Gold World News Flash

Jeff Killeen: A Picky Player's Guide to a Cautiously Optimistic Mining Market
Jeff Killeen: A Picky Player's Guide to a Cautiously Optimistic Mining Market
Jeff Killeen: A Picky Player's Guide to a Cautiously Optimistic Mining Market
European Central Bank now considering even negative interest rates
James Rickards: The Death of Money | McAlvany Commentary
Gold market manipulation update, March 2014
One Of The Greatest Market Calls In History Happened In Silver
Silver Update 3/17/14 Debt Destruction
A List Of 97 Taxes Americans Pay Every Year
Leeb – THERE IS A CONSPIRACY IN THE SILVER MARKET
Six Questions About Russia, Crimea, And Ukraine
Americans can't retire as Bill Gross sees 'financial repression'
Greek Government, And Bailout Deal, On Verge Of Collapse Due To Definition Of "Fresh Milk"
Bundesbank seen softening on bond monetization in Europe
The Gold Price Rose Closing at $1,311.40
The Gold Price Rose Closing at $1,311.40
Gold Price Volatility
China Gold Trade Finance: Goldman Wrong, Says UBS
China Gold Trade Finance: Goldman Wrong, Says UBS
Gold Daily and Silver Weekly Charts - Option Expiration Tomorrow
Gold Daily and Silver Weekly Charts - Option Expiration Tomorrow
Gold Seeker Closing Report: Gold and Silver End Slightly Higher
Either U.S. Economy Collapses or WWIII -- Mike Rivero
Rick Rule - We’re Going To See 300% To 400% Gains From Here
How QE Simulates a Real Economic Recovery
Why Nickel May Be Just Beginning a Major Price Breakout Move
2014 Year of Commodities (March Update)
S&P500, GOLD And Crude OIL Outlook
Leeb - There Is A Conspiracy In The Silver Market
Gold Prices Hit 5-Week Low as Stockmarkets Rise, Analysts Get "Ugly" Bearish
Gold Projection by the Golden Ratio
TF Metals Report: Again, this isn't complicated
Gold Price Volatility
Another Curious Inflow For The Gold ETF
Physical Gold Best Protection against Corrupt Governments and Geopolitical Tensions
New Jersey Mining Company Reports Additional High-Grade Channel Sampling at the McKinley Mine
Will Inflation Make A Comeback In 2014 When The Consensus Worries About Deflation
Gold and Silver Price Breakdown Confirmation
Serious Gold Investors
Serious Gold Investors
Serious Gold Investors
Serious Gold Investors
Gold for Prudence, Not Mining Stocks
Gold for Prudence, Not Mining Stocks
The 60th Anniversary of Nothing Special
Richard Russell - This Is What Americans Are Doing To Survive

Jeff Killeen: A Picky Player's Guide to a Cautiously Optimistic Mining Market

Posted: 26 Mar 2014 01:00 AM PDT

The price of gold may be enjoying a double-digit increase so far this year and some equities may even have doubled their value, but Jeff Killeen of CIBC World Markets says it's not time to jump into metals with both feet. Be selective, he says. In this interview with The Gold Report, Killeen shares the higher-quality names that have a prospect for development.

Jeff Killeen: A Picky Player's Guide to a Cautiously Optimistic Mining Market

Posted: 26 Mar 2014 01:00 AM PDT

Jeff Killeen: A Picky Player's Guide to a Cautiously Optimistic Mining Market

Posted: 26 Mar 2014 01:00 AM PDT

The price of gold may be enjoying a double-digit increase so far this year and some equities may even have doubled their value, but Jeff Killeen of CIBC World Markets says it's not time to jump into...

Visit the aureport.com for more information and for a free newsletter

European Central Bank now considering even negative interest rates

Posted: 26 Mar 2014 12:56 AM PDT

ECB Mulls Bolder Moves to Guard Against Low Inflation

By Brian Blackstone
The Wall Street Journal
Tuesday, March 25, 2014

European Central Bank officials sent strong signals Tuesday that they are willing to consider dramatic steps to guard against dangerously low inflation, suggesting that the bank is prepared to shed some of its traditionally cautious approach.

The possible tools, cited by some top policy makers from different parts of the euro zone, include effective negative interest rates -- meaning rates so low that commercial banks would essentially pay the ECB to park their extra cash overnight. They also include purchases of government or private-sector debt to hold down long-term rates and spur lending. ...

"We haven't exhausted our maneuvering room" on interest rates, Bank of Finland Governor Erkki Liikanen, told The Wall Street Journal in an interview in Helsinki. Mr. Liikanen is on the ECB's 24-member governing council. Asked what tools the ECB has remaining, Mr. Liikanen cited a negative deposit rate as well as additional loans to banks and asset purchases. ...

For the full story:

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB1000142405270230372540457946119107...

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GoldMoney was established in 2001 by James and Geoff Turk and is safeguarding more than $1.7 billion in metals and currencies. Buy gold, silver, platinum, and palladium from GoldMoney over the Internet and store them in vaults in Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, taking advantage of GoldMoney's low storage rates, among the most competitive in the industry. GoldMoney also offers delivery of 100-gram and 1-kilogram gold bars and 1-kilogram silver bars. To learn more, please visit:

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Join GATA here:

Mines and Money Hong Kong
Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre
Monday-Friday, March 24-28, 2014
Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China

http://www.minesandmoney.com/hongkong/

Porter Stansberry Natural Resources Conference
AT&T Performing Arts Center
Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House
2403 Flora St., Dallas, Texas
Saturday, May 31, 2014

http://stansberrydallas.com/

Canadian Investor Conference 2014
Vancouver Convention Centre West
1055 Canada Place, Vancouver, British Columbia
Sunday and Monday, June 1 and 2, 2014

http://cambridgehouse.com/event/25/canadian-investor-conference-2014-inc...

* * *

Support GATA by purchasing DVDs of our London conference in August 2011 or our Dawson City conference in August 2006:

http://www.goldrush21.com/order.html

Or by purchasing a colorful GATA T-shirt:

http://gata.org/tshirts

Or a colorful poster of GATA's full-page ad in The Wall Street Journal on January 31, 2009:

http://gata.org/node/wallstreetjournal

Help keep GATA going

GATA is a civil rights and educational organization based in the United States and tax-exempt under the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. Its e-mail dispatches are free, and you can subscribe at:

http://www.gata.org

To contribute to GATA, please visit:

http://www.gata.org/node/16

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How to profit with silver --
and which stocks to buy now

Future Money Trends is offering a special 16-page silver report with profiles of nine companies and technical analysis of their stock performance. Six of the companies have market capitalizations of less than $800 million and one company has a market cap of only $30 million. The most exciting of these companies will begin production in a few weeks and has a market cap of just $150 million.

Half of all proceeds from the sale of this report will be donated to the Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee to support its efforts exposing manipulation and fraud in the gold and silver markets.

To learn about this report, please visit:

http://www.futuremoneytrends.com/index.php?option=com_content&id=376&tmp...

James Rickards: The Death of Money | McAlvany Commentary

Posted: 26 Mar 2014 12:42 AM PDT

This Week's Interview with James Rickards:-Collapse not unprecedented, 3X in last 100 years-Gold required in crises portfolio-Buffet dumps Dollars for hard assets Jim Rickards, portfolio manager at West Shore Funds and author of the forthcoming book, Death of Money, explains the dynamic behind the...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit http://www.GoldSilverNewsBlog.com or http://www.newsbooze.com or http://www.figanews.com for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Gold market manipulation update, March 2014

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 11:54 PM PDT

Remarks by Chris Powell, Secretary/Treasurer
Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee Inc.
Mines and Money Hong Kong Conference
Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre
Wednesday, March 26, 2014

For 15 years the Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee has been documenting and publicizing the largely surreptitious manipulation of the gold market by Western central banks, a longstanding policy of gold price suppression aimed at controlling the currency markets and interest rates. While GATA is a research, educational, and civil rights organization, those who object to examination of our topic call us a "conspiracy theory" organization.

There IS much conspiracy here, but it is easily ascertainable as fact rather than mere theory, conspiracy occurring whenever people gather in secret to plan or implement some undertaking or policy. Meeting in secret to plan or implement policy is, of course, the very definition of modern central banking.

After all, when is the last time you were invited to a meeting of the G-10 Committee on Gold and Foreign Exchange or were even told that such a committee exists and meets secretly? When is the last time you were allowed to learn the results of the committee's work without having to bring a lawsuit against the participants, as GATA did a few years ago?

... Dispatch continues below ...

http://www.gata.org/node/9623

The Federal Reserve insists implausibly that it has no other records of the G-10 Gold and Foreign Exchange Committee. The Fed apparently would have the world believe that the committee met only once:

http://www.gata.org/node/9657

It is far more likely that the committee has met many other times and that the records of its meetings would be even more incriminating.

Reams of such documentation -- including minutes of other secret government meetings; admissions by many former central bankers, including four former chairmen of the Federal Reserve; diplomatic cables; and even legislation that remains in force -- are compiled in GATA's documentation archive:

http://www.gata.org/taxonomy/term/21

A summary of the Western central bank gold price suppression scheme and the major documents confirming it is posted here:

http://www.gata.org/node/13644

With the exception of one document -- perhaps the most powerful one -- I mean to review today only the most important documents that GATA has brought to light since this conference was held here a year ago.

That powerful older document is the secret report written by the staff of the International Monetary Fund in March 1999. The report explains that Western central banks conceal their gold swaps and leases because disclosure would impair their secret interventions in the gold and currency markets:

http://www.gata.org/node/12016

Anyone who maintains that gold price suppression is merely "conspiracy theory" and who has not read that secret IMF report either doesn't know what he's talking about or is committing disinformation. Without exception those who dismiss GATA's work have not examined the documentation at all and never agree to discuss it.

So what has GATA uncovered in the last 12 months?

For starters, there have been more incriminating records from the archives of the U.S. State Department, like the transcript of a meeting in April 1974 called by Secretary of State Henry Kissinger to consider the danger that the price of gold might get beyond the U.S. government's control. The minutes of that meeting, published by GATA last November, confirm the U.S. government's long understanding of the "golden rule" -- that is, whoever has the gold makes the rules. The minutes explain explicitly the need for the United States to control the gold price:

Assistant Undersecretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs Thomas O. Enders: It's against our interest to have gold in the system because for it to remain there it would result in it being evaluated periodically. Although we still have some substantial gold holdings -- about $11 billion -- a larger part of the official gold in the world is concentrated in Western Europe. This gives THEM the dominant position in world reserves and the dominant means of creating reserves. We've been trying to get away from that into a system in which we can control. ...

Secretary Kissinger: But that's a balance-of-payments problem.

Assistant Undersecretary Enders: Yes, but it's a question of who has the most leverage internationally. If THEY have the reserve-creating instrument, by having the largest amount of gold and the ability to change its price periodically, they have a position relative to ours of considerable power. For a long time WE had a position relative to theirs of considerable power because WE could change gold almost at will. This is no longer possible -- no longer acceptable. Therefore, we have gone to Special Drawing Rights, which is also equitable and could take account of some of the less-developed-country interests and which spreads the power away from Europe. And it's more rational in. ...

Secretary Kissinger: "More rational" being defined as being more in our interests or what?

Mr. Enders: More rational in the sense of more responsive to worldwide needs -- but also more in our interest. ...

The transcript of this meeting is posted at GATA's Internet site here:

http://www.gata.org/node/13310

On January 8 the market data company Nanex in Winnetka, Illinois, published research showing that the smashing of the gold price in the U.S. futures market two days earlier was not what some had been calling it, a mistaken "fat finger" trade, but the product of a sophisticated high-frequency algorithm trading program carefully designed to take the market down:

http://www.gata.org/node/13478

In the last 12 months commentary in government and other official circles in China has continued to cite the Western government policy of gold price suppression. Gold price suppression is a frequent topic in the news media in China, even as it is a forbidden topic in the Western news media.

For example, in January GATA published the remarks of the president of China's gold mining association, Sun Zhaoxue, to a financial conference in Shanghai, in which he said gold price suppression is U.S. government policy to maintain the dominance of the U.S. dollar in the ongoing international currency war:

http://www.gata.org/node/13446

And in December GATA distributed commentary by Zhang Jie, deputy editor of the Chinese publication Global Finance and a consultant to the China Gold Association, who said the U.S. Federal Reserve manipulates the gold market to protect the U.S. dollar's standing as the world reserve currency. Zhang said:

"Through continuous gold leasing the gold in the market can be circulated and produce derivatives, creating more and more paper gold. This is very significant for the United States. Gold leasing is a major tool for the Federal Reserve and other central banks in the West to secretly control and regulate the gold market, creating gold credit derivatives and global credit conflict."

http://www.gata.org/node/13314

Last September at the London Bullion Market Association's conference in Rome the director of market operations for the central bank of France, Alexandre Gautier, reported that the bank trades gold for its own account "nearly on a daily basis" and is "active in the gold market for central banks and official institutions":

http://www.gata.org/node/13373

Last July GoldMoney's research director, Alasdair Macleod, discovered a 1,200-tonne reduction in the records of the Bank of England's custodial gold inventory between February and July 2013, the period encompassing the gold price smash down of April 2013. The Bank of England refused GATA's request for an explanation of whose gold came out of the bank's vaults and why and whether this reduction had something to do with the plunge in the gold price:

http://www.gata.org/node/12859

Last June the annual report of the Bank for International Settlements confirmed that the BIS trades secretly in the gold market for its clients, central banks. The BIS report said:

"The bank transacts foreign exchange and gold on behalf of its customers, thereby providing access to a large liquidity base in the context of, for example, regular rebalancing of reserve portfolios or major changes in reserve currency allocations. The foreign exchange services of the bank encompass spot transactions in major currencies and Special Drawing Rights (SDR) as well as swaps, outright forwards, options, and dual currency deposits (DCDs). In addition, the bank provides gold services such as buying and selling, sight accounts, fixed-term deposits, earmarked accounts, upgrading and refining, and location exchanges."

The BIS report continued:

"The bank operates a banking business in currency and gold on behalf of its customers. In this business the bank takes limited gold price, interest rate, and foreign currency risk."

The BIS annual report is here:

http://www.gata.org/node/12717

Exactly why are the BIS and its client central banks and the Bank of France secretly trading gold and gold derivatives every day?

The explanation was provided by a presentation the BIS made to prospective members in June 2008, a presentation advertising, among the BIS' services to its members, secret interventions in the gold and currency markets:

http://www.gata.org/node/11012

It is so easy to figure all this out. Anyone can do it. All you have to do is put a specific, critical question to a central bank or the BIS about its activity in the gold market and the purposes of that activity. You won't get an answer.

Since January I have been pressing another such question with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

A few months ago I obtained a copy of a speech given in May 2004 by H. David Willey, a former vice president of the New York Fed, to the American Institute for Economic Research in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Willey said the New York Fed provides gold accounts to bullion banks -- banks that trade gold. Willey's speech begins on Page 53 of the copy cited here and his reference to gold accounts provided to banks by the New York Fed appears on Page 62:

http://www.gata.org/files/WilleySpeechAIERMay2004.pdf

This was more of an admission of the New York Fed's involvement with the gold market than had ever been made officially, so in January I asked the New York Fed's public information office about it: Does the New York Fed provide gold accounts to bullion banks, or did the New York Fed ever do so, as its former vice president said in that speech in 2004?

The New York Fed's public information office acknowledged my question but quickly brushed me off. So I put the question by certified mail to the president of the New York Fed, William Dudley.

Of course I have not enjoyed the courtesy of a response and so have drafted my congressmen into trying to get an answer to this very simple and potentially very telling question. But I suspect that getting an answer from the New York Fed will require another lawsuit.

The gold mining industry is generally oblivious to the issue of gold price suppression. The industry has little idea of the monetary nature of its product and less idea of how its product is priced -- priced by secret market rigging by central banks.

Yes, there has been a little progress on this issue with the gold mining industry lately. Two weeks ago Rob McEwen, founder of mining giant Goldcorp and now CEO of his own company, McEwen Mining, who spoke at this conference a couple of years ago, conceded during his company's fourth-quarter conference call that central banks are probably rigging the gold market. He even complimented GATA by name:

http://www.gata.org/node/13769

But McEwen added that he didn't think there was much point in complaining about it.

GATA disagrees. We think publicity is the decisive element here, because market rigging works only by deception.

But in any case the gold mining industry has not yet done anything to defend itself. Its trade organization, the World Gold Council, ignores the price suppression issue and even frequently distributes disinformation itself.

For the most part gold mining company executives are too scared even to look at the issue, and it's easy to understand why. Mining is the business most vulnerable to government -- for mining rights and royalties, enforcement of environmental regulations, and so forth -- and, as the most capital-intensive business, gold mining is also the business most vulnerable to the big investment houses that are need to finance most mines and that are the very aggressive agents of central banks.

While Western financial news organizations lately have publicized complaints about manipulation of the daily London gold fixes operated by bullion banks, those news organizations refuse to get near anything involving surreptitious intervention in the gold market by central banks, even when the documentation is laid in their laps, as GATA has been laying it there for many years. Gold price suppression is simply a prohibited topic in mainstream financial journalism in the West.

Indeed, in the West the first rule of mainstream financial journalism and particularly financial journalism about gold is never to put a specific critical question about the monetary metal to any of the primary participants in the gold market, central banks. That is, nearly all gold market reporting in the West is, by design, irrelevant distraction at best, disinformation at worst.

This is because the location, disposition, and use of national gold reserves are secrets far more sensitive than the location and disposition of nuclear weapons.

For control of the gold price, as Secretary Kissinger's deputy explained to him in 1974, confers control of the currency and bond markets and control of interest rates generally, which in turn confers control of the value of all capital, labor, goods, and services in the world -- the control of everything that has a price.

Control of the currency markets is more powerful than any military force. Indeed, it is the primary mechanism of imperialism.

It's actually an old story from history. The Nazi German looting of occupied Europe during World War II was done primarily not through force of arms but rather by the rigging of currency exchange rates. Nazi rigging of currency exchange rates turned every resident of an occupied country into an agent of the occupation facilitating the flow of production out of his own country and into Nazi Germany.

This was documented in detail by the November 1943 issue of the U.S. War Department's intelligence letter, Tactical and Technical Trends --

http://www.gata.org/node/10457

-- and by the history of Nazi Germany written in 2005 by Gotz Aly, a book titled "Hitler's Beneficiaries":

http://www.amazon.com/Hitlers-Beneficiaries-Plunder-Racial-Welfare/dp/08...

If you can grasp this much history you may see that my organization isn't about worshipping gold; we are not idolaters. GATA really doesn't care what anyone uses as currency. No, GATA's work is about restoring the prerequisites of human progress -- free markets and transparency and accountability in government, limited government.

Without free markets and transparency and accountability in limited government, no one at this conference has any idea of the real value of his company's product, nor, for planning purposes, what that value might be. To the contrary, most things perceived today as market indicators are mere holograms, illusions, and all economic planning is actually a waste of time.

I'm ready to assist anyone who would like to study the documentation and I'll be glad to receive inquiries by e-mail at CPowell@GATA.org.

Thanks for your kind attention today.

* * *

Join GATA here:

Porter Stansberry Natural Resources Conference
AT&T Performing Arts Center
Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House
2403 Flora St., Dallas, Texas
Saturday, May 31, 2014

http://stansberrydallas.com/

Canadian Investor Conference 2014
Vancouver Convention Centre West
1055 Canada Place, Vancouver, British Columbia
Sunday and Monday, June 1 and 2, 2014

http://cambridgehouse.com/event/25/canadian-investor-conference-2014-inc...

* * *

Support GATA by purchasing DVDs of our London conference in August 2011 or our Dawson City conference in August 2006:

http://www.goldrush21.com/order.html

Or by purchasing a colorful GATA T-shirt:

http://gata.org/tshirts

Or a colorful poster of GATA's full-page ad in The Wall Street Journal on January 31, 2009:

http://gata.org/node/wallstreetjournal

Help keep GATA going

GATA is a civil rights and educational organization based in the United States and tax-exempt under the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. Its e-mail dispatches are free, and you can subscribe at:

http://www.gata.org

To contribute to GATA, please visit:

http://www.gata.org/node/16

Attachment Size

WilleySpeechAIERMay2004.pdf 1.15 MB

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One Of The Greatest Market Calls In History Happened In Silver

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 09:01 PM PDT

Today I wanted KWN to revisit one of the greatest market calls I have ever seen, and it took place in the silver market. The prediction was truly remarkable, only to be outdone by the astonishing and seemingly unbelievable accuracy of the call. The same individual who made the bold prediction in the silver market also called for the price of silver to eventually exceed $142, and shared the real all-time high for silver that will shock KWN readers.

This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Silver Update 3/17/14 Debt Destruction

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 07:30 PM PDT

from BrotherJohnF:

A List Of 97 Taxes Americans Pay Every Year

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 07:05 PM PDT

Submitted by Michael Snyder of The Economic Collapse blog,

If you are like most Americans, paying taxes is one of your pet peeves. The deadline to file your federal taxes is coming up, and this year Americans will spend more than 7 billion hours preparing their taxes and will hand over more than four trillion dollars to federal, state and local governments. Americans will fork over nearly 30 percent of what they earn to pay their income taxes, but that is only a small part of the story.

As you will see below, there are dozens of other taxes that Americans pay every year. Of course not everyone pays all of these taxes, but without a doubt we are all being taxed into oblivion. It is like death by a thousand paper cuts. Our politicians have become extremely creative in finding ways to extract money from all of us, and most Americans don't even realize what is being done to them. By the time it is all said and done, a significant portion of the population ends up paying more than half of what they earn to the government. That is fundamentally wrong, but nothing will be done about it until people start demanding change. The following is a list of 97 taxes Americans pay every year...

#1 Air Transportation Taxes (just look at how much you were charged the last time you flew)

#2 Biodiesel Fuel Taxes

#3 Building Permit Taxes

#4 Business Registration Fees

#5 Capital Gains Taxes

#6 Cigarette Taxes

#7 Court Fines (indirect taxes)

#8 Disposal Fees

#9 Dog License Taxes

#10 Drivers License Fees (another form of taxation)

#11 Employer Health Insurance Mandate Tax

#12 Employer Medicare Taxes

#13 Employer Social Security Taxes

#14 Environmental Fees

#15 Estate Taxes

#16 Excise Taxes On Comprehensive Health Insurance Plans

#17 Federal Corporate Taxes

#18 Federal Income Taxes

#19 Federal Unemployment Taxes

#20 Fishing License Taxes

#21 Flush Taxes (yes, this actually exists in some areas)

#22 Food And Beverage License Fees

#23 Franchise Business Taxes

#24 Garbage Taxes

#25 Gasoline Taxes

#26 Gift Taxes

#27 Gun Ownership Permits

#28 Hazardous Material Disposal Fees

#29 Highway Access Fees

#30 Hotel Taxes (these are becoming quite large in some areas)

#31 Hunting License Taxes

#32 Import Taxes

#33 Individual Health Insurance Mandate Taxes

#34 Inheritance Taxes

#35 Insect Control Hazardous Materials Licenses

#36 Inspection Fees

#37 Insurance Premium Taxes

#38 Interstate User Diesel Fuel Taxes

#39 Inventory Taxes

#40 IRA Early Withdrawal Taxes

#41 IRS Interest Charges (tax on top of tax)

#42 IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)

#43 Library Taxes

#44 License Plate Fees

#45 Liquor Taxes

#46 Local Corporate Taxes

#47 Local Income Taxes

#48 Local School Taxes

#49 Local Unemployment Taxes

#50 Luxury Taxes

#51 Marriage License Taxes

#52 Medicare Taxes

#53 Medicare Tax Surcharge On High Earning Americans Under Obamacare

#54 Obamacare Individual Mandate Excise Tax (if you don't buy "qualifying" health insurance under Obamacare you will have to pay an additional tax)

#55 Obamacare Surtax On Investment Income (a new 3.8% surtax on investment income)

#56 Parking Meters

#57 Passport Fees

#58 Professional Licenses And Fees (another form of taxation)

#59 Property Taxes

#60 Real Estate Taxes

#61 Recreational Vehicle Taxes

#62 Registration Fees For New Businesses

#63 Toll Booth Taxes

#64 Sales Taxes

#65 Self-Employment Taxes

#66 Sewer & Water Taxes

#67 School Taxes

#68 Septic Permit Taxes

#69 Service Charge Taxes

#70 Social Security Taxes

#71 Special Assessments For Road Repairs Or Construction

#72 Sports Stadium Taxes

#73 State Corporate Taxes

#74 State Income Taxes

#75 State Park Entrance Fees

#76 State Unemployment Taxes (SUTA)

#77 Tanning Taxes (a new Obamacare tax on tanning services)

#78 Telephone 911 Service Taxes

#79 Telephone Federal Excise Taxes

#80 Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Taxes

#81 Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Taxes

#82 Telephone State And Local Taxes

#83 Telephone Universal Access Taxes

#84 The Alternative Minimum Tax

#85 Tire Recycling Fees

#86 Tire Taxes

#87 Tolls (another form of taxation)

#88 Traffic Fines (indirect taxation)

#89 Use Taxes (Out of state purchases, etc.)

#90 Utility Taxes

#91 Vehicle Registration Taxes

#92 Waste Management Taxes

#93 Water Rights Fees

#94 Watercraft Registration & Licensing Fees

#95 Well Permit Fees

#96 Workers Compensation Taxes

#97 Zoning Permit Fees

Yet despite all of this oppressive taxation, our local governments, our state governments and our federal government are all absolutely drowning in debt.

When the federal income tax was originally introduced a little more than 100 years ago, most Americans were taxed at a rate of only 1 percent.

But once they get their feet in the door, the social planners always want more.

Since that time, tax rates have gone much higher and the tax code has exploded in size.

Why do we have to have the most convoluted tax system in the history of the planet?

Why can't things be simpler?

In a previous article entitled "24 Outrageous Facts About Taxes In The United States That Will Blow Your Mind", I listed a number of reasons why our federal income tax system has become a complete and utter abomination that is entirely out of control...

1 - The U.S. tax code is now 3.8 million words long. If you took all of William Shakespeare's works and collected them together, the entire collection would only be about 900,000 words long.

2 - According to the National Taxpayers Union, U.S. taxpayers spend more than 7.6 billion hours complying with federal tax requirements. Imagine what our society would look like if all that time was spent on more economically profitable activities.

3 - 75 years ago, the instructions for Form 1040 were two pages long. Today, they are 189 pages long.

4 - There have been 4,428 changes to the tax code over the last decade. It is incredibly costly to change tax software, tax manuals and tax instruction booklets for all of those changes.

5 - According to the National Taxpayers Union, the IRS currently has 1,999 different publications, forms, and instruction sheets that you can download from the IRS website.

6 - Our tax system has become so complicated that it is almost impossible to file your taxes correctly. For example, back in 1998 Money Magazine had 46 different tax professionals complete a tax return for a hypothetical household. All 46 of them came up with a different result.

7 - In 2009, PC World had five of the most popular tax preparation software websites prepare a tax return for a hypothetical household. All five of them came up with a different result.

8 - The IRS spends $2.45 for every $100 that it collects in taxes.

9 - According to The Tax Foundation, the average American has to work until April 17th just to pay federal, state, and local taxes. Back in 1900, "Tax Freedom Day" came on January 22nd.

10 - When the U.S. government first implemented a personal income tax back in 1913, the vast majority of the population paid a rate of just 1 percent, and the highest marginal tax rate was just 7 percent.

If it was up to me, I would abolish the income tax and shut the IRS down.

But neither major political party in the United States is even willing to consider such a thing.

So the monstrous system that we have created will continue to get even bigger and even more complicated.

We are literally being taxed into oblivion, and most Americans don't even seem to care.

Leeb – THERE IS A CONSPIRACY IN THE SILVER MARKET

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 07:05 PM PDT

from KingWorldNews:

I am very surprised to see silver at $20. I would have expected silver to be closer to $30 by now if it were not manipulated, especially given the incredible demand for photovoltaics. This will be a huge driver for the price of silver going forward.

Current events have turned me into someone who believes in conspiracies. There is no question that the silver market is being manipulated, but one of these days the price of silver is going to explode higher. We are seeing the price of copper back above $3 again, and China is getting ready to ramp up their energy infrastructure spending. This will entail spending of well over $1 trillion over the next several years.

All of this means higher prices for commodities in the future, but especially for silver.

Stephen Leeb continues @ KingWorldNews.com

Six Questions About Russia, Crimea, And Ukraine

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 07:03 PM PDT

Submitted by Justin McDonnell via The Diplomat,

The Diplomat‘s Justin McDonnell spoke with Larisa Smirnova, an expert on Sino-Russian relations and professor at Xiamen University, about the crisis in Ukraine, Russian foreign policy, and more.

The people of Crimea have overwhelmingly voted to leave Ukraine for Russia. Threats have been made to sanction Russia, claiming the referendum is in fact illegitimate. Given Europe’s economic dependence on Russia’s energy supplies, will sanctions actually come together and how might that circumvent the situation? Or will it have the opposite effect? And how might Russia respond in turn?

It does not seem that the sanctions are going to be drastic. Nor that they are going to circumvent the situation.

I have a feeling that more and more people in Russia approve of President Putin’s action. The Russian people have had a long-term hidden feeling of shame for the collapse of the Soviet Union that they perceive as humiliating and denigrating them vis-à-vis the West. They believe that the move in Crimea helps to restore Russia’s glory. Military and diplomatic glory is what has constituted the confidence of the Russians for centuries.

Therefore, Russia is likely to ignore any sanctions and/or consider that the price is justified.

For the good and for the bad, regardless of whether this perception is grounded in reality, but this is how many Russians might now feel.

Russia cites the threat of Ukrainian banderavski in Kiev helping Russia’s enemies and the need to protect ethnic Russians. From this standpoint, Putin’s geopolitical ambitions are unlikely to end in Crimea, as nearly all of eastern Ukraine is Russian-speaking. What is the likelihood of Russian efforts to seize further territory and the outbreak of a Ukrainian civil war? Where does the situation go from here and what will happen to former ousted president, Victor Yanukovych?

Well, first of all, throughout the crisis I have personally called for the compromise between Russia and Ukraine. My concern is exactly extremist nationalism, which I dislike: in Russia, in Ukraine, or in any other country. Things that happened around Crimea might actually favor nationalists of all kinds. Moreover, I have strong anti-war convictions, and am consistently against achieving one’s goals by force or ruse.

So said, I really don’t think that Russia has ambitions to spread its Crimean move to Eastern Ukraine.

Crimea is slightly different in a way that there was indeed a perception in Russia and in Crimea that its transfer to Ukraine by Khruschev was unfair in the first place. In 1954, when Crimea was transferred from Russia to Ukraine, no one thought that the USSR would collapse, so it all seemed to be a mere administrative rearrangement issue: it made geographic sense because Ukraine bordered Crimea while Russia did not.

It did create some grievances among the Russians. I remember hearing, when I was little, that the transfer was instrumented by Nikita Khrushchev because he was a Ukrainian.

Even the Ukrainians possibly thought that keeping Crimea after 1991 was a matter of luck: that they kind of won in a lottery…

In 1991, Boris Yeltsin was very much in a rush to disintegrate the Soviet Union, which would give him access to power over the head of Gorbachev, so he just neglected the Crimean issue.

But again, I think that agreements, even stupid ones, are agreements, and Russia could have as well promoted investment in Crimea’s tourism industry while keeping it as part of Ukraine!

Some people admire President Putin for his quick moves. People read history, watch movies, read books, play computer games after all – and that is how many heroes behave in history, movies, books, and games, right?

But I do also think that there should be some containment for “heroic,” computer game-style nature. International law, the United Nations, and even nuclear weapons are tools that we invented, and more or less successfully used for war prevention.

Those who call for wars are acting irresponsibly.

Yanukovych? I think he is out of the game. Based on his biography, he seems to be a strange guy, arguably with criminal record and fake diplomas. I don’t think many people in Ukraine regret him. I hope that the new government in Ukraine, whoever they are, will act more responsibly and more in the interests of the common Ukrainian people.

There is an argument that Russia annexing Crimea will actually favor the West because these pro-Russian voters would no longer be part of the Ukrainian electoral process. Do you believe Ukrainians would more likely move further West toward potential EU membership, mirroring the former Soviet bloc state, Poland?

Ukraine’s European integration will depend much on the conditions that Europe is ready to offer to the Ukrainians.

It is true that the European integration seems to be viewed by many Ukrainians as a panacea to Ukraine’s economic and social problems.

So said, the Ukrainians, like the Russians, are a very proud people. In a way, we are the same people; when I meet a Ukrainian I have no cultural or language barrier at all.

The Ukrainians, like the Russians, have a hidden feeling of failure after the collapse of USSR. They also feel that they were not treated as equal by the EU, and they will strongly protect their pride and their interests.

For example, after the Orange Revolution, the Ukrainian government unilaterally cancelled visas for the European nationals. Obviously, they expected that the EU would lift their visa requirements for the Ukrainians. But the EU didn’t, even when the government in Kiev was “pro-European.”

Eventually, the Ukrainians got disappointed in the West. Yuschenko lost the election miserably, and Yanukovych, considered pro-Russian, won.

The Russians went through the exact same process and they got to support Putin, who is considered a strong-Russian known for standing up to the West.

By the way, Prime Minister Yatsenyuk has already said that the signature of the economic part of the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU has been postponed so that it will not lead to negative consequences for the industrial regions in the east of the country.

Ultimately, how does Ukraine begin to reconcile the cultural-linguistic divide within the country?

The differences are very much exaggerated. There are some issues, like when I went to Lviv in 2005 some people were reluctant to talk in Russian to me (I really don’t care, if I stayed for a few more days I would have started to pick up Ukrainian).

And they have a Dzhohar Dudaev street in Lviv (Dudaev was a separatist Chechen leader). This is so ostensibly meant to annoy the Russians so I also think we should not care.

The Ukrainians and the Russians are really the same people. I have Ukrainian friends and we do not consider ourselves as “foreigners.” A couple of weeks ago I took part in a TV show on Ukraine with a Ukrainian diplomat and a Ukrainian journalist. We talked in Russian and shared much of our analysis of the situation, actually (the show dealt with the current Ukrainian crisis).

You can have differences with your brothers or sisters, even fight with them, take over their property or bring them to court on property issues, do all kinds of annoying things to each other, but you can still understand each other better than anyone else.

Therefore, I am still very confident in the ties between the Ukrainians and the Russians…

I like what Mr. Yatsenyuk has said: “We do not see relations with the EU and Russia on an either-or principle. Despite the catastrophic worsening of relations with Russia, which was not committed through our fault, and despite Russia’s armed aggression against Ukraine, I will do everything possible to not only maintain peace, but also build a genuine partnership and good neighborly relations with Russia.”

China seems to be facing a diplomatic dilemma on the Ukrainian crisis, as it is refraining from taking any position at all, having abstained from the UN referendum vote. While it has a strong partnership with Russia that often counteracts the West in foreign policy decision-making, China is opposed to any form of intervention. How should China handle its relationship with Moscow? Will the crisis strain relations or help bolster it?

I think China will, as it does, keep neutrality. China is like an old wise man who can be a very good friend to anyone who can appreciate him.

China understands that the Russians and the Ukrainians are brother peoples. It has advised the Russians and the Ukrainians to talk, and it will recognize whatever compromise these two brothers achieve.

Actually, China probably disapproves in its heart that Russia has bullied Ukraine recently but after all, it is a value in Chinese culture not to interfere in other people’s family, so it will encourage the two countries to figure out their relations on their own.

Moreover, both Russia and Ukraine are China’s “strategic partners” in terms of diplomacy, so it will not be willing to spoil its relations with either of them for the sake of the other.

President Obama put the relationship on “pause” last year, hoping to restore ties between Washington and Moscow. That hasn’t seemed to work. From Syria, to Snowden, and to Ukraine, the two countries seem unable to find any common ground and bilateral relations are again quite dismal. First, why does the U.S.-Russia relationship matter today? And what should each country be doing to mend ties and restore moderation?

I am not really an expert on Russia–U.S. relations. I can only talk as a person who has experience living in the U.S.

I think that there is some degree of misunderstanding between the two countries now.

Actually, the Russians have never been anti-American. There was anti-German propaganda in the USSR for decades after World War II, but never actually a strong anti-American propaganda. But now Germany has a very good relationship with Russia!

So, it is a shame that Angela Merkel can handle President Putin but Barack Obama cannot! I think that he probably just lacks expertise on Russia, in his career he never actually had to deal with Russia, and he might have some fears of Russia that are not grounded.

There are many good American experts on Russia who are tough but often fair — everyone defends their own interests after all. They are of an older generation: Madeleine Albright, Henry Kissinger, Zbigniew Brzezinski. They have had good relations with the Russians, including personal relations, despite all the differences in positions. Their comments are often translated and published by the Russian media and heard by experts and policy makers. Their example proves that the Russians are actually not monsters!

As someone put it already, the U.S. should perhaps invest more in growing a young generation of strong Russia experts, like they now invest in growing a generation of China experts.

Americans can't retire as Bill Gross sees 'financial repression'

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 06:13 PM PDT

As if it's exclusive to interest rates!

* * *

By Jeff Kearns, Steve Matthews, and Katherine Peralta
Bloomberg News
Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Twelve years after retiring as a telephone repairman, Roger Wood clocks 12 to 15 hours a week at a Lowe's hardware store near Glen Allen, Virginia.

"About the same amount I made 30 years ago," Wood, 69, says of his $12 hourly wage. "I'm worried about my portfolio because of low interest rates, even to the point of considering full-time again."

Feeble returns on the safest investments such as bank deposits and fixed-income securities represent a "financial repression" transferring money from savers to borrowers, says Bill Gross, manager of the world's biggest bond fund. Workers 65 and older, struggling with years of depressed yields, are the only group of Americans who are increasingly employed or looking for jobs, according to Labor Department participation-rate data. ...

... For the full story:

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-03-25/can-americans-retire-in-a-decad...

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Greek Government, And Bailout Deal, On Verge Of Collapse Due To Definition Of "Fresh Milk"

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 05:58 PM PDT

The Greek economic collapse, depression and bankruptcy has seen many odd things in its brief and often times violent history (in those days when the violent elements were not on strike), but this surely is the first time when one of the countless Greek bailouts may be on the rocks due to the disagreement over the definition of "fresh milk." No, really. Reuters explains that Greece's government risks another rebellion over bailout terms this week after milk producers lobbied against a move to free up prices as part of efforts to make the economy more competitive. Basically, for Greeks, milk is fresh if it is 5 days old or less, yet according to the always fascinating codex of the Troika, "fresh" can be labeled anything that is as old as 11 days.... including the salmonella bacteria it contains. What's worse, is that the "spoiled milk" scandal, far from a joke, has swept over the country, and now even threatens to topple the government.

From Reuters:

The country's international lenders want it to ditch rules, such as limiting the shelf life of fresh milk to five days, that effectively deter importers.

But Greek dairy producers and lawmakers representing farming constituencies are fighting the move to call milk up to 11 days old 'fresh' - the latest in a long line of last-minute disruptions to Greece's bailout reviews with the European Union and International Monetary Fund.

Six lawmakers from within the ruling coalition - three from Prime Minister Antonis Samaras's New Democracy party and three from the Socialist PASOK - have opposed the proposal that will be submitted to parliament on Friday as part of an omnibus reform bill that Greece must pass to secure bailout aid.

If they vote against it, Samaras and PASOK leader Evangelos Venizelos could be forced to expel them, further reducing the government's slim majority of just 153 seats in the 300-seat assembly.

In other words, there is a possibility that Samaras' government, which nearly brought down the Eurozone after the summer of 2012 elections were almost won by the "anti-bailout" Samaras, will have no choice but to expel enough people from his party to leave it without an absolute 50%+1 majority, and potentially lead to a government collapse! All because of the definition of fresh milk.

Yup: it sure sounds like the European "Union."

The bill - which will pave for the way for up to 10 billion euros ($14 billion) of aid - is expected to pass after last-minute wrangling, but the row has highlighted how powerful lobbies can undermine the country's bailout lifeline.

"You don't need to be an expert to understand that extending the shelf life is aimed at allowing milk from abroad to be labelled as fresh," PASOK lawmaker Mihalis Kassis told Greek radio at the weekend. "If that's a prerequisite by the (EU/IMF) troika then we deserve what we get."

The controversy has captured headlines and days of debate on Greek television, overshadowing expectations that the country will soon be able to raise money on bond markets again.

"It is unfair and saddening, at a time when Greece is spreading its wings to emerge from a rut, that there is such dissonance," Samaras said during a trip to Brussels on Friday.

"MPs drowning in a glass of milk!" the daily Ethnos wrote on its front page on Saturday. "Spoiled milk" proclaimed the center-left Eleftherotypia newspaper's headline.

Why are foreign exporters so interested in penetrating the Greek milk market? Simple: prices. "Greece is the only country in Europe that has legislation to determine the shelf life of fresh milk and the price, at around 1.30 euros per litre, is among the highest in the EU. The Paris-based Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) says Greeks paid about a third more for dairy produce than the EU average in 2012."

One would think that the Greeks would welcome the competition from abroad, and that the lower price would be a good thing. Well, if cow farms and milkmen account for a substantial portion of the Greek GDP, not to mention employment pool, which apparently in Greece they do, it becomes clear why the nation which is now a complete and utter economic disaster quarantine area, would be leery of allowing any foreign influence to raise its already laughter inducing unemployment rate.

So aside from that, the Grecovery is on pace.

Bundesbank seen softening on bond monetization in Europe

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 05:27 PM PDT

8:25a HKT Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Dear Friend of GATA and Gold:

The London Telegraph's Ambrose Evans-Pritchard reports that the German Bundesbank is beginning to drop its opposition to government bond monetization in Europe:

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/finance/ambroseevans-pritchard/100026946/mo...

Gold researcher and GATA consultant Koos Jansen notes the report in a Netherlands newspaper that young people in that country are realizing that government financial promises are not to be trusted and are starting to save in monetary metal:

http://www.ingoldwetrust.ch/dutch-youth-buying-goldbars

And King World News has gold-related interviews with Sprott Asset Management's Rick Rule, who remains very bullish:

http://kingworldnews.com/kingworldnews/KWN_DailyWeb/Entries/2014/3/25_Ri...

With fund manager Stephen Leeb, who asserts that the silver market is being manipulated and the metal's price suppressed:

http://kingworldnews.com/kingworldnews/KWN_DailyWeb/Entries/2014/3/25_Le...

And with UBS executive Art Cashin:

http://kingworldnews.com/kingworldnews/KWN_DailyWeb/Entries/2014/3/25_Ar...

CHRIS POWELL, Secretary/Treasurer
Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee Inc.

The Gold Price Rose Closing at $1,311.40

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 04:40 PM PDT

Gold Price Close Today : 1,311.40
Change : 0.20 or 0.02%

Silver Price Close Today : 19.955
Change : -0.088 or -0.44%

Gold Silver Ratio Today : 65.718
Change : 0.299 or 0.46%

Silver Gold Ratio Today : 0.01522
Change : -0.000069 or -0.45%

Platinum Price Close Today : 1420.90
Change : -10.30 or -0.72%

Palladium Price Close Today : 789.40
Change : -5.95 or -0.75%

S&P 500 : 1,865.62
Change : 8.18 or 0.44%

Dow In GOLD$ : $258.01
Change : $ 1.40 or 0.54%

Dow in GOLD oz : 12.481
Change : 0.068 or 0.54%

Dow in SILVER oz : 820.24
Change : 8.15 or 1.00%

Dow Industrial : 16,367.88
Change : 91.19 or 0.56%

US Dollar Index : 80.060
Change : 0.030 or 0.04%

The GOLD PRICE rose -- are y'all ready for this -- twenty cents today, to close Comex at $1,311.40. The range was from $1,335.70 to $1,308.50.

Gold traced out a strange pattern today, like a cross section of a volcano. From yesterday's lows around $1,308 it ramped up, flattened out, then dropped to the day's low suddenly, and just as suddenly rose back to the mouth of the caldera. Rest of the day it trailed off down hill. Silver trading today looked much the same, only moreso.

The SILVER PRICE gave up 8.8 cents to close Comex at 1995.5c.

Bollinger Bands are a gauge of volatility over the last 20 or so days of trading. When a market hits the top band, it's pushing its luck, and when it hits the lower band it's a candidate for rallying. Both silver and gold are trading at or below their bottom Bollinger Bands. No magic there to prevent a market from punching far through those lines, just less likely. This makes both look ready for some sort of countertrend rally. However, I note that on the way up, both kept punching into that top BB for a long time.

Remember to watch on the GOLD PRICE chart that triple confluence of the 200 DMA, 50 DMA, and $1,300 resistance/support. In silver watch for a spike toward 1950c.

If you want to see a picture of "financialization of the economy," go to http://read.bi/1ixWea3 for the Business Insider Chart of the Day entitled "The Rise of the $156 Trillion Market for Global Financial Assets."

From about $10 trillion in 1980, global financial assets have grown from to $156 trillion. Between 2000 and 2013, debt markets tripled in size. The reasons cited in the article are not the causes, only footnotes. The real cause is twofold, (1) an enormous debt increase and (2) "financialization." Financialization occurs when financing, the parasitical, useless, and mischievous trafficking in paper, crowds production (agriculture and industry) out of the economy. Financialization is simply churning debt, securitizing everything in sight, to profit the financializers, who add no value to the world's wealth, only to their own. And the chart doesn't show the OTC derivatives market, with a notional value of $693 trillion.

Briefly stated, the chart reveals the hyperbolic growth of a tapeworm. My, my, you all are looking a mite pale and peaked. Y'all wouldn't be suffering from economic tapeworms, would you?

Stocks teetered the other way today, up instead of down, but little changed. The two big indices did manage to close above their 20 day moving averages, while yesterday they closed below. Dow added 91.19 (0.6%) to 16,388.77. S&P500 augmented 8.18 (0.4%) to 1,865.62

S&P500 remains within an even-sided triangle whose upper boundary hovers right above today 1,872 high. That triangle tells us naught about a breakout's direction up or down, only that one looms. S&P500 remains with (for now) a double top while the Dow shows a series of declining tops or double tops. This is not the matter from which great rallies are spun, but the Dow's MACD is trying -- trying -- to flash a buy signal.

Dow in metals continued to rise. Dow in Gold climbed 0.385 to 12.48 oz (G$257.98 gold dollars) and closed above its 50 DMA (12.40). About time to about face. Dow in Silver ascended 0.36% for an 819.25 oz close (S$1,059.23) and is well above its 50 DMA and an internal resistance line. A 75% correction would carry it to 823.58 oz (S$1,064.83).

US dollar index tagged along with stocks, teetering the other way today but after an 80.42 high, it closed at 80.09, up only 3 basis points. That smells weak. Anyway, the dollar does nothing until it bursts through 80.50.

Bad news for the Frenken-currency today. Euro fell 0.09% to $1.3825, slap on its 20 DMA. This adds to a series of lower lows. If support at $1.3750 gives, the euro will be diving off a dock with cast iron shoes. Media reasons given for the euro's decline were disappointing business confidence, plus ECB jawboning and posturing.

Yen fell a meaningless 0.04% to 97.80 cents/Y100. Locked in a 99.24 - 96.38 trading range. All inbetween is meaningless noise.

O'Bama today said Russia's further encroachment into Ukraine would be "a bad choice." Face it: Teddy Roosevelt he ain't. He ain't even Millard Fillmore.

Today is independence day in Greece, celebrating their wining independence from Turkey in 1821. Now if they could just win independence from the banks. . .

Argentum et aurum comparenda sunt -- -- Gold and silver must be bought.

- Franklin Sanders, The Moneychanger
The-MoneyChanger.com

© 2014, The Moneychanger. May not be republished in any form, including electronically, without our express permission. To avoid confusion, please remember that the comments above have a very short time horizon. Always invest with the primary trend. Gold's primary trend is up, targeting at least $3,130.00; silver's primary is up targeting 16:1 gold/silver ratio or $195.66; stocks' primary trend is down, targeting Dow under 2,900 and worth only one ounce of gold or 18 ounces of silver. or 18 ounces of silver. US $ and US$-denominated assets, primary trend down; real estate bubble has burst, primary trend down.

WARNING AND DISCLAIMER. Be advised and warned:

Do NOT use these commentaries to trade futures contracts. I don't intend them for that or write them with that short term trading outlook. I write them for long-term investors in physical metals. Take them as entertainment, but not as a timing service for futures.

NOR do I recommend investing in gold or silver Exchange Trade Funds (ETFs). Those are NOT physical metal and I fear one day one or another may go up in smoke. Unless you can breathe smoke, stay away. Call me paranoid, but the surviving rabbit is wary of traps.

NOR do I recommend trading futures options or other leveraged paper gold and silver products. These are not for the inexperienced.

NOR do I recommend buying gold and silver on margin or with debt.

What DO I recommend? Physical gold and silver coins and bars in your own hands.

One final warning: NEVER insert a 747 Jumbo Jet up your nose.

The Gold Price Rose Closing at $1,311.40

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 04:40 PM PDT

Gold Price Volatility

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 03:32 PM PDT

Graceland Update

China Gold Trade Finance: Goldman Wrong, Says UBS

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 01:57 PM PDT

China gold imports "not boosted" by trade financing via Hong Kong...

GOLD TRADE financing is not a key driver of China's surging import data, says Swiss bank and bullion market-maker UBS.

This counters analysis from US investment bank Goldman Sachs, which said last week that gold accounts for perhaps 30% of the trade financing total, if not more than other commodities combined, including copper.

Trade financing may have raised $250 billion for Chinese businesses since 2009, says UBS analyst Geoffrey Yu. Copper-related deals may account for 10% of all short-term loans now outstanding, says separate analysis from Deutsche Bank. The trade, explains Goldman Sachs, sees a mainland company buy physical commodities, held in "bonded" warehouses rather than taking delivery, from an offshore but related company, such as a subsidiary.

The seller receives a letter of credit from the buyer's bank (and so complies with Beijing's rules on such financing). It then uses that letter to raise a loan offshore, sending the cash into mainland China, where it's used by the mainland company to repeat the process.

Commenting today on February's sharp jump in China's net gold bullion imports through Hong Kong, "tight money conditions [are] fueling such deals as gold imports are being used for short-term financing," Bloomberg quotes Capital Futures analyst Liu Xu in Beijing.

The People's Bank of China has allowed money-market interest rates to rise towards last summer's sharp "credit crunch" spikes, even as the Yuan currency depreciates, in a stated plan to curtail both formal and non-bank lending.

China's gold imports through Hong Kong – which totalled a record 1,158 tonnes in 2013, or some 25% of total world gold flows – were 112 tonnes last month, new data show, almost twice the level of February 2013.

"Anecdotally" however, writes Swiss investment and bullion bank UBS's precious metals strategist Edel Tully, "feedback from the ground and conversations with various industry participants suggest that the gold financing trade is indeed taking place, but to a much smaller extent than in the copper market."

Rather than being explained by "round tripping" between mainland and offshore partners to raise finance, says Tully, the rise in mainland-to-Hong-Kong exports "can also be explained by jewelry manufacturers in China sending semi-manufactured gold to subsidiaries in Hong Kong for further processing."

From there, the finished items are either imported back into mainland China, or sold through Hong Kong stores enjoying booming trade with holiday travellers thanks to "more attractive consumer tax charges."

Concluding that consumer demand is driving the surge in imports, "We think gold's percentage in the total financing trade is relatively small," Dr.Tully says, "and in turn consider market estimates which suggest this trade could be as high as 30% to be far too large."

China Gold Trade Finance: Goldman Wrong, Says UBS

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 01:57 PM PDT

China gold imports "not boosted" by trade financing via Hong Kong...

GOLD TRADE financing is not a key driver of China's surging import data, says Swiss bank and bullion market-maker UBS.

Gold Daily and Silver Weekly Charts - Option Expiration Tomorrow

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 01:47 PM PDT

Gold Daily and Silver Weekly Charts - Option Expiration Tomorrow

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 01:47 PM PDT

Gold Seeker Closing Report: Gold and Silver End Slightly Higher

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 01:18 PM PDT

Gold gained $7.79 to $1317.29 in Asia before it fell back to $1306.15 at about 8:30AM EST, but it then bounced back higher in New York and ended with a gain of 0.18%. Silver rose to as high as $20.204 before it dropped back to $19.931 and then also bounced back higher, but it ended with a gain of just 0.1%.

Either U.S. Economy Collapses or WWIII -- Mike Rivero

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 01:15 PM PDT

IN THIS INTERVIEW:- Flight 370 went down in southern Indian Ocean?* ►1:00- Jimmy Carter says NSA is monitoring his emails** ►3:45- China and Russia dumping the dollar ►10:30- Obama's MyRA retirement program fraud ►12:18- Why is the Fed tapering their bond buying ►13:28- Leading advisor to the...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit http://www.GoldSilverNewsBlog.com or http://www.newsbooze.com or http://www.figanews.com for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Rick Rule - We’re Going To See 300% To 400% Gains From Here

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 01:08 PM PDT

Today one of the wealthiest people in the financial world told King World News that we are going to see 300% to 400% gains in the gold and silver markets from current levels. This is an incredibly important interview with Rick Rule, who is business partners with billionaire Eric Sprott, where he discusses the current opportunity for investors, as well as what to expect from major markets in the future."

This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

How QE Simulates a Real Economic Recovery

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 12:24 PM PDT

Our colleague and editor of the British magazine MoneyWeek Merryn Somerset-Webb, who lives in Edinburgh, Scotland, recently took issue with our suggestion that small governments are, ceteris paribus, better than big ones:

If Scotland votes for independence it will be as a socialist nation, not a wealthy capitalist one. The result will be profound misery. I really don't think it is something to wish for. Already a disaster in the making. What small countries actually do these days if they aren't tax havens full of educated people (Switzerland) is indulge in one variety or the other of nepotism/theft/corruption/public sector crowding out and then collapse.

Merryn is probably right. Big or small, the ruling elite always wants as much misgovernment as the country can afford – and often more!

The idea of modern government, we remind dear readers, is to pretend that the feds work for the citizen. The little guy is led to believe that his enemies will be smitten, that the rich will be robbed so that the stolen loot will be given to him, and that all he holds dear will be protected, enhanced and made obligatory.

That's why it's so hard to feel sorry for the guy… even when the feds clean him out.

Meanwhile, our colleague at Diary of a Rogue Economist, Chris Hunter, tells us that the US consumer is no longer deleveraging. Now, he's borrowing again. Reuters has the story:

US household debt rose in the latest quarter by the most since before the recession, a sign that Americans may be nearing the end of a multi-year belt-tightening trend, data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York showed on Tuesday.

Total consumer debt rose 2.1% to $11.52 trillion in the fourth quarter of 2013 from $11.28 trillion in the third quarter, the New York Fed said in its quarterly household debt and credit report. The increase, $241 billion, marked the biggest quarterly jump since the third quarter of 2007.

This is either: (1) mistaken, (2) flukey or (3) an important new trend. For the moment, we're going with option #2.

But we give the American consumer his due: If there is any way for him to get himself into a deeper hole, he'll get out the spade. The Fed's low-interest rates are waiting for him. And now that he has a little more equity in his house, he may be inclined to start digging.

But he's getting older. He tires faster. And he's seen what happens when he gets himself in over his head. He remembers how uncomfortable it made him feel.

Besides, demography is starting to turn against the "borrow and spend" economy. So, it is not clear that he will continue to borrow at last quarter's rate.

Age and population – along with debt – have big consequences for stock prices. At today's levels — based on historical patterns since 1871 — some predict that stocks are going down… for a long, long time.

Demography is just one component. Our analyst tells us that demography alone would account for a negative pull equal to about 5% per year – the largest negative number ever recorded. Which makes sense; never have so many people in the US approached retirement at the same time.

But wait. Does an aging population in the US really matter?

This is a question we have been asking recently.

Deleveraging was the market's natural reaction to excess debt. QE was the unnatural and monstrous response of the Fed.

"Nearly half of S&P 500 profits come from overseas," Chris, who also serves as our family office project's Investment Director, points out. "US demographics shouldn't have so much effect."

"But most of those overseas profits come from Europe and Japan," counters Rob Marstrand, our Chief Investment Strategist. "And their demographics are worse than our own."

Finally, we decided that the source of S&P 500 profits didn't matter. The model looks at the effect of demographics on stock prices, not on earnings. Prices today are built upon today's earnings – which include overseas sales and profits.

The study merely predicts that old people will sell stocks – no matter what their profits – reducing the P/E… and, of course, the prices.

For a nation, as for its capital structure, debt and demography are destiny.

Of course, any model based on history assumes that the future will be more or less like the past. It anticipates that extraordinary things that are happening today will be "normalized" tomorrow.

In the past, when stock prices, GDP, debt and demographics have been similar to today's, the process of normalization brought stocks down – a lot… and over a long time.

But never in the past did a nation have QE and Janet Yellen.

As we've been saying, debt may be the kindly Dr. Jekyll when it is expanding. But it becomes maniacal when it contracts.

Mr. Hyde showed up in 2008, and the party was over. The US went into a debt contraction. We've been living with it ever since. Until the last quarter of last year, the private sector was either paying down or defaulting on its debt.

But since 2008, we've also lived with ambiguity, split personalities and confusion. As households and businesses deleveraged, Washington leveraged up.

The feds added nearly $7 trillion in debt after 2007. Overall, debt to GDP shrank… but not much. The tally fell from 360% of GDP down to 345%.

Deleveraging was the market's natural reaction to excess debt. QE was the unnatural and monstrous response of the Fed. It expanded its balance sheet to reach a staggering $4 trillion, as it tried desperately to keep the EZ credit flowing. From a recent Bank of America Merrill Lynch research report:

The US Fed's modus operandi worked through asset prices, and animal spirits. This involved getting stock prices up, getting corporate animal spirits up by issuing cheap debt, buying back stock with cash or cheap debt to raise EPS, lowering government borrowing and mortgage costs, and raising consumer net worth/income ratios. Also, asset bubbles were generated in emerging markets, raising their growth labor costs and currencies.

Sharp operators followed the Fed like vultures trailing a sick cow. They borrowed at the Fed's ultra-low rates… and bought stocks, real estate, contemporary art and emerging market debt. Anything that promised a higher yield than was available in the Treasury market.

QE has been the name of the game since 2008. But QE helped Wall Street, not Main Street. Just look at charts of shipping indexes, real wages or the velocity of money. You see lines that head down in 2008… and don't come back up.

Eventually, we will almost certainly be right about future stock market performance. But eventually can still be a long way into the future. Which brings us to our updated, revised, and improved outlook. Recall six years ago, we wrote:

"Tokyo, then Buenos Aires," we said.

The idea was that the US economy would stay in deleveraging mode for "7 to 10 years"… and then, it would be off to the races.

We suspected that the feds would get tired of Tokyo. We figured they'd be ready for some Latin-style action – a little central bank salsa… a bit of monetary mambo.

We predicted that QE wouldn't work… and that the Fed would want to be more activist – probably by giving up on QE and directly intervening in the money supply (which it is currently constrained from doing; the effects of QE are limited to boosting only the monetary base).

So, what have we learned in the last six years? How has our view changed?

The answer to both questions is "not much." As we guessed, an aging, deeply indebted, zombie-ridden economy will not improve by adding more debt. Instead, it is doomed to follow Japan down that long, lonesome road of low consumer prices, low growth and high debt.

This road leads to eventual destruction. But when? And how?

In the US, as in Japan, QE does not help stimulate a real recovery. But it does help simulate one.

House prices are up (thanks, in part, to ultra-low mortgage rates). The middle class has more "wealth" (albeit the paper kind) due to gains in their stock market portfolios. The rich are feeling fat and sassy, too.

The Fed can continue modest tapering. But this is likely to produce a selloff in the stock market. Then the Fed will stop tapering. But it will be too late to reverse the damage to equities. They will go down for many years… bringing us even closer to the Japanese model.

Our guess now is that this situation will persist for a few years. As long as the pain is tolerable, the Fed will not be so bold as to abandon QE or take up more daring measures.

Tokyo today. Tokyo tomorrow. After tomorrow… we'll see.

Regards,

Bill Bonner
for The Daily Reckoning

Ed. Note: If you would like to learn more about the US economy's phony foundations, how the whole mess will come crashing down, and what you can do right now to protect yourself, sign up for The Daily Reckoning email edition, right here. In addition to great commentary on the world of finance, the email edition also gives readers a chance to discover real, actionable investment opportunities. So don’t wait. Sign up for The Daily Reckoning, for FREE, right here, and start getting the full story.

This article was originally featured at Diary of a Rogue Economist.

Why Nickel May Be Just Beginning a Major Price Breakout Move

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 11:53 AM PDT

Governments around the world especially in the emerging economies are now beginning to worry about inflation and currency devaluation. Turkey and India have taken emergency measures to increase rates and the U.S. is tapering as there are growing concerns about significant declines in their respective fiat currencies. Even the Russians and Chinese are concerned. The ruble and yuan are hitting new lows. Paper currencies may be on the verge of failing. Eventually, a new currency backed by gold (GLD) or silver (SLV) could be established to restore trust.

2014 Year of Commodities (March Update)

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 11:42 AM PDT

That 2013 was a year when equities ruled supreme is now well recorded history. Generally speaking, expectations at the end of the year were that 2014 would be more of the same. Among the popularly reported forecasts were the S&P 500 going to 2,000 while $Gold would plunge to $1,050. While the calendar will ultimately decide the wisdom of those forecasts, reality is already casting doubt on them. Perhaps the numbers in those forecasts were inadvertently switched.

S&P500, GOLD And Crude OIL Outlook

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 11:10 AM PDT

S&P500 Daily: wave five reversing from resistance zone S&P500 has been in bullish mode since February but it looks like that the direction of a trend could be changing now after a rally up to 1880/1920 Fibonacci and channel resistance area, where we see zone for a completed fifth wave in wave 5) of (3). So far, market is reversing nicely down with a weekly close price at 1839 so we suspect that market will continue to the downside now for a three wave pullback down in blue wave (4). We are also looking at the RSI that is reversing from 60/70 area that can be signaling for a bearish pullback, similar like in the past few months.

Leeb - There Is A Conspiracy In The Silver Market

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 09:41 AM PDT

On the heels of the recent weakness in the gold and silver markets, today an acclaimed money manager told King World News that there is a conspiracy in the silver market. Stephen Leeb also said that price of silver should be at least 50% higher than it is today. He also discussed Ukraine, Russia, China, as well as what is happening in the gold market in this timely interview.

This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Gold Prices Hit 5-Week Low as Stockmarkets Rise, Analysts Get "Ugly" Bearish

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 09:24 AM PDT

GOLD PRICES fell to new 5-week lows in London on Tuesday, hitting $1308 per ounce as Western stock markets rose sharply from a 2-day drop.

With gold prices "unable to break through $1400," says French investment and bullion bank Societe Generale's head of research in Asia, Mark Keenan, "selling has returned to the market and it remains back on track for lower numbers."

Gold prices' "sharp reversal lower last week led to a bearish engulfing pattern on the weekly candlestick chart," says Commerzbank technicial Axel Rudolph, switching his medium outlook on gold bullion prices to neutral from bullish.

"Heavy selling characterised the London and US sessions [Monday]," says ANZ Bank, "pushing gold prices quickly through a key support level of $1320."

"If we breach the 200-day moving average, currently at $1297, it will get ugly," reckons bullion bank Scotia Mocatta's technical analysts.

Tuesday in China – the world's No.1 gold mining and consumer nation – prices fell 1.5% on strong volume at the Shanghai Gold Exchange, even as the Yuan currency also slipped against the Dollar.

That pushed Shanghai gold back to a discount to international prices, a rare situation now extended for almost three weeks, with Chinese gold prices $4 below London at Tuesday's close.

New data meantime showed China importing a net 112 tonnes of bullion through Hong Kong last month – some 26% more than in January, and twice the tonnage of Jan. 2013.

Because China's GDP growth for the first quarter "is likely to fall short of the government's 7.5% target," Reuters today quotes Naoki Tashiro, president of T.S.China Research, "[Beijing] is likely to take some measures to support the economy."

China's annual gold demand has risen four-fold by value since 2009, when the politburo unleashed a record stimulus package, reaching $49 billion in 2013 according to data from market-development organization the World Gold Council.

"The outlook for gold looks bearish," says Japanese conglomerate Mitsubishi's analyst Jonathan Butler, noting last week's revised forecast from the US Federal Reserve about "[a] possible rise in interest rates soon after the QE tapering is done."

Silver today followed gold prices lower, hitting its lowest level since early February below $20 per ounce, a price breached on the way up in August 2010.

Gold Projection by the Golden Ratio

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 09:06 AM PDT

This article shows how Gold has been following the Golden Ratio which predicted all the major turning points with a high degree of accuracy for the past thirty years, and reveals the next possible major turning points. The Golden Ratio 1.618034… (also called the Golden Number, the Golden Section or the Golden Mean) can be found everywhere around us from mathematics to architecture, from nature to our own anatomy. But as you can see in the following analysis, it can also be found in the Gold Metal Charts.

TF Metals Report: Again, this isn't complicated

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 08:27 AM PDT

11:22p HKT Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Dear Friend of GATA and Gold:

The TF Metals Report's Turd Ferguson today finds support for his supposition that gold interest rates are a great trading signal, but concludes that the gold cartel will be pushing gold down over the next week as April futures contract deliveries begin. His commentary is headlined "Again, This Isn't Complicated" and it's posted at the TF Metals Report here:

http://www.tfmetalsreport.com/blog/5595/again-isnt-complicated

CHRIS POWELL, Secretary/Treasurer
Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee Inc.

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Gold Price Volatility

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 08:16 AM PDT

There are very few price areas where risk capital can be invested in gold, with a reasonable degree of confidence that a "significant low point" will be established there. In my professional opinion, those price areas are major HSR (horizontal support and resistance) zones. These key HSR zones are most apparent on the weekly and monthly gold charts. Please click here now. Double-click to enlarge. On this monthly gold chart, note the buy-side HSR in the $1227.50 area. Even when the gold price "arrived" in this key area, it still declined about $50 further, to $1180.

Another Curious Inflow For The Gold ETF

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 07:44 AM PDT

Forgive me for paying too much attention to the tonnes of gold that are now moving mostly into, rather than out of, the trust for the SPDR Gold Shares ETF (GLD), but this could be a very important story this year. It certainly was last year as one analyst after another concluded that [...]

Physical Gold Best Protection against Corrupt Governments and Geopolitical Tensions

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 07:23 AM PDT

Recently, the global gold market has been dominated by the situation in Crimea and the latest Federal Open Market Committee. After trading above the $1,390 an ounce level for the first time since September 2013, gold's upward momentum was thwarted by the outcome of the latest FMOC meeting.

Up until a few weeks ago, Crimea was probably unknown to most people around the world. So why, so suddenly, has this region had such an impact on global equities, currency and financial markets. And, the events unfolding there could possibly change the complexion of Europe, if not the rest of the world.

The answer is simply because the action of one country (Russia) does not suit the aspirations of many Western countries, the United States in particular. And, as a consequence, this region has become the centre of a political standoff between Russia and most of its Western counterparts.

For months, main stream media has focused on the Ukrainian revolution, which ignited in November after the recently ousted government suspended the signing of a free-trade agreement with the European Union. Instead of forging ties with Europe, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych opted to seek closer economic integration with Russia.

After months of protests, Yanukovych, was chased out of Ukraine, and a pro-European government was established in Kiev. A few short weeks later, Russia responded by invading Crimea, under the guise of protecting ethnic Russians. However, it is important to understand that there is a long standing history between Russia and Crimea.

Although Crimea was part of Ukraine, it had its own government, laws, and constitution.

Throughout its history, the country has been a target of invaders, including the Greeks, Huns, Byzantines, Ottoman Turks, Mongols, Venetians, and—most recently—the Russians.

Crimea was administratively part of Russia for 200 years and has been part of Ukraine for only 60 years having been given away by Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev as a gift to Ukraine in 1954. Some 60% of the population are Russian-speakers, with Ukrainian-speakers and Tatars making up the rest.

While Crimea remained part of Ukraine, psychologically Russians did not accept that. And, it is interesting how history often repeats itself. During the Crimean War the Russians manoeuvred their fleet to prevent the British and French navies from entering Sevastopol Harbour. Russian ships blocked the exit to the harbour at the same spot last week to prevent Ukraine's tiny fleet from making a getaway.

The Crimean War was also where Florence Nightingale gained renown for the heroic care of the nursing sisters that she led and for her advocacy for Britain's wounded.

Now that Russia has annexed Crimea, leaders of the Western countries are condemning the actions of the Kremlin. It is quite ironic given the recent history of U.S. involvement everywhere. It is far more reasonable to accept the actions of Russia which is right next door, than it is for the U.S. government to be involved in places such as Libya, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria, and Somalia, just to name a few. And Russia is not bombing and destroying cities in Crimea like what was done in Iraq, and Libya. The Russian government called for a referendum that resulted in an overwhelming majority of the population wanting Crimea to return to Russia.

The questions on the ballot paper were: "Are you in favour of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea reuniting with Russia as a constituent part of the Russian Federation?" And: "Are you in favour of restoring the Constitution of the Republic of Crimea of 1992 and of Crimea's status as part of Ukraine?" The middle way of greater autonomy within Ukraine is not an option.

According to Wikipedia A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment or a law. Besides initiative and recall election the referendum is one of the three pillars of direct democracy.

Direct democracy (also known as pure democracy is a form of democracy in which people decide (e.g. vote on, form consensus on, etc.) policy initiatives directly, as opposed to a representative democracy in which people vote for representatives who then decide policy initiatives.

It also seems hypocritical that Western powers have dismissed the ballot as unconstitutional and part of an attempt by Moscow to gain spurious legal cover for the annexation of Crimea, when they accepted the results of similar referendums held in the Falklands, which the UK won back from Argentinian occupiers following a brief war in 1982, and the referendum in South Sudan.

A referendum on political status was held in the Falkland Islands on 10–11 March 2013. The Falkland Islanders were asked whether or not they supported the continuation of their status as an Overseas Territory of the United Kingdom.

On a turnout of 92%, an overwhelming 99.8% voted to remain a British territory, with only three votes against

The British Prime Minister, David Cameron, expressed his delight after the Falkland Islands voted overwhelmingly to remain part of Britain. All but three who cast a vote said they wished the Falklands to remain part of the UK’s overseas territory. David Cameron said that Argentina and the rest of the world should heed the wishes of the islanders. The prime minister said Argentina should take “careful note” of the referendum result and that Britain would always be there to defend the Falkland Islanders. Here is the link to his news statement on UK television.

On 9 July 2011 South Sudan became the newest country in the world. The birth of the Republic of South Sudan was the culmination of a six-year peace process and a new chapter in a region that has seen little peace in the last 50 years. The United States backed the peace treaty that put the referendum in motion. And, the President of the United States Barack Obama said the result of the vote was "inspiring” as voters decided “their own future [and marked] another step forward in Africa’s long journey toward justice and democracy”. He also said that the United States would recognise South Sudan’s independence when formalised.

Meanwhile, a referendum on whether Scotland should be an independent country will take place on Thursday 18 September 2014. Following an agreement between the Scottish Government and the United Kingdom government, the Scottish Independence Referendum Bill, setting out the arrangements for this referendum, was put forward on 21 March 2013, passed by the Scottish Parliament on 14 November 2013 and received Royal Assent on 17 December 2013. The question to be asked in the referendum will be “Should Scotland be an independent country?” as recommended by the Electoral Commission.

British Prime Minister David Cameron said that his Government supported the holding of the referendum and would "respect and defend" the result.

It seems to me that the Crimean peninsula is far more important to the Russians than the Falkland Islands are to Britain.

Looking at the situation developing in the Ukraine I can't help wonder why it is that leaders of the USA, UK and EU have rejected the results of the referendum in Crimea yet, they were completely accepting of the referendums in the Falklands and Sudan. Obviously, nothing is as clear as it appears. And, what I also found fascinating was the speed at which the EU suddenly signed an association agreement with Ukraine in Brussels.

EU President Herman Van Rompuy and other EU leaders signed the agreement with Ukraine’s Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk on the sidelines of an EU summit in Brussels. The two sides signed three of the seven chapters of the agreement.

“This deal covers the most existential and most important issues, mainly security and defence cooperation,” Yatsenyukd said. “This deal will establish a joint decision-making body, which is to facilitate the process of real reforms in my country. And this deal meets the aspirations of millions of Ukrainians that want to be a part of the European Union.”

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso described the bloc’s intent as the first day of the EU summit concluded in the early hours of the morning on March 21.

“We are already going to sign with the prime minister of Ukraine the political provision of the association agreement and seal the strong political partnership that brings Ukraine and the European Union closer together,” Barroso said.

“This is the democratic choice that Ukraine has made. It is our firm intention to sign the remaining parts of the agreement in due course. Europe is committed to Ukraine for the long term,” he added.

The signing ceremony came as Russian President Vladimir Putin formally signed the annexation of Crimea, having secured backing in both chambers of the Russian legislature.

The trade portion of the EU accord, which is the bulk of the treaty, is to be signed after May.

Barroso spoke immediately after the EU leaders agreed to slap an asset freeze and travel ban on 12 more Russians and Ukrainians over Moscow’s annexation of Crimea.

Meanwhile, the United States extended its sanctions against Moscow earlier on March 20, adding dozens of influential Russians, including a number of individuals within what the U.S. Treasury described as Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “inner circle.”

It soon became apparent to me that the main issue at stake here is the supply of natural gas. A number of key gas pipelines from Russia to Western Europe run through Ukraine. Around 58% of gas consumed in Ukraine is imported from Russia and some 66% of gas imported to the EU from Russia transits the Ukraine. Now, things are getting a lot clearer to me. In pure economic terms, a shift to Russia would likely change the dynamics of how Western Europe is powered. So, if Russia had control over the Ukraine, Europe's supply of gas would become even more dependent on Russia.

Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve monetary policy meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday will give investors some clues of what the Fed thinks regarding the economic outlook. So far most economists are still expecting the Fed to stay on track with reducing its quantitative easing program.

Meanwhile, the FOMC’s March meeting turned out to be more hawkish than expected and the Fed unveiled more stimulus tapering, pledged continuing low interest rates, and cut its 2014 GDP forecast.

Besides announcing a further reduction of monthly asset purchase by USD10 billion policymakers have brought forward the tightening cycle and upgraded the labour market outlook. The Fed also modified its forward guidance, removing the thresholds of 6.5% unemployment rate and 2.5% inflation rate. The central bank, however, stressed that ‘the change in the Committee’s guidance does not indicate any change in the Committee’s policy intentions as set forth in its recent statements’.

The situation in Crimea shows how small events can escalate into a major crisis, and how the majority of politicians have seemingly become nothing more than legalised racketeers and duplicitous philanderers who serve themselves instead of serving their citizens. I have no doubt in my mind that some government official somewhere stands to lose or make substantial amounts of money from the on-going turmoil in Ukraine. These types of people are not capable of creating wealth but are only able to use their positions of power to divert funds or steal tax payer's money in order to enrich themselves.

And, as I have stated countless time, the best protection against corrupt governments, geopolitical tensions, and expansionary monetary policies of central banks is gold and silver.

TECHNICAL ANALYSIS

gold price 25 March 2014 investing

Gold prices hit resistance at around $1380/oz. but are still above the 200 day MA.

New Jersey Mining Company Reports Additional High-Grade Channel Sampling at the McKinley Mine

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 06:21 AM PDT

New Jersey Mining Company ("NJMC" or the "Company") (NJMC) today announced more results from its recent underground channel sampling program at the McKinley Mine in central Idaho. Channel samples were acquired from mine ribs and stoped areas at three separate zones on the same mine level. Out of the final 34 (of 104 total) samples analyzed, 16 returned gold assays exceeding 0.12 ounces per ton gold (opt) (or 4 grams per ton gold (gpt)).

Will Inflation Make A Comeback In 2014 When The Consensus Worries About Deflation

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 04:41 AM PDT

Two months ago, Incrementum Liechtenstein released its chartbook entitled "Monetary Tectonics" which illustrated the raging war between inflation and deflation in 40 charts. Meantime, the authors of the chartbook have launched the "Austrian Economics Golden Opportunities Fund," a fund that takes investment positions based on the level of inflation. The key tool in their investment decisions is the "Incrementum Inflation Signal" (also referred to as the "monetary seismograph"), a continuing measurement of how much monetary inflation reaches the real economy based on a series of market-based indicators.

The Incrementum Inflation Signal started showing rising inflationary momentum after a period of 19 month of disinflation. Is Inflation making a comeback just as the consensus worries about deflation risk? That was the subject of Incrementum's first Advisory Board in which much respected names have a seat, including James Rickards, Heinz Blasnik, Rahim Taghizadegan, and Zac Bharucha. The Board was led by Ronald Stoeferle, managing director of Incrementum Liechtenstein, and its partner, Mark Valek. This article summarizes Incrementum's Advisory Board meeting. The full transcript is at the bottom of this article.

The direction of inflation is important in Incrementum's Inflation Signal, not the absolute figure. At the moment, especially central bankers and mainstream economists are scared of deflation. Further easing by central bankers could be expected going forward. Related to the Fed’s policy, Rickards expects a pause in the taper by July and perhaps increased asset purchases later this year. "They tapered into weakness. They should have not tapered in December by their own metrics, specifically inflation, employment and a few other things. I expect the sequence as follows: I think they will taper another $10 billion in April, pause in June and July, and then probably increase asset purchases later in the year (maybe August or September). That should be bullish for equities but also signal to commodity investors that inflation is on the way, because it just says that the Fed will do whatever it takes to get inflation."

In particular the commodity complex shows a significant divergence: industrial metals (especially copper) are weak while agriculturals are very strong, just like precious metals and aggregate commodities. Heinz Blasnik points to China for a better understanding of the industrial metals weakness. "Broad money supply in China (M2) is now growing at 13.2%. That is at the low end from the range of the post decade. M1 has actually collapsed to 1.5% growth from almost 40% in 2009. I think that is where the weakness of industrial metals is coming from. It's definitely China, because money supply growth is declining and also bank-lending and total lending are declining. It actually seems that house prices are beginning to turn down as well."

The interesting thing about this breakup in commodities is that "nobody" is talking about it. This seems very reminiscent of the commodities rally that started in 2000-2002.

Related to these inflationary signals, the usefulness of the CPI as a decision making tool is highly questionable. Ronald Stoeferle compares today's situation with the 70ies when Paul Volcker had the mandate to kill inflation, which is in contrast to today's central planners who are desperate to create inflation. Their comfort zone is the official CPI inflation rate between 1.5% – 2.5%. They will do whatever it takes to create this inflation.

CPI statistics are not used in Incrementum's Inflation Signal; the inflation data are market based indicators. The usefulness of the CPI is highly questionable because it cannot measure anything. Central bankers, however, care about it. They would be willing to keep an even higher CPI of 2%.

Rickards believes the CPI will continue to be used by the Fed until such time as nominal rates are normalized, although he thinks we are years away from a normalization of nominal rates. "In other words: If you actually got the Fed-funds-rate to 2.5% – 4%, they would not use quantitative easing as a tool; they would use the policy rate and they would like very much to get back to that world. The problem is that they cannot get back to that world. For so long as the policy rate is zero, they will use quantitative easing. But here is the problem: The global problem in the world today is that we are in a depression. You can have growth in a depression. When you have growth in a depression it is not a recovery. That's the difference between a depression and a recession. The reason why this is an important distinction is that depressions are structural. When you have a structural problem you need structural solutions. You cannot solve it with monetary solutions because it is not a monetary problem."

Incrementum's Advisory Board sees a lot of strength in the current gold price action. In addition, Zac Bharucha points to the recent "independence" in gold. "It has been a sort of risk on, risk off trade. A lot of people have bought gold a couple of years ago because of an Armageddon scenario. And the Fed has postponed Armageddon for now. So a lot of gold got liquidated, and there was great temptation to pile into the rallying stock market. But now you are getting gold at a big discount from where it was selling 3 years ago." Some people could be looking at gold's $700 decline from its highs and consider it as a (cheap) insurance.

Stoeferle believes the strength in gold miners provides a confirmation for the metals. Just two months ago, the consensus was $1300 for the end of 2014, which was in significantly different from Stoeferle's target of $1480. Interestingly, the reversal in gold basically started when the Fed started tapering. "My view is that perhaps, in the last couple of months, the price of gold was already discounting tapering, and perhaps now it is kind of discounting the tapering of taper. So perhaps the gold price is already telling us that there is something boiling."

The problem for gold, however, is the opportunity cost with all kinds of other assets which are more a beneficiary of this inflationary politics. It could be the main reason of falling gold prices. It even looks like as if the inflationary politics had a deflationary effect on the economy by sucking a lot of funds into financial assets and out of the real economy.

Is the stock market topping? Is it in a bubble? Following indicators raise a yellow flag.

The sentiment indicators in the US markets shows a very low cash in the mutual funds, just 3.3% cash, which is a historically very low level.
Sentiment of advisors sits at the highest level since the 87 crash. So sentiment-wise the market looks very stretched.
There is some of loss of participation in the stock markets but the breadth is still good in the US. Even if the market is turning, US leading stocks will still continue to outperform.

With the prospects of extremely low real interest rates in the foreseeable future, there are almost no profitable alternatives next to stocks, given the explosion in house prices and sky high bond prices. That is exactly what the Fed is aiming for. They want investors to go to long duration assets.

The advance since the 2009 low looks exactly like the bubble model from Sornette. The volatility declines more as the stock market goes higher. These are typical bubble characteristics.

According to Heinz Blasnik, domestic US money supply growth is the decisive factor for US stocks. "The latest year-on-year growth is +7.75% which is below the 10% of 2012. So it is slowing down. But 7.75% year-on-year money supply growth is still quite a lot historically. So we have this strange situation where we have got a market which is overbought, and has extremely bullish sentiment readings. Still the market is going up and the only explanation that I can come up with is that money supply growth is still strong enough to push stocks higher. But there is a limit somewhere. The problem is that we don't know where that limit is. In 2007, it was 2.6% year-on-year growth. That was enough to burst the real estate bubble and the stock market bubble at the same time. I believe that this time around this demarcation is going to be higher. The reason for believing so is because the underlying economy is much weaker. I would expect that, if money supply growth fall to say 4,5% year-on-year growth, it would be a very big warning sign."

At the same time, velocity is going down as quickly as money supply is going up. So the question is not: "When does the money supply grow but rather when does velocity pick up?" When the velocity curve turns – that is the point when inflation comes in very rapidly. The problem is that this is a psychological threshold not a monetary threshold.

economy

When velocity turns, it means nominal GDP is beginning to rise, and that probably means prices for other goods are starting to go up.

In addition, the following chart shows that when money supply is expanding and the central bankers are printing a lot of money and suppress interest rates, then money is flying to higher orders of production stages of the economy. It results in more investments in capital, and fewer investments in consumer goods production. Shortly before recessions begin, this process starts to turn over. Right now, it is kind of stalling out. Blasnik is not sure if that points to something meaningful, but if it were the case, it would tie in with the expectation that taper will produce later on this year much weaker economic numbers. This chart is supporting that contention (courtesy of www.acting-man.com)

In closing, there is an important point to be made about Crimea's potential impact to the financial and monetary system. Rickards sees another nail in the coffin of the role of the US dollar as a reserve currency. One should consider the following. President Obama has more or less anointed Iran as the regional hegemon in the Middle East. This is a stab in the back to Saudi Arabia which for several decades has supported the dollar by insisting that oil has to be priced in dollars. The quid pro quo is that the US would in fact insure the national security of Saudi Arabia. By backing Iran, the US has undermined the national security of Saudi Arabia and therefore Saudi Arabia has less reason to support the dollar.

At the same time, the US is about to impose financial sanctions to Russia. The Russians have reacted by saying they would not pay their dollar loans, and begin to dump US Treasury bills.

We already know what China is doing with gold. Saudi Arabia has less reason to hold dollars because of Iran. Russia has less reason to support the dollar because of the Ukraine.

This is financial warfare on a scale never seen before. Putting all this together, a large part of the world is working very hard to get out of the dollar system. That is going to be bad for the dollar, and it is going to be good for gold.

Gold and Silver Price Breakdown Confirmation

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 02:02 AM PDT

Briefly: In our opinion short speculative positions in silver (half) and mining stocks (full) are justified from the risk/reward perspective. Friday was generally a calm day in the precious metals market and for the currency indices. The initial moves higher (in the early part of the session) were mostly invalidated later on and overall not much changed at the first sight. On second look, the lack of rally confirmed the breakdown in mining stocks. Let's take a look (charts courtesy of http://stockcharts.com):

Serious Gold Investors

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 01:32 AM PDT

As opposed to the gold jokers, that is. Asian central banks vs. hedge funds...

FORMERLY head of government affairs at market-development organization the World Gold Council, George Milling-Stanley has been active in the gold market for more than three decades.

Now president of George Milling-Stanley on Gold, he speaks here to Hard Assets Investor about the outlook for central-bank and investment gold demand, and their impact on prices.

Hard Assets Investor: The perception of gold as an investment vehicle has changed dramatically in recent years. It's gotten very popular. Is that waning a little bit?

George Milling-Stanley: I think we're still in a bull market that began way back in 2001 when the price was down at about $250 an ounce. And for the first few years of that bull market, we went along quite nicely, going up about $100 a year, which was enough to generate investor interest, but not enough to give you sticker shock in the important consuming markets for jewelry in China and India and so on. So it was a nice healthy market.

Then in 2009 and '10 we went up $200, which was a little fast. And then in 2011, the hot money came in and drove us up $500 in just nine months. When a price goes vertical in any asset class, it's going to end in tears. And it did in gold. They took their profits and went away.

So the hot money's gone. We're now back to I think a basic fundamentally driven solid market that seems to be trading in a range between about $1150 and maybe $1350, with, at the moment, the pressure of tending to be to the upside because of what's going on in Ukraine and so on. So I think we're in a pretty healthy market right now.

Once we get momentum behind this and break out of the top end of my range...which I hope will take awhile to happen, but I think it will come sooner than I want it. Once that happens, the hot money will come in again and take us probably above where we were before. I hope that doesn't happen for a year or more, but it might happen in a month.

HAI: $1900?

George Milling-Stanley: No, I'm not saying $1900 in a month, I'm saying the start of that process. It took them three years to do it before. We're around about the same level where they started before, around the $1300 mark. They did it fairly quickly last time. I think the hot money will come in. Maybe not until we get above $14 or $15. That would be nice because that will be somewhere toward the end of this year. I think that would be healthier.

The longer we build the base, the firmer the foundation for going higher. So investment is still there, the solid investment is there. The long-term investor, through ETFs, through allocated accounts, whatever it may be, that's still there. There's no question about it. The jewelry is coming along quite nicely with China and India, the rest of Asia, doing reasonably well economically. We've not got any economic disasters. No hard landing in China or anything like that. So I think the market's in a pretty healthy state right now.

HAI: Is this a particular class of investor?

George Milling-Stanley: There was a certain kind of people who would always buy gold. There are people who will always have gold as part of a strategic allocation, maybe a 5% or 10% allocation. That's always there. And they hold their nose when the price isn't performing, but they're glad about the diversity that it gives them. They're glad about the relatively low volatility, relative to other assets, it gives them. So those kinds of people I think are smart investors.

People who are putting a tactical overlay on when they're expecting the price to move up, again, is I think what we're starting to see now. To my mind, that's sensible. It's not a particular kind of investor; it's a mindset of investor. There are some institutions, some individuals who take this view, and the whole range in between as well.

That's what I call the serious investor. Then there's the hot money that comes in from time to time, primarily hedge fund driven. No question about that. Momentum traders, trend-following speculators – they're the people that took gold up to $1900. They're the people that will take it up through there at some point in the relatively near future, within a year or two, is my guess. They will come back in.

But at the moment I think that the market is pretty soundly based. It's the people who have that strategic allocation and are prepared to make a tactical allocation on top. And ETFs have really just made it easier for all those kinds of investors through the stock market. It was exactly what investors who weren't involved in gold needed. And it shows up in their monthly statement from their broker as well. It's an easy way to do it.

HAI: A lot of people consider gold an inflation hedge. Let's look at that argument. If you look at the price of gold right now, and if you look at where it was in 1980 in nominal terms, it went almost all the way to $2000. But when you adjust for inflation, if you invested in gold back in 1980, and if you look at it now, or even at the peak when it hit $1900, you didn't beat inflation. So why does this argument continue?

George Milling-Stanley: You're still lacking inflation, I agree with you: The price would have to be at $2300 or thereabouts in today's Dollars to match the $850 we reached back in 1980.

When I talk about gold as an inflation hedge, I'm talking about the long term. And at my age I can talk about the long term; I've been there for a good part of it. So, over decades, gold tends to be a good inflation hedge. In the short term, not necessarily. But if you're looking over decades or even centuries, it will tend to preserve the value of your capital.

To my mind, that's really why the smart investor goes into gold: not necessarily to make a lot of money – though for the last 10 years, you could have made an awful lot of money in gold if you were swift footed enough – but it's not to lose money. It's kind of to preserve the capital and to help preserve the whole value of your portfolio. That's really why the smart investor goes into gold.

There's a long tradition in this country of thinking that gold is just an inflation hedge. So if we don't have inflation like between 1980 and 2000, say we didn't have inflation, then you don't need to buy gold. I think that's mistaken. It's a hedge against Dollar weakness. It's a hedge against geopolitical tensions.

The fundamentals right now of supply and demand are growing healthier for gold, and they have been for quite some time. So it's a lot of different reasons to buy gold.

HAI: I know you've worked very closely with central banks in your career. During the '90s when gold was $250, they were net sellers of gold. Over the past several years, probably around the peak again, they were net buyers. Where are they now? And is it fair to say you can look at them sort of as contrarian indicators?

George Milling-Stanley: I think that's a little bit harsh. It's important to recognize there are two very, very distinct constituencies of central banks. There's the advanced economies of Western Europe and North America that were economic powerhouses during the heyday of the Gold Standard from 1870 to 1970. And there's a legacy of those days when they needed gold to back their currencies; they have huge gold reserves.

At mark-to-market, on average, that group has more than 75% of external reserves in gold. Then there's the rest of the world, which are now the economic powerhouses but were not during the Gold Standard – China, India, the rest of Asia and so on, Singapore, Taiwan. They don't have that same legacy of the Gold Standard days, so on average, they have less than 5% of their reserves in gold at mark-to-market.

The sellers at the bottom were the Western Europeans. I agree that they're generally a good countercyclical indicator. They're not selling right now. Their appetite for sales dwindled when gold got up to $1000 essentially. But what has been happening is the rest of the world, led by China, Russia, Brazil, Mexico, Korea, Thailand, India, it's all over the lot: What we used to call the emerging markets have been buying increasing quantities ever since this bull market began in 2000. They're a good indicator. They're buying not so much because they're expecting the Dollar price of gold to go up, but because they're expecting the international value of the Dollar to go down.

It did that from about 2002 until 2008, and then suddenly the world rediscovered the magic of the Dollar as a safe haven. I still think that the Dollar is a currency looking for something to decline against in value, but everybody else is better at depreciating their currencies than we are right now.

HAI: This was the fear the gold community had, that one day the central banks would print money like crazy. Are you surprised that gold didn't go higher?

George Milling-Stanley: Not really. The rise to $1900 was obviously predicated on all of that money creation you're talking about. But I think the real deal is that we have not yet seen inflation come out in the statistics. Monthly CPI is still relatively benign and looking like it's going to remain that way.

What we've had is a massive increase in money supply in this country and elsewhere in the world as well. But we haven't had the other shoe that Milton Friedman talked about, the other half of the Friedman paradigm. You have to have an increase in the velocity with which that increased money supply moves around in the market. The commercial banks are basically happy sitting on larger reserves than they had before because they know we're in a serious tail-risk environment.

And because the regulators – whether the people trying to implement Dodd-Frank or the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision in Europe – are saying at some point in the future we're going to require you to hold a lot bigger reserves, but we can't tell you when or how much bigger. The banks will get back into their lending business once they have clarity on the regulatory front. Then you'll see the velocity, and then you'll see it coming up...

HAI: It's also that people's incomes are not really going up. If you look at the banking system as the real creator of the credit money, the demand for credit is just not there. Because a lot of people are not seeing a rise in income to justify taking on more credit.

Let's sum it up. Right now a little bit of a trading range I think is what I'm getting from you, but getting close to the point where a lot of that hot money might start piling back into the market again.

George Milling-Stanley: I think a good trading range to play, this $1150 to $1350. If we break out on a sustained manner above $1350, then we're off to the races, and I think everybody should be long.

HAI: Somebody's got to teach these hedge fund guys how to buy when the price is down, not when it's up.

George Milling-Stanley: Buy low and sell high. Not a bad lesson.

Serious Gold Investors

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 01:32 AM PDT

As opposed to the gold jokers, that is. Asian central banks vs. hedge funds...

FORMERLY head of government affairs at market-development organization the World Gold Council, George Milling-Stanley has been active in the gold market for more than three decades.

Now president of George Milling-Stanley on Gold, he speaks here to Hard Assets Investor about the outlook for central-bank and investment gold demand, and their impact on prices.

Hard Assets Investor: The perception of gold as an investment vehicle has changed dramatically in recent years. It's gotten very popular. Is that waning a little bit?

HAI: $1900?

HAI: Is this a particular class of investor?

George Milling-Stanley: You're still lacking inflation, I agree with you: The price would have to be at $2300 or thereabouts in today's Dollars to match the $850 we reached back in 1980.

The fundamentals right now of supply and demand are growing healthier for gold, and they have been for quite some time. So it's a lot of different reasons to buy gold.

HAI: This was the fear the gold community had, that one day the central banks would print money like crazy. Are you surprised that gold didn't go higher?

HAI: Somebody's got to teach these hedge fund guys how to buy when the price is down, not when it's up.

George Milling-Stanley: Buy low and sell high. Not a bad lesson.

Serious Gold Investors

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 01:32 AM PDT

As opposed to the gold jokers, that is. Asian central banks vs. hedge funds...

FORMERLY head of government affairs at market-development organization the World Gold Council, George Milling-Stanley has been active in the gold market for more than three decades.

Now president of George Milling-Stanley on Gold, he speaks here to Hard Assets Investor about the outlook for central-bank and investment gold demand, and their impact on prices.

Hard Assets Investor: The perception of gold as an investment vehicle has changed dramatically in recent years. It's gotten very popular. Is that waning a little bit?

HAI: $1900?

HAI: Is this a particular class of investor?

George Milling-Stanley: You're still lacking inflation, I agree with you: The price would have to be at $2300 or thereabouts in today's Dollars to match the $850 we reached back in 1980.

The fundamentals right now of supply and demand are growing healthier for gold, and they have been for quite some time. So it's a lot of different reasons to buy gold.

HAI: This was the fear the gold community had, that one day the central banks would print money like crazy. Are you surprised that gold didn't go higher?

HAI: Somebody's got to teach these hedge fund guys how to buy when the price is down, not when it's up.

George Milling-Stanley: Buy low and sell high. Not a bad lesson.

Serious Gold Investors

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 01:32 AM PDT

As opposed to the gold jokers, that is. Asian central banks vs. hedge funds...

FORMERLY head of government affairs at market-development organization the World Gold Council, George Milling-Stanley has been active in the gold market for more than three decades.

Now president of George Milling-Stanley on Gold, he speaks here to Hard Assets Investor about the outlook for central-bank and investment gold demand, and their impact on prices.

Hard Assets Investor: The perception of gold as an investment vehicle has changed dramatically in recent years. It's gotten very popular. Is that waning a little bit?

HAI: $1900?

HAI: Is this a particular class of investor?

George Milling-Stanley: You're still lacking inflation, I agree with you: The price would have to be at $2300 or thereabouts in today's Dollars to match the $850 we reached back in 1980.

The fundamentals right now of supply and demand are growing healthier for gold, and they have been for quite some time. So it's a lot of different reasons to buy gold.

HAI: This was the fear the gold community had, that one day the central banks would print money like crazy. Are you surprised that gold didn't go higher?

HAI: Somebody's got to teach these hedge fund guys how to buy when the price is down, not when it's up.

George Milling-Stanley: Buy low and sell high. Not a bad lesson.

Gold for Prudence, Not Mining Stocks

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 01:25 AM PDT

If gold mining stocks offer leverage, they've got a lot still to do...

EVEN WITH last week's pullback, the precious metals market is off to an impressive start in 2014, writes Laurynas Vegys, research analyst at Doug Casey's flagship International Speculator newsletter.

Gold is up 10.6%, silver 4.3%, and the PHLX Gold/Silver (XAU) 17.1%. Gold, in particular, had a great February, rising above $1300 for the first time since November 7, 2013.

This has led to some very handsome gains in our Casey International Speculator portfolio, with a few of our recommendations already logging triple-digit gains from their recent bottoms.

One of Doug Casey's mantras is that one should buy gold for prudence, and gold stocks for profit. These are very different kinds of asset deployment.

In other words, don't think of gold as an investment, but as wealth protection. It's the only highly liquid financial asset that is not simultaneously someone else's obligation; it's value you can liquidate and use to secure your needs. Possessing it is prudent.

Gold mining stocks are for speculation because they offer leverage to gold. This is actually true of all mining stocks, but the phenomenon is especially strong in the highly volatile precious metals.

Most typical "be happy you beat inflation" returns simply can't hold a candle to stocks that achieved 10-bagger status (1,000% gains). In previous bubbles – some even generated 100-fold returns. And we may see such returns again.

Here's a look at our top three year-to-date gainers.

What's especially remarkable is that all three of these stocks shot up much more than gold itself, on essentially no company-specific news. This is dramatic proof of just how much leverage the right mining stocks can offer to movements in the underlying commodity – gold, in this case. Two of the stocks above are on our list of potential 10-baggers, by the way.

So have you missed the boat? Is it too late to buy?

Looking at the chart, two bullish factors jump out immediately:

Gold stocks have just now started to move up from a similar level in 2008;
Gold stocks remain severely undervalued compared to the gold price. A simple reversion to the mean implies a tremendous upside move.

Now consider the following data that point to a positive shift in the gold market...

After 13 consecutive months of decline, GLD holdings were up over 10.5 tonnes last month. The trend is similar to other gold ETFs;
Hedge funds and other large speculators more than doubled their bets on higher gold prices this year;
Increase in M&A – for example, hostile bids from Osisko and HudBay Minerals to buy big assets;
Apollo, KKR, and other large private equity groups have emerged as a new class of participants in the sector;
Gold companies' hedging of future production – usually a sign of insecurity among the miners – shrunk to the lowest level in 11 years;
China continues to consume record amounts of gold and officially overtook India as the world's largest buyer of gold in 2013;
Large players in the gold futures market that were short have switched to being long.
Central banks continue to be net buyers;
To top it off, there's been no fallout (yet) from the unprecedented currency dilution undertaken since 2008 – and we don't believe in free lunches.

The gold mania train has not yet left the station, but the engine is running and the conductor has the whistle in his mouth. This means any correction ahead is a potential last-chance buying opportunity before the final mania phase of this bull cycle takes our stocks to new highs, well above previous interim peaks.

In spite of the good start to 2014, most of our 10-bagger gold stocks are still on the deep-discount rack. And you can get details of all of them with a risk-free, 3-month trial subscription to our monthly advisory focused on junior mining stocks, the Casey International Speculator.

Gold for Prudence, Not Mining Stocks

Posted: 25 Mar 2014 01:25 AM PDT

If gold mining stocks offer leverage, they've got a lot still to do...

Gold is up 10.6%, silver 4.3%, and the PHLX Gold/Silver (XAU) 17.1%. Gold, in particular, had a great February, rising above $1300 for the first time since November 7, 2013.

This has led to some very handsome gains in our Casey International Speculator portfolio, with a few of our recommendations already logging triple-digit gains from their recent bottoms.

One of Doug Casey's mantras is that one should buy gold for prudence, and gold stocks for profit. These are very different kinds of asset deployment.

Gold mining stocks are for speculation because they offer leverage to gold. This is actually true of all mining stocks, but the phenomenon is especially strong in the highly volatile precious metals.

Here's a look at our top three year-to-date gainers.

So have you missed the boat? Is it too late to buy?

Looking at the chart, two bullish factors jump out immediately:

Gold stocks have just now started to move up from a similar level in 2008;
Gold stocks remain severely undervalued compared to the gold price. A simple reversion to the mean implies a tremendous upside move.

Now consider the following data that point to a positive shift in the gold market...

After 13 consecutive months of decline, GLD holdings were up over 10.5 tonnes last month. The trend is similar to other gold ETFs;
Hedge funds and other large speculators more than doubled their bets on higher gold prices this year;
Increase in M&A – for example, hostile bids from Osisko and HudBay Minerals to buy big assets;
Apollo, KKR, and other large private equity groups have emerged as a new class of participants in the sector;
Gold companies' hedging of future production – usually a sign of insecurity among the miners – shrunk to the lowest level in 11 years;
China continues to consume record amounts of gold and officially overtook India as the world's largest buyer of gold in 2013;
Large players in the gold futures market that were short have switched to being long.
Central banks continue to be net buyers;
To top it off, there's been no fallout (yet) from the unprecedented currency dilution undertaken since 2008 – and we don't believe in free lunches.

The 60th Anniversary of Nothing Special

Posted: 24 Mar 2014 11:05 PM PDT

Read the Latest News About: Gold Silver Economy Central Banking 2014 is the 60th anniversary of nothing special. A quick review...

{This is a content summary only. Click on the blog title to continue reading this post, share your comments, browse the website, and more!}

Richard Russell - This Is What Americans Are Doing To Survive

Posted: 24 Mar 2014 09:04 PM PDT

With continued chaos and uncertainty in global markets, today KWN is publishing another incredibly important piece that was written by a 60-year market veteran. The Godfather of newsletter writers, Richard Russell, discusses gold, silver, what Americans are doing just to survive, and what he's learned after nearly 90 years on this Earth. He also discussed the difference between the Great Depression and the Great Recession.

This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Save Your ASSets First

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Gold World News Flash

Gold World News Flash

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