.5% and 3.2% As ‘Trump Trade’ Fades
- Gold ETFs or Physical Gold? Hidden Dangers In GLD
- Gold Prices See Seventh Day Of Gains After Terrorist Attack In London
- Peak Gold – Biggest Gold Story Not Being Reported
- Silver 1/ 70th The Price of Gold – Silver Eagles Sales Jump
- The Best Ways to Invest in Gold Today
- Gold Cup – Horse Racing’s Greatest Show, Gambling and ‘Going for Gold’
- Gold Up 1.8%, Silver Up 2.6% After Dovish Fed Signals Slow Rate Rises
- Most Overvalued Stock Market On Record — Worse Than 1929?
- EU Crisis Is Existential – Importance of Tomorrow’s Vote

Access Daily and Weekly Updates Here

Interested in learning more about physical gold and silver?
Call GoldCore and speak with a gold and silver specialist today

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Published here: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-03-30/march-comex-silver-deliveries

Interested in precious metals investing or storage? Contact us HERE 

 

 

 

 

March Comex Silver "Deliveries"

Posted with permission and written by Craig Hemke (CLICK HERE FOR ORIGINAL)

 

 

 

It seems that every few months, the charade of "physical delivery" on Comex becomes so outrageous that we feel compelled to write about it. Well, here we are again today.

 

Before we get to the CME-reported numbers, let's start with the usual background...

 

What you need to know is that most of this is just a massive scam. Rarely is any actual, physical metal exchanged. Instead, the bi-monthly Comex delivery process is primarily a shuffle of paper warehouse receipts and warrants. Additionally, the parties to these exchanges of paper are usuallly The Banks themselves, acting in one seemingly endless circle jerk where one month Scotia "delivers" to HSBC and, the next month, HSBC turns around and "delivers" metals back to Scotia. It's been this way for years and it continues to this day.

And the volume of "deliveries" rarely changes, as well. For March, the initial amount of contracts still open and "standing" when the contract went off the board on February 27 was 7,299. Even at the conclusion of First Notice Day on the 28th, there were still 4,271 contracts still open. The delivery month is now complete and a total of 3,855 "deliveries" have been made. How does this compare to previous delivery months? It's about average. See below:

 

Delivery Month	Total "Deliveries"
Dec 2014	2,975
Mar 2015	2,583
May 2015	2,840
July 2015	3,637
Sept 2015	1,555
Dec 2015	3,939
Mar 2016	1,356
May 2016	2,716
July 2016	2,474
Sept 2016	3,215
Dec 2016	3,980
Two-year average:	2,843

 

So, as you can see, the total amount of "deliveries" for March were not extraordinary by any means, though when compared to the previous two Marches, the 3,855 for March 2017 is above average. Regardless, let's dispel with the idea that suddenly there is some surge of physical demand for silver on the Comex for as you can see above, March 2017 was really no different from any other month in the past two years.

 

However, I do want to make note of two items and they both have to deal with The Major Power in Comex silver...JP Morgan. Not only does JP Morgan control about half of the total vaulted silver on the Comex, they only do so after nearly experiencing an extinction-level event back in 2011 when they were caught massively short paper silver with no physical silver with which to cover it. This led to the final short squeeze of April 2011 and all of the events that followed. In response and to prevent this from happening again, JPM was rushed through the approval process for their own Comex silver vault. See here:
https://seekingalpha.com/article/259549-will-jpmorgan-now-make-and-take-delivery-of-its-own-silver-shorts

 

In the years since, JP Morgan has amassed a stockpile of what is alleged to be physical silver in their Comex Vault. As of Monday, their total stockpile of registered and eligible silver stood at just over 94,000,000 ounces versus a total Comex vaulting structure of 191,488,871 ounces. That's just a shade over 49% and JPM now has enough silver to "physically settle" a short position of nearly 19,000 Comex contracts should they ever find themselves squeezed again.

 

How did JPM acquire all of this "physical silver"? Primarily through the Comex "delivery" process. Below are the year-end summaries for just 2015 and 2016 (click to enlarge). Note that the "house" or proprietary account of JPM is the primary stopper of "deliveries" nearly every month, to the tune of a NET 10,199 contracts. At 5,000 ounces per contract, that's just shy of 51,000,000 ounces of their current 94,000,000 ounce warchest.

 

 

 

And this continued during the just-completed March "delivery" month. As you can see below, of the stated 3,855 "deliveries", the proprietary account of JPM stopped a total of 2,689 for nearly 70%. That's another 13.5MM ounces added to the stockpile for use in the event of another paper metal short squeeze.

 

 

Lastly, just one other item of note. Since there is a stated position limit of just 1,500 contracts for each front/delivery month, you might be asking yourself how JPM gets away with stopping far more than that number. If you go back and look at the 2015 and 2016 tables above, note that they seem to adhere to these limits each month. So why and how did they manage to stop 2,689 in March? That's a good question so I took the time yesterday to submit a formal complaint to the CFTC:

 

 

Given my past experience in dealing with the CFTC, in no way do I expect any aggressive action from this neutered and fully-controlled agency. Instead, I just thought it would be fun to see if I heard anything back from them at all. Will I even get a response? I can tell you that, so far, I haven't even received one of those "thank you for writing us, we'll look into it" emails so it's not looking good. However, if I do eventually hear from them, I'll be sure to write follow-up to this post.

 

 

Thanks for reading and thanks for taking the time to understand some of the forces aligned against you in the Bullion Bank Paper Derivative Pricing Scheme.

 

 

 

Questions or comments about this article? Leave your thoughts HERE.

 

 

 

 

 

March Comex Silver "Deliveries"

Posted with permission and written by Craig Hemke (CLICK HERE FOR ORIGINAL)

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Brexit Gold Buying - UK Demand for Gold Bars Surges 39%

Published here: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-03-30/brexit-gold-buying-uk-demand-gold-bars-surges-39

Brexit Gold Buying - UK Demand for Gold Bars Surges 39% 

- UK investors buy gold bars as demand surges 39% in 2016
- Brexit Day sees Article 50 triggered and pound weakens
- "Brexit nerves" see "Brits hoard gold" reports WSJ
- End of 44 year relationship with closest economic partner
- May sets Brexit clock ticking in letter to Tusk
- UK PM says "A great turning point in our story"
- Threat as security raised as negotiating tool
- Brexit uncertainty to impact business and economy
- Robust demand for gold coins, bars due to political and economic uncertainty
- French elections in 3 weeks & U.S. 'Civil War' politics
- UK National Debt now £1.84 trillion 

As the UK triggered its formal departure from the European Union yesterday, gold demand from UK investors remained ongoing and robust with increased numbers of British investors diversifying into physical gold in order to hedge the considerable uncertainty and volatility that the coming months and years will bring.

Gold in GBP - 10 Years

The U.K. government yesterday triggered Article 50–the legal mechanism which will start negotiations on how the UK will exit the EU – after the British voted to leave the EU last June.

This is creating considerable uncertainty and concerns about the political and economic outlook - both for the UK and for the EU itself.

Demand for gold bars by UK investors has surged 39% in 2016 according to GFMS as reported by the WSJ:

The resulting political and economic uncertainty helped drive a 39% rise in U.K. gold bar hoarding in 2016, according to Ross Strachan from GFMS, part of media group Thomson Reuters.

“Macroeconomic fears are conducive to increased investment demand in gold,” Mr. Strachan said. During and after the global financial crisis, he pointed out, global gold bar investment increased from 237.7 metric tons in 2007 to 1246.9 metric tons in 2011.

Given the scale of the uncertainty created by the UK decision to leave the EU, robust gold demand in the UK should continue.

Indeed, given the fact that cohesion of the European Union itself will be tested and there is the risk of contagion, gold demand in the EU should also remain robust. Ireland and the Irish economy is particularly vulnerable.

Gold has edged up in recent days and appears to be consolidating at the $1,250 level. In sterling terms, the pound has fallen against gold and gold in sterling terms is back above the important psychological level of £1,000 per ounce.

The pound fluctuated wildly yesterday against other currencies after the Prime Minister triggered Article 50. A period of intense uncertainty for financial markets, both UK and EU markets and for sterling and indeed the euro awaits.

The negotiations are likely to be fractious and divisive and this uncertainty for UK companies, business in general and for the already indebted UK economy does not bode well for sterling.

It is not not just uncertainty about Brexit talks that will likely support gold. The French elections are now just three weeks away (April 23 and May 7) and the mess that is politics in the U.S. should lead to further safe-haven diversification in the coming weeks.

The 'Trumpflation' meme has run its course in markets and stocks and the dollar looks vulnerable to weakness which should support gold.

The failure last week to overturn 'Obamacare' and the 'Civil War' style politics in the U.S. should also support and those seeking to allocate to gold should continue to do so on price weakness.

Gold and Silver Bullion - News and Commentary

Gold investment seen rising for 4th year in 2017 (Reuters)

Gold slips on firmer dollar; political uncertainty supports (Yahoo Finance)

Gold steady amid Brexit, doubts over Trump policy and French election (Nasdaq)

May's Opening Brexit Bid to Tie Security to Trade Hits Wall (Bloomberg)

Gold Set to Soar to $1,500 as Inflation Makes a Comeback (Bloomberg)

Gold to accelerate amid economic, political concerns - CPM Group (BN Americas)

UK investors exposed - Gold "will smooth investment returns" (Telegraph)

Trump's $4 Trillion Fiscal Hole (The Daily Reckoning)

Welcome To The Third World, Part 22: Whites Are Dying “Deaths Of Despair” (Dollar Collapse)

Stocks are expensive – but they won’t stay expensive (MoneyWeek)

Gold Prices (LBMA AM)

30 Mar: USD 1,250.90, GBP 1,005.72 & EUR 1,165.34 per ounce
29 Mar: USD 1,252.90, GBP 1,007.71 & EUR 1,161.19 per ounce
28 Mar: USD 1,253.65, GBP 996.15 & EUR 1,154.49 per ounce
27 Mar: USD 1,256.90, GBP 1,000.49 & EUR 1,157.86 per ounce
24 Mar: USD 1,244.00, GBP 996.20 & EUR 1,150.82 per ounce
23 Mar: USD 1,247.90, GBP 997.95 & EUR 1,157.93 per ounce
22 Mar: USD 1,246.10, GBP 999.50 & EUR 1,154.76 per ounce

Silver Prices (LBMA)

30 Mar: USD 18.10, GBP 14.53 & EUR 16.85 per ounce
29 Mar: USD 18.13, GBP 14.58 & EUR 16.81 per ounce
28 Mar: USD 17.94, GBP 14.29 & EUR 16.53 per ounce
27 Mar: USD 17.94, GBP 14.25 & EUR 16.51 per ounce
24 Mar: USD 17.63, GBP 14.11 & EUR 16.31 per ounce
23 Mar: USD 17.55, GBP 14.04 & EUR 16.27 per ounce
22 Mar: USD 17.58, GBP 14.12 & EUR 16.30 per ounce

Recent Market Updates

- ‘Most Secure Coin In the World’ ?
- Gold Bullion Coin Worth $4 Million, Stolen in Berlin Museum Heist
- Gold, Silver Rise 2.5% and 3.2% As ‘Trump Trade’ Fades
- Gold ETFs or Physical Gold? Hidden Dangers In GLD
- Gold Prices See Seventh Day Of Gains After Terrorist Attack In London
- Peak Gold – Biggest Gold Story Not Being Reported
- Silver 1/ 70th The Price of Gold – Silver Eagles Sales Jump
- The Best Ways to Invest in Gold Today
- Gold Cup – Horse Racing’s Greatest Show, Gambling and ‘Going for Gold’
- Gold Up 1.8%, Silver Up 2.6% After Dovish Fed Signals Slow Rate Rises
- Most Overvalued Stock Market On Record — Worse Than 1929?
- EU Crisis Is Existential – Importance of Tomorrow’s Vote
- Digital Gold On Blockchain – For Now Caveat Emptor

Access Daily and Weekly Updates Here

Interested in learning more about physical gold and silver?
Call GoldCore and speak with a gold and silver specialist today

Read More

‘Most Secure Coin In World’ ?

Published here: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-03-29/%E2%80%98most-secure-coin-world%E2%80%99

‘Most Secure Coin In World’ ? 

 - New pound coin ‘most secure coin in world' ? 
- New British £1 coins much harder to counterfeit
- Pound coin uses "secret" cutting edge technology
- Coins uses 'iSIS' technology which may involve RFID tags
- Central banks, governments may be able to track coins
- Libertarians and privacy advocates will have concerns
-  "Secure coin" yes but real risk is that savings not secure due to currency debasement
- Now new risk to bank deposits as all digital wealth exposed to hacking and cyber fraud
- Sound as a pound? Safer to stick with true "coin of the realm" 
- Gold and silver Sovereigns and Britannias  (VAT and CGT free) are only truly secure coins

The UK launched what is being touted as the "most secure coin in the world" yesterday - the day before Brexit day.

People have reacted with mixed emotions regarding the introduction of the newly designed pound coin which entered circulation yesterday. The new coins have been created using “cutting edge technology” by the Royal Mint

The new 12-sided coin will replace the current one, which has been in use for three decades. The current pound coin will remain legal tender alongside the new coin for just over six months until 15 October this year, after which retailers are under no obligation to accept it.

The pound coin will be harder to counterfeit. In May 2015, a survey by the Royal Mint found that some 2.5% of pound coins had been faked.

As we told Fox News SciTech correspondent James Rogers yesterday:

"The coin's many anti-counterfeiting features are interesting and they sound like they will be quite effective. High quality forgeries can be made of most coins these days but it will be very expensive for forgers to try and mint such high quality coins that will fool the authorities.

A few coins might be "passed off" and fool the public or retailers but it would likely be few and given the degree of work and very high cost involved, it likely would not be worth the intense effort."

The hidden high-security feature which is built into the coin itself is a well kept secret. Informed speculation is that it is some form of physical layer within the coin itself which will allow the coins to be scanned and verified in order to find fakes.

This may involve radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology which uses electromagnetic fields to automatically identify and track objects including coins which have been tagged. The tags contain electronically stored information.

It has been reported that the coin has Integrated Secure Identification Systems (iSIS) technology which was previously only available in paper bank notes.

However, there is confusion and different reporting regarding whether Integrated Secure Identification Systems (iSIS) is a technology developed by the Royal Mint or whether it is a security technology company or both.

The Independent reported yesterday that:

The Government has employed a security technology company called Integrated Secure Identification System (iSIS) to fit the new coins with a special plating that can contain electromagnetic signatures. It's also said to be especially hard to remove.

However there is some confusion about this as nearly exactly a year ago The Mirror reported that the Royal Mint themselves had been forced to change the name of the hi-tech security feature - 'ISIS' - in the new £1 coin. They said that it was an "unfortunate coincidence", that Integrated Secure Identification Systems shares an acronym with the terrorist group.

It is believed that the iSIS technology can be inserted as a physical security layer within each coin. This mean that thousands of coins could be scanned and verified for authenticity within seconds.

This means that central banks and governments may have valuable data in terms of being able to track the coins and currency in real time and see the 'flow' of capital. Libertarians and privacy advocates would have concerns about this as in the hands of a totalitarian government, such technology could be abused.

The security features likely mean that it is more attractive for criminals to attempt to counterfeit more high value paper bank notes such as £100 bank notes, $100 dollar bills and the €500 euro notes which are being phased out by the end of 2018.

In this digital age, where currency is increasingly digital and we move towards a cashless society, the real threat comes from more serious tech savvy criminals in the form of the hackers who are increasingly focusing on hacking computers, iphones and ipads in order to raid bank, brokerage accounts and other forms of digital wealth including digital bullion vault platforms.

In a world where the New York Federal Reserve can be hacked and have over $100 million dollars stolen as happened to some foreign exchange reserves of the central bank of Bangladesh... few online accounts are completely safe.

Individuals, companies and nations need to be aware of, cautious of and pro active about such risks. Cyber criminality is a real risk to the wealth of people and indeed nations.

A far greater risk than a few fake pound, euro or dollar coins or indeed bank notes.

Finally, the new pound coin may be "the most secure coin in the world." However, given Brexit, the pound sterling alas is unlikely to be the most secure currency in the world.

Gold in sterling terms surged over 30% in 2016 and the pound is likely to see further weakness in 2017 due to Brexit concerns.

In a world where currencies continue to be debased to quite a significant degree, to talk about a 'secure' coin or paper currency which can be minted or printed at will seems like a bit of an oxymoron.

Legal tender coins and paper notes are very difficult to forge today, however central banks can create them at will and in the process debase the coinage, notes and electronic currency and devalue our currencies and savings.

 

It is interesting that the new pound coins have kept the traditional gold and silver colours and have the look of gold and silver coins. They are bimetallic and actually made of two base metals. The gold-colour is on the outer ring is nickel-brass and the silver colour on the inner ring is nickel-plated alloy.

Human beings instinctually realise the rarity and intrinsic value of gold and silver and therefore trust gold and silver coins or even debased coinage that looks like gold and silver coins.

Classic currency debasement continues and underlines the importance of being diversified and having an allocation to physical gold and silver coins and bars.

The new pound is not as 'sound as a pound'. Far safer for savers to own true "coin of the realm" which are legal tender bullion coins.

In the UK, these remain tried and tested gold sovereigns and gold and silver Britannias (VAT and CGT free) ... the only truly secure coins.

 

Gold and Silver Bullion - News and Commentary

Britain Heads Into the Unknown as May Signs Brexit Letter (Bloomberg.com)

Global stocks up, formal Brexit start casts shadow over sterling (Reuters.com)

Gold prices slip on solid U.S. data, firmer dollar (Reuters.com)

Gold falls below 1-month high as dollar, Treasury yields rise (Reuters.com)

British Prime Minister Theresa May signs the official letter invoking Article 50, on March 28, 2017 in London. Photographer: Christopher Furlong/WPA Pool/Getty Images

Debt is eating foundations of equity market - Stepek (MoneyWeek.com)

Debt limit looks like a real struggle after health bill debacle (MarketWatch.com)

Russia amasses tons of gold as defense against US dollar (PravdaReport.com)

Gold & Silver Surge As Traders Brace For Market Shock, But Here Is What Is So Unbelievable About Today (KingWorldNews.com)

Analyst Sees Gold Price Rally Rooted in Uncertainty (Bloomberg.com)

Gold Prices (LBMA AM)

29 Mar: USD 1,252.90, GBP 1,007.71 & EUR 1,161.19 per ounce
28 Mar: USD 1,253.65, GBP 996.15 & EUR 1,154.49 per ounce
27 Mar: USD 1,256.90, GBP 1,000.49 & EUR 1,157.86 per ounce
24 Mar: USD 1,244.00, GBP 996.20 & EUR 1,150.82 per ounce
23 Mar: USD 1,247.90, GBP 997.95 & EUR 1,157.93 per ounce
22 Mar: USD 1,246.10, GBP 999.50 & EUR 1,154.76 per ounce
21 Mar: USD 1,232.05, GBP 989.21 & EUR 1,141.37 per ounce

Silver Prices (LBMA)

29 Mar: USD 18.13, GBP 14.58 & EUR 16.81 per ounce
28 Mar: USD 17.94, GBP 14.29 & EUR 16.53 per ounce
27 Mar: USD 17.94, GBP 14.25 & EUR 16.51 per ounce
24 Mar: USD 17.63, GBP 14.11 & EUR 16.31 per ounce
23 Mar: USD 17.55, GBP 14.04 & EUR 16.27 per ounce
22 Mar: USD 17.58, GBP 14.12 & EUR 16.30 per ounce
21 Mar: USD 17.31, GBP 13.88 & EUR 16.01 per ounce

Recent Market Updates

- Gold Bullion Coin Worth $4 Million, Stolen in Berlin Museum Heist
- Gold, Silver Rise 2.5% and 3.2% As ‘Trump Trade’ Fades
- Gold ETFs or Physical Gold? Hidden Dangers In GLD
- Gold Prices See Seventh Day Of Gains After Terrorist Attack In London
- Peak Gold – Biggest Gold Story Not Being Reported
- Silver 1/ 70th The Price of Gold – Silver Eagles Sales Jump
- The Best Ways to Invest in Gold Today
- Gold Cup – Horse Racing’s Greatest Show, Gambling and ‘Going for Gold’
- Gold Up 1.8%, Silver Up 2.6% After Dovish Fed Signals Slow Rate Rises
- Most Overvalued Stock Market On Record — Worse Than 1929?
- EU Crisis Is Existential – Importance of Tomorrow’s Vote
- Digital Gold On Blockchain – For Now Caveat Emptor
- Gold $10,000 Coming – “Time To Prepare Is Now”

Access Daily and Weekly Updates Here

Interested in learning more about physical gold and silver?
Call GoldCore and speak with a gold and silver specialist today

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Silver bear market could end here!

Published here: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-03-28/silver-bear-market-could-end-here

Below looks at the performance of Silver, Gold and the S&P 500 year to date. Metals and miners are off to a good start in 2017. Even though the stock market has received a good deal of attention this year, metals have done even better. Is the performance in 2017 the start of something even bigger for Silver & Gold?

CLICK ON CHART TO ENLARGE

It’s been a long time since buy and holders have experienced a bull market in Silver. How long has it been? Silver has created a series of lower highs since 2011. The trend for Silver remains down and now it is being presented with a chance to break this important down trend.

Below looks at the Silver/Gold ratio over the past 10-years. Last summer the ratio hit the top of falling channel (A) and failed to breakout. When this ratio failed to breakout, Gold, Silver and Miners turned weak.

CLICK ON CHART TO ENLARGE

Over the past 9-months, the ratio has created a series of lower high and higher lows, creating a narrowing pennant pattern, that is nearing completion at (1). The end of this pennant pattern is taking place, with the top of the pattern being the top of the 6-year falling channel.

If the bear market is to end for Silver, keep a very close eye on what takes place at (1). Premium & Metals members have played miners to the long side since 12/27/16. Even though Gold & Silver have done well, miners have done even better.

 

GDX is nearing falling resistance, similar to the ratio above. Members are pulling up stops on our miners positions, as the ratio above is testing one of the most important resistance/breakout tests in years. If the Silver/Gold ratio would do something it has failed to do for 6-years (breakout), it would send a bullish message to Silver, Gold and Miners.

 

Blog:  KIMBLECHARTINGSOLUTIONS.COM/BLOG

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Gold Bullion Coin Worth $4 Million, Stolen in Berlin Museum Heist

Published here: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-03-28/gold-bullion-coin-worth-4-million-stolen-berlin-museum-heist

Gold Bullion Coin Worth $4 Million, Stolen in Berlin Museum Heist

 - Gold coin called ‘Million Dollar Gold Coin’ or ‘Big Maple Leaf’ stolen from Berlin museum early on Monday
- World's purest gold coin and in the Guinness Book of Records for its purity of 99999 fine gold
- Gold coin was legal tender, investment grade, bullion coin and only 5 other coins were minted
- The other 'Million Dollar Gold Coin' is still available for sale by GoldCore safely stored in vaults in Ottawa
- Royal Canadian Mint minted the gold coin in 2007 and carries imprint of Queen Elizabeth II
- Like all bullion coins, is worth much more than its legal tender value
- Gold should be stored in secure vaults, in safe jurisdictions such as Singapore, Hong Kong and Zurich

When debating whether or not gold has value or not, the naysayers will often argue that it is a "pet rock" and just a shiny, heavy, cumbersome piece of yellow metal that has no "intrinsic" value.

Ignoring the fact that the majority of humanity still know that gold remains great valued. Even daring thieves realise the value of gold and will go to great lengths to get their hands on it.

Yesterday morning German police received a call from Berlin’s Bode Museum saying that one of the  ‘Big Maple Leaf’ coins had been stolen over the weekend.

• Face Value: $1,000,000
• Composition: 99999 fine gold
• Weight (troy oz): 3,215
• Weight (kg): 100
• Coins in Existence Worldwide: 5
• Coins Currently for Sale Worldwide: 1 (Now maybe 2)

Despite the massive size of the gold coin and huge weight  - it wasn’t too big for thieves and they were more than happy to relieve the Berlin musuem of one of the their prized possessions.

The museum houses one of the world’s largest coin collections, with about 102,000 coins from ancient Greece and about 50,000 Roman coins, so why did they single out this particular one?

World's purest gold coin as "big as a tyre" and one of just seven

The gold coin, issued in 2007, by the Royal Canadian Mint is about as big as a tyre. The 53cm across and 3cm thick coin weighs nearly 100 kilos (221-pounds or 3,215 t.oz). It is made of 99.999% pure gold bullion and is this one of the purest gold coins according to the Guinness Book of Records.

Given the vast size and weight of the coin, this clearly was not an opportunistic theft. Reports state that the alarm system was circumnavigated and a ladder onto a nearby rail track was also found. It would want to be a very strong ladder !

Police shut down the local transport system in order to comb for clues. Whilst this is a crime and one that can never be condoned, it serves a great purpose in showing that gold remains greatly valued and highly coveted and perhaps more importantly of the vital importance of owning gold coins and bars in secure vaults in the safest jurisdictions.

They don’t want the coin

The coin is arguably a collector’s item, but it is unlikely that this is why it was stolen. Thieves had easy access to a 100kg of gold at the highly technical purity of 99.999%. When asked what the thieves would do with the coin, a police spokesman Die Welt: “Either they were hired to do it by someone who wanted to have the coin, but it’s more likely that it will be melted down.”

One of the many reasons we like gold as money is because of its divisibility. It can be melted down, broken into smaller parts. Those smaller parts retain the value of the gold it contains, unlike a diamond which is worth more as a whole rather than broken into fragments.

Gold can be broken up many times over, no matter it’s appearance, it will always be worth the same whether apart or melted into one bar or coin.

The coin with the poker face

The thieves may be keen to melt it down not just because it will make it easier to transport and resell, but because they know that it’s still worth something despite losing it’s current appearance. The face value of the Big Maple Leaf reads CAD 1 million, it is in reality worth around €3.7m, £3.2m or $4m given the value of the total gold content.

We recently wrote about how collectible gold coins should be likely avoided in the majority of situations due to their face value  (and later resale value) failing to reflect the underlying metal content or purchase price.

Some mints or private minting companies have a habit of churning out collector coin sets that commemorate certain events or series.

But this is where this gold coin bucks the trend. As explained above, the coin might have a face value of 1 million Canadian dollars, but in truth it is worth significantly more than that, and it has become more valuable (due to its gold content) since it was minted in 2010.

We’re used to the actual value of money not being what we’re told it is according to its face, but it’s rare that the real value exceeds that face value. The 100 kg of the purest minted gold, is worth several multiples of 1 million Canadian dollars legal tender, but the provenance of the coin also contributes significant value to it.

Will you get your hands on the 'Million Dollar' Big Maple Leaf?

There are legitimate ways to own the Big Maple Leaf, in fact there are four more versions of the coin excluding the one that is no doubt on it’s way to be melted down. However there is only one that is for sale.

A year ago GoldCore announced that we had been given the exclusive rights in the UK and Ireland, to sell one of the five Big Maple Leaf coins. It is the only one that is currently for sale, in the world.

As we explained at the time, owning one of the extremely rare Big Maple Leaf is the opportunity to own a piece of history. It is a unique opportunity to own not only something is rare in its existence but is “It is a collector’s item and commands a premium both for its gold bullion content but also for being incredibly rare.”

Don’t store your gold in a public place

Whilst this escapade is another example of how gold is money, the main lesson of this is that this amount of gold should not be stored anywhere other than a secure vault in one of the safest jurisdictions.

Very few vaults meet this criteria. Loomis International and Brinks vaults as offered by GoldCore's partners in secure locations including Switzerland, Singapore and Hong Kong are some of the safest vaults in the world, provided the coins and bars are owned in allocated and segregated storage.

Unlike the Berlin-based museum, the gold bullion you store with GoldCore isn’t there because of a need to show it off and to allow people to admire it. Allocated and segregated coins and bars are fully insured and owned in the name of the client who have outright legal ownership.

Gold is a safe haven asset but only if held in a safe haven manner. It is locked away in the safest vaults to keep it safe and so it is there when you need it to protect your wealth.

Owning the financial insurance that is physical gold is important in these uncertain times.

Owning gold has protected people throughout history and again in recent years. Bail-ins as seen in Cyprus and now enacted in the EU, UK and U.S. may see deposits confiscated in the same manner that  the Berlin thieves 'confiscated' the gold coin yesterday.

 

Gold and Silver Bullion - News and Commentary

Gold prices hold on to yesterday's gains (BullionDesk.com)

Gold prices end at highest level in a month (MarketWatch.com)

Gold Rallies, Copper Sinks as Health-Care Failure Roils Markets (Bloomberg.com)

Giant Gold Coin Worth $4 Million Stolen in Berlin Museum Heist (Bloomberg.com)

Gold steady as dollar edges up; focus on Trump agenda (Reuters.com)

Buy Gold - High Unemployment & High Inflation Coming - Casey (Youtube.com)

China To Radically Reprice Gold Higher In 2017 (KingWorldNews.com)

Hey! Look! Here I Am! Over Here! - Mogambo Guru is Back (DailyReckoning.com)

Bitcoin Price Rises Higher Than Gold... But Its Value Is A Different Story (Forbes.com)

Fading Trump rally threatened by rare contraction of US credit (Telegraph.co.uk)

Gold Prices (LBMA AM)

28 Mar: USD 1,253.65, GBP 996.15 & EUR 1,154.49 per ounce
27 Mar: USD 1,256.90, GBP 1,000.49 & EUR 1,157.86 per ounce
24 Mar: USD 1,244.00, GBP 996.20 & EUR 1,150.82 per ounce
23 Mar: USD 1,247.90, GBP 997.95 & EUR 1,157.93 per ounce
22 Mar: USD 1,246.10, GBP 999.50 & EUR 1,154.76 per ounce
21 Mar: USD 1,232.05, GBP 989.21 & EUR 1,141.37 per ounce
20 Mar: USD 1,233.00, GBP 993.92 & EUR 1,146.57 per ounce

Silver Prices (LBMA)

28 Mar: USD 17.94, GBP 14.29 & EUR 16.53 per ounce
27 Mar: USD 17.94, GBP 14.25 & EUR 16.51 per ounce
24 Mar: USD 17.63, GBP 14.11 & EUR 16.31 per ounce
23 Mar: USD 17.55, GBP 14.04 & EUR 16.27 per ounce
22 Mar: USD 17.58, GBP 14.12 & EUR 16.30 per ounce
21 Mar: USD 17.31, GBP 13.88 & EUR 16.01 per ounce
20 Mar: USD 17.23, GBP 13.92 & EUR 16.03 per ounce

Recent Market Updates

- Gold, Silver Rise 2.5% and 3.2% As ‘Trump Trade’ Fades
- Gold ETFs or Physical Gold? Hidden Dangers In GLD
- Gold Prices See Seventh Day Of Gains After Terrorist Attack In London
- Peak Gold – Biggest Gold Story Not Being Reported
- Silver 1/ 70th The Price of Gold – Silver Eagles Sales Jump
- The Best Ways to Invest in Gold Today
- Gold Cup – Horse Racing’s Greatest Show, Gambling and ‘Going for Gold’
- Gold Up 1.8%, Silver Up 2.6% After Dovish Fed Signals Slow Rate Rises
- Most Overvalued Stock Market On Record — Worse Than 1929?
- EU Crisis Is Existential – Importance of Tomorrow’s Vote
- Digital Gold On Blockchain – For Now Caveat Emptor
- Gold $10,000 Coming – “Time To Prepare Is Now”
- Silver Very Undervalued from Historical Perpective of Ancient Greece

Access Daily and Weekly Updates Here

Interested in learning more about physical gold and silver?
Call GoldCore and speak with a gold and silver specialist today

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Gold, Silver Rise 2.5% and 3.2% As ‘Trump Trade’ Fades

Published here: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-03-27/gold-silver-rise-25-and-32-%E2%80%98trump-trade%E2%80%99-fades

Gold, Silver Rise 2.5% and 3.2% As ‘Trump Trade’ Fades

Gold and silver jumped another 1% overnight in Asia, building on the respective 1.5% and 2.2% gains seen last week. The 'Trump trade' is fading, impacting stock markets and risk off has returned to global markets with the Nikkei, S&P 500 futures and European stocks weakening.

The precious metals had their second consecutive week of gains last week. Gold rose 1.5% and silver 2% while platinum rose 0.5% and palladium surged 4.8%. Today, gold has risen from $1,247.90 to a one month high of $1,259 per ounce and silver from $17.74 to $17.92 per ounce.

Market Performance 2017 YTD 

The precious metals continue to outperform most assets in 2017. Year to date, gold is 9% higher and silver is 11.7% higher. Platinum is 8.4% higher and palladium has surged 18% to two year highs.

Gold and silver have eked out gains as the dollar and stocks have come under pressure after U.S. President Donald Trump failed in his attempts to abolish Obama care. Trump suffered a major political setback on healthcare reform, raising doubts about his ability to steer the economic agenda.

The dollar has fallen to the lowest level in five months and stock markets globally are seeing sharp falls today. Trump's inability to deliver on a major election campaign promise marked a big defeat for a Republican president whose own party controls Congress, and raised doubts whether he would be able to push through tax reforms and mega-spending packages.

Growing U.S. political  uncertainty is creating concerns that a recent pick-up in global business and consumer sentiment, particularly in Asia, may be impacted.

Bullion coin and bar demand remains robust. US Mint data shows that strong demand for gold and silver coins continued last week.

Sales of gold coins were the highest since the week ended February 10 and silver coin sales were the highest since the week ending January 20.

As reported by Coin News:

- Gold coins advanced by 13,000 ounces after rising by 8,000 ounces last week. Splits include 9,000 ounces in American Gold Eagles compared to 5,500 ounces previously and 4,000 ounces in American Gold Buffalo compared to 2,500 ounces previously.

- Silver coins jumped by 795,000 ounces compared to 220,000 ounces previously. And like in the last two weeks, American Silver Eagles accounted for all sales.

US Mint Bullion Sales (# of coins)
	Friday Sales	Last Week	This Week	Feb Sales	Mar Sales	2017 Sales
$100 American Eagle 1 Oz Platinum Coin	0	0	0	0	0	20,000
$50 American Eagle 1 Oz Gold Coin	0	2,500	8,500	21,000	14,500	122,000
$25 American Eagle 1/2 Oz Gold Coin	0	1,000	0	5,000	1,000	25,000
$10 American Eagle 1/4 Oz Gold Coin	0	2,000	0	4,000	2,000	42,000
$5 American Eagle 1/10 Oz Gold Coin	0	20,000	5,000	30,000	35,000	190,000
$50 American Buffalo 1 Oz Gold Coin	0	2,500	4,000	15,000	7,000	54,000
$1 American Eagle 1 Oz Silver Coin	0	220,000	795,000	1,215,000	1,295,000	7,637,500
2017 Effigy Mounds 5 Oz Silver Coin	0	0	0	19,500	0	19,500

Speculators became bullish on gold and raised net gold longs last week. Bullion banks, hedge funds and money managers boosted their net long positions in COMEX gold after two weeks of cuts and reduced them slightly in silver in the week to March 21, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) data showed on Friday.

There is now the real risk that Trump becomes a "lame duck" President and that his business friendly policies struggle to be enacted. This bodes badly for stocks and the dollar and well for safe haven gold which should continue to see risk averse flows.

 

Gold and Silver Bullion - News and Commentary

Gold hits 1-mth high as dollar slides on Trump healthcare failure (Reuters.com)

Shares slide and pound rallies as Trump's healthcare failure rattles markets (TheGuardian.com)

Stocks stumble on U.S. policy woes; Trumpflation trades suffer (Reuters.com)

Gold rallies to a one-month high (FXStreet.com)

Gold, Silver Log Second Week of Gains; US Mint Bullion Sales Jump (CoinNews.net)

These Charts Show Alarm Bells Ringing on the Trump Trade (Bloomberg.com)

Gold Is Back As Dollar’s Reserve Status Questioned (Barrons.com)

“They hate our freedom?” - Paul Craig Roberts (PaulCraigRoberts.org)

Federal Reserve is almost insolvent (ValueWalk.com)

Gold gains altitude, nears 200-DMA (FXStreet.com)

Gold Prices (LBMA AM)

27 Mar: USD 1,256.90, GBP 1,000.49 & EUR 1,157.86 per ounce
24 Mar: USD 1,244.00, GBP 996.20 & EUR 1,150.82 per ounce
23 Mar: USD 1,247.90, GBP 997.95 & EUR 1,157.93 per ounce
22 Mar: USD 1,246.10, GBP 999.50 & EUR 1,154.76 per ounce
21 Mar: USD 1,232.05, GBP 989.21 & EUR 1,141.37 per ounce
20 Mar: USD 1,233.00, GBP 993.92 & EUR 1,146.57 per ounce
17 Mar: USD 1,228.75, GBP 991.85 & EUR 1,140.53 per ounce

Silver Prices (LBMA)

27 Mar: USD 17.94, GBP 14.25 & EUR 16.51 per ounce
24 Mar: USD 17.63, GBP 14.11 & EUR 16.31 per ounce
23 Mar: USD 17.55, GBP 14.04 & EUR 16.27 per ounce
22 Mar: USD 17.58, GBP 14.12 & EUR 16.30 per ounce
21 Mar: USD 17.31, GBP 13.88 & EUR 16.01 per ounce
20 Mar: USD 17.23, GBP 13.92 & EUR 16.03 per ounce
17 Mar: USD 17.40, GBP 14.08 & EUR 16.21 per ounce

Recent Market Updates

- Gold ETFs or Physical Gold? Hidden Dangers In GLD
- Gold Prices See Seventh Day Of Gains After Terrorist Attack In London
- Peak Gold – Biggest Gold Story Not Being Reported
- Silver 1/ 70th The Price of Gold – Silver Eagles Sales Jump
- The Best Ways to Invest in Gold Today
- Gold Cup – Horse Racing’s Greatest Show, Gambling and ‘Going for Gold’
- Gold Up 1.8%, Silver Up 2.6% After Dovish Fed Signals Slow Rate Rises
- Most Overvalued Stock Market On Record — Worse Than 1929?
- EU Crisis Is Existential – Importance of Tomorrow’s Vote
- Digital Gold On Blockchain – For Now Caveat Emptor
- Gold $10,000 Coming – “Time To Prepare Is Now”
- Silver Very Undervalued from Historical Perpective of Ancient Greece
- Gold Investing 101 – Beware Unallocated Gold Accounts With Indebted Bullion Banks and Mints (Part II)

Access Daily and Weekly Updates Here

Interested in learning more about physical gold and silver?
Call GoldCore and speak with a gold and silver specialist today

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Putting Pennies in the Fusebox, Report 26 Mar, 2017

Published here: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-03-27/putting-pennies-fusebox-report-26-mar-2017

Back in the old days, homes had fuse boxes. Today, of course, any new house is built with a circuit breaker panel and many older homes have been upgraded at one time or another. However, the fuse is a much more interesting analogy for the monetary system.

When a fuse burned out, it was protecting you from the risk of a house fire. Each circuit is designed for only so much current. The problem is that higher current causes more heat, and it can start a fire. So they put fuses in, which burn out before the wire gets hot enough to be dangerous.

The problem is that it’s annoying when a fuse burns out, especially when it’s the last one and the hardware store is far away and/or closed for the weekend. So people all too often put a penny in the place of the fuse. And then, human nature being what it is, they left it there long-term. As an aside, pennies in those days were solid copper, not the copper plated zinc they use today because it’s cheaper.

We would guess that a disproportionate number of house fires were started because an overloaded circuit became overheated, and the protective fuse was replaced with a penny that would keep the juice flowing no matter what.

So, what has that got to do with gold and silver? A penny in the fuse box is a perfect analogy for what President Roosevelt did in 1933. Many believe when he confiscated gold, it was to grab the loot. While we have no doubt that he and his cronies lusted for the gold of the people, he had a more serious purpose.

Until 1933, gold was the core monetary asset in the banking system. When people withdrew their gold coin—redeeming their gold, not buying gold—that forced the bank to sell a bond to raise the gold to redeem depositors. If a bank could not raise enough gold, perhaps because bond prices were going down, then the bank was bankrupt. Another problem is that falling bond prices mean rising interest rates.

Roosevelt was trying to stop the run on the banks, and trying to push interest rates down.

He did stop the run, and interest continued to fall through the end of World War II. However, his act was the monetary equivalent of the penny in the fuse box. In making it illegal to own gold, he made the dollar irredeemable for Americans. Gold is the only financial asset that is not someone else’s liability. Deprived of this outlet, people were forced to be a creditor. The only choice was to lend to the Federal Reserve, the US Treasury, a commercial bank, a corporation, etc.

When people are running to the bank to withdraw their gold coin, it’s like a fuse burning out. You really should find out the root cause when a fuse keeps burning out, and not just jam a solid copper conductor into the circuit. You really should find out why people keep pulling money (i.e. gold) out of the banks, and not just outlaw it.

The reasons were simple. The rate of interest was below the marginal time preference of the savers. This is, of course, the purpose for which any central bank is established: to enable the government and its cronies to borrow more cheaply. And the banks had become unsound (due in no small part to the actions of the Fed taken prior to 1933).

By corralling everyone in the banking system, FDR put a penny in the monetary fusebox. In 1971, President Nixon realized there was one last fuse that could still burn out and thereby signal that all was not well. Americans could not withdraw gold, but foreign governments could. And, led by France, they were doing. So Nixon “closed the gold window”, thereby inserting a second penny.

Now the system was perfect—perfectly irredeemable. Money is credit and credit is money and there is no longer a way for the market to express concerns about either interest rates or soundness. An individual can escape being a creditor if he buys gold (legalized in 1975, after gold was entirely demonetized), but his dollars simply trade hands. The seller of the gold gets the credit-dollars, and the buyer gives them up for the gold. There is zero effect on the banking system (other than causing the price of the dollar to go down).

Unlike the simple and elegant mechanism of the bank run in the gold standard, buying gold is awkward, clunky, and risky for the participants. With dollar-credit no longer being tied to gold, there is a price risk. And of course, price is the motivator for many participants.

Two people, call them Joe and Mary, could both be right that the dollar-credit system is headed towards a crisis. Joe bought at $1,060 in the last week of 2015. Unfortunately, Mary bought at $1,375 in July of 2016. Both bought because of the same reason. But Joe has a big fat gain of $183 and Mary has a loss of $132. This volatility makes people alternatively greedy and fearful, which is not really providing a good signal that the monetary system has problems urgently in need of addressing.

And so the system goes, careening around, from crisis to crisis and nothing gets fixed and there is no signal that is clear to everyone the way a run on the banks is clear.

With this backdrop, we note that the price of gold is on the rise again. Since its low around $1,120 late last year, it has been rising to its current price about $120 above that. What’s more, the fundamentals have been getting stronger at the same time. What could be causing this, and now?

Rising interest rates (which we believe is just a correction in the long falling rates trend) are putting more and more stress on banks and corporations alike. If you have borrowed short to lend long (as all banks do nowadays, this is called “maturity transformation") then rising rates cause immediate pain. Your cost of funding goes up instantly. However, the interest you earn on long-term bonds does not go up. Instead, the market price of those bonds drops. Equity is disappearing from your balance sheet.

Now consider major corporations, who too often borrowed in the short term bond markets. Their cost of funding is rising. Nearly every carmaker now offers 0% financing to qualified buyers. Their cost to offer this is now obviously much higher than it was a year or two ago. And that does not even count if they had used short-term borrowing to finance those loans, in which case their existing book is bleeding cash too.

This same pressure is occurring anywhere a vendor is financing its customers. The vendor can always try to pass through the increased cost. However, if buying volume was anemic previously with lower interest cost, it will only get worse when this cost goes up.

In the housing market, most people are monthly payment buyers. A higher interest rate means a lower price to get the same payment.

And what happens to lower credit corporations who issue junk bonds? Like most corporations they have to roll over their bonds when mature. So far, rising rates has passed over this market and junk bonds have held up. However, should this tide turn, many of these companies will be forced to default under a deluge of rising interest expense, if not softer demand for their products. They are junk credits for a reason, and higher rates can be the final straw.

Or let’s look at the pension funds. They are already badly underfunded. That is, they are already destined to arrive at terra firma. Many have bought equities and real estate in an attempt to juice up their returns. What happens if the prices of those assets comes down significantly?

Finally, let’s look at municipalities. They derive revenue from home building and turnover of not only homes but home furnishings, remodeling, etc. If these markets slow down significantly, their ability to service their debts is going to be taxed to the limits and beyond.

No wonder people are buying gold. Fundamental demand, as opposed to speculative, is when people buy gold coins and bars, presumably not to bring back to the market soon.

Below, we will show the only true picture of the gold and silver supply and demand. But first, the price and ratio charts.

The Prices of Gold and Silver

Next, this is a graph of the gold price measured in silver, otherwise known as the gold to silver ratio. It moved down this week.

The Ratio of the Gold Price to the Silver Price

For each metal, we will look at a graph of the basis and cobasis overlaid with the price of the dollar in terms of the respective metal. It will make it easier to provide brief commentary. The dollar will be represented in green, the basis in blue and cobasis in red.

Here is the gold graph.

The Gold Basis and Cobasis and the Dollar Price

The price of the dollar fell another 0.3 milligrams gold (this is the inverse of the rising price of gold, measured in dollars, +$14). However, this week, the cobasis (our measure of scarcity) decreased a bit. Gold buying this week was biased towards speculation. Last week, we said fundamental buying was a trend but it’s “sputtering”. This is an example.

Our calculated fundamental price of gold is up $3, or still about $160 over the market price.

Now let’s look at silver.

The Silver Basis and Cobasis and the Dollar Price

The story is the same in silver. The price rose, a bit more than the price of gold did. With the rising price, we see decreasing scarcity this week.

Our calculated silver fundamental price rose 4 cents, now about $0.85 over the market price.

We leave on a question today. When interest returns to gold and silver, which metal will have the higher rate? We plan to publish something about this soon.

© 2017 Monetary Metals

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Ring The Alarm: UK Entering Meltdown Mode

Published here: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-03-26/ring-alarm-uk-entering-meltdown-mode

Last week, the Office for National Statistics released the inflation results for the British economy. Even though most analysts weren’t expecting any huge differences, the numbers (updated until February) paint a completely different picture. In February, the inflation rate increased rather sharply. On a month-on-month basis, the CPI increased by 0.7% (whereas January was a month with deflation). The current YoY inflation rate based on the CPI is 2.3%.

‘No big deal’, you might think. But in this case it is.

Just one year ago, in February 2016, the annual inflation rate was just 0.3%. This means the inflation rate has almost EIGHTFOLDED in the past year, with a very clear acceleration since October.

Source: RBC, ONS Data

Could it be worse?

Yes, definitely.

Not only does the ONS release an update on the CPI numbers, it also releases a RPI update. That’s the Retail Price Index, which basically measures the cost increase of goods and services. And in February, this index revealed some shocking numbers.

In just one month, the retail prices of a basket of normal goods and services became 1.1% more expensive. When compared to the results of the previous year, the retail inflation rate is in excess of 3%. That’s right, life has become more than 3% more expensive for the average UK citizen!

And this proves how fast and quiet inflation can come back in our lives. Forget about deflation, the only way is up. That’s why the Federal Reserve is hiking the interest rates, and it’s why the ECB has been hinting at a higher benchmark rate as well.

But this might actually cause a huge problem in Great Britain. Not only is the inflation increasing – and will the Bank of England undoubtedly have to increase its interest rates again, the total debt in the United Kingdom is increasing. Fast.

In fact, several politicians and officials have been ringing the alarm bell, as the savings ratio in the United Kingdom hasn’t been this low since the Global Financial Crisis, and in its latest update, the Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) has confirmed the savings ratio in the UK has now turned negative.

Source: Bank of England

Indeed, the British citizens are spending more than they are earning. This means it won’t be just the government debt level which will increase, but the total amount of household debt will increase as well. The average British household has almost 13,000 GBP in debt (on top of the mortgage) and the Office for National Statistics confirmed the total unsecured debt has increased to almost 350 billion pounds.

This also means the ratio of unsecured debt as a percentage of the average household income has increased to almost 30%, which is once again the highest ratio since the global financial crisis.

Even if you would exclude student debt (although there’s no good reason to do so), the total amount of unsecured debt would be close to 200B GBP, of which 1/3^rd is credit card debt. Meanwhile, the total market share of ultra-long mortgages (30 years or longer) is increasing as well.

Source: Bank of England

That’s a very worrisome situation; the gross and net debt position of the households is increasing whilst the savings ratio continues to drop. And that’s a deathly combination which can’t end well.

> Gold is your best insurance policy against a failing monetary system. Read our Guide to Gold right now, and be prepared!

Secular Investor offers a fresh look at investing. We analyze long lasting cycles, coupled with a collection of strategic investments and concrete tips for different types of assets. The methods and strategies are transformed into the Gold & Silver Report and the Commodity Report.

Follow us on Facebook @SecularInvestor [NEW] and Twitter @SecularInvest

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Gold ETFs vs. Physical Gold - Dangers Of Exchange Traded Funds

Published here: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-03-24/gold-etfs-vs-physical-gold-dangers-exchange-traded-funds

Gold ETFs vs. Physical Gold - Dangers Of Exchange Traded Funds

 by Olivier Garret on Forbes

Gold ETFs are rising in popularity due to their convenience. They’re easy to trade, there’s no need to store anything, and no one is going to break into your house to steal your GLD shares.

But there are a lot of hidden dangers inherent in the structure and operation of gold ETFs that few investors are aware of—and these risks are more pronounced than ever, as the threat of another financial crisis is always around the corner.

Gold ETFs or gold bars? Bars including one kilo gold bar at bullion dealers Goldcore, in London, U.K. (March 11, 2010). Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

Considering the public’s waning trust in the banking system, many investors find themselves wondering how GLD stacks up to owning the real thing. When you look at both assets more closely, it’s clear that gold ETFs and gold bullion are very different investments.

Why GLD Is Not the Same as Gold

SPDR Gold Trust (GLD), the largest, most popular gold ETF, is an investment fund that holds physical gold to back its shares. The share price tracks the price of gold, and it trades like a stock, but the vast majority of investors don’t have a claim on the underlying gold.

The reason for this is that you can only request physical delivery of metal if you own a minimum of 100,000 GLD shares (most investors don’t: at $1,000 gold, 100,000 shares is more than a million dollars). Even if you do own enough shares, the GLD ETF reserves the right to settle your delivery request in cash.

So why is GLD appealing to investors if you never actually own any gold?

For one, the fund is both convenient and low cost. If you’re looking for an inexpensive way to invest in the direction of the gold price, GLD is ideal.

The other advantage is you can employ leverage with options, which can be risky, but it’s something you can’t do with gold bullion. If you’re an investor who doesn’t plan to take delivery and you’re comfortable with a higher degree of risk, GLD can be a good way to gain exposure to the price of gold.

Counterparty Risk on All Levels

While gold ETFs can be a fine investment, they come with a lot of counterparty risk inherent in their chain of custody. And this risk will only grow commensurately with systemic uncertainties.

Think about it: If you own GLD, you must rely on a counterparty to make good on your investment. If the fund’s management, structure, chain of custody, operational integrity, regulatory oversight, or delivery protocols break down, your investment is at risk.

It all raises too many questions. Can you be sure the bank doesn’t front-run its customers? How safe are the fund’s holdings? Is the fund protected by adequate insurance? Is the custodian bank trustworthy enough to safeguard the gold?

The best reason to own gold is as a hedge against risk. It can be your last line of defense in an economic crisis—a form of wealth insurance, if you will. But since gold ETFs are part of the very banking system you need protection from, you must ask yourself if they serve one of the primary purposes for owning gold.

In a period of financial crisis, the risks inherent in holding GLD would only rise. In fact, the frequency and severity of counterparty risks with gold ETFs are already rising.

When you consider how these ETFs function, the problem of counterparties quickly becomes apparent:

The Custodian

When you invest in GLD, you buy shares through an Authorized Participant, which is usually a large financial institution responsible for obtaining the underlying assets necessary to create ETF shares.

When it does so, it is buying shares in the fund’s trustee, the SPDR Gold Trust. The trustee then uses a custodian (HSBC) to source and store the gold for it.

Trust in the custodian is paramount: If you’re buying gold as a hedge against a failure in the financial system, you must be confident that the custodian would not be impaired if a crisis were to happen.

As HSBC is one of the world’s largest banks, you simply don’t have that assurance. If there’s a systemic disruption, your GLD shares would likely be negatively affected.

The Sub-Custodian

Custodians like HSBC can use sub-custodians, such as another bank, to source and store gold. So in addition to the risk you assume with the fund’s primary custodian, you’re now exposed to even more risk because it has added another counterparty.

The Trustee

There are no written contractual agreements between sub-custodians and the trustees or the custodians, which means if a sub-custodian drops the ball, the ability of the trustee or the custodian to take legal action is limited.

This leaves the trustee on the hook for any negligence. But trustees don’t insure the gold for gross negligence; they leave that to the custodian, who secures limited general insurance coverage for the contents of the vaults. The value of the gold in the vaults is likely to be much greater than this limited policy would cover.

What this all boils down to is that if anything happens to any of the counterparties, you’re the one who loses. And you have zero recourse.

Full article on Forbes

 

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