Financial Reserve

[Silver]

Well, it's been a while since I posted anything about precious metals. Given my username, I just couldn't ignore the topic any longer.

Please note that I am not a financial adviser, and I am especially not YOUR financial adviser. The information is for you to ponder or ignore. OK, here goes...

Have you heard of negative interest rates? They are interest rates below zero. In other words, if you have $100 in you savings account on January 1st, and the interest rate is -1%, if you add no money to the account throughout the year, on December 31st you will have $99.

Already there are countries in Europe like Sweden and Switzerland that have instituted negative interest rates. The European Central Bank has also set some of the rates in negative territory. Japan, which for years has been stuck in a low-growth pattern despite very low interest rates, has gone negative. It won't help to restore their economy to good health.

Now, even in the US, there are banksters speaking of implementing negative interest rates here. Not good.

From Zerohedge: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-04-3 ... rest-rates" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
"Rising Demand for Safes, Cash and Gold

In Japan, the European Union and Switzerland, where negative nominal interest rates have already been adopted, it was observed that demand for safes and cash increased. When negative rates took effect in mid-February in Japan, queries about home safes surged, especially from customers aged 50 and over. Sales of safes are now running some 40 to 50 percent above this time last year, according to a Reuters article.

In the European Union Reuters reports the same trend. The European Central Bank’s negative interest rates are sparking demand for safe deposit boxes, where bank customers can store cash to avoid the prospect of eventually having to pay interest on their account balances, German bankers told Reuters. The same trend was observed recently in Switzerland as well, not only with private investors but also with pension fund managers (see: “The War on Cash Migrates to Switzerland” for details).

At the same time, we learn that negative rates have boosted demand for gold in Japan. According to Takahiro Ito, chief manager at Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo K.K.’s store in Tokyo’s Ginza shopping district, “Many customers are wagering that it’s better to turn their savings to gold as a safe asset rather than deposit money at banks that offer low interest rates,” reports Bloomberg.

Sales of gold to Japanese consumers rose to 32.8 metric tonnes in 2015 from 17.9 tonnes a year earlier, Bloomberg reports in the same article. Gold bar sales climbed by 35 percent to 8,192 kilograms in the three months ended March 31 from a year earlier, according to Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo K.K., the country’s biggest bullion retailer.

A boom in safe-deposit-box companies was also observed in Switzerland in the canton of Ticino. The rising popularity of safe-deposit boxes has created a boom for jewelers along Lugano’s Via Nassa, home to Cartier, Bulgari, and Bucherer boutiques, as people race to convert cash into assets they can lock away. Bloomberg reports:

“Investors are buying more gold as an alternative to holding Swiss franc cash deposits, according to Vontobel Holding AG, a Swiss bank and wealth manager… “We keep noticing that gold is coming back into favour with investors,” said Vontobel’s Chief Executive Officer Zeno Staub.”

In a negative interest environment, gold is the best way to store large amounts of cash. A gold coin of 1 troy ounce (31.1 grams) stores about $1,250 while a one-kilogram bar of gold stores about $39,620 today and is just about the size of your palm.

With the looming threat of cash bans and with the one-hundred-dollar bill the largest denomination both in the U.S. and Canada, one can easily see the advantage of holding gold in a safe or under the mattress. In the European Union there is also talk of banning large euro denominations like the 500-euro bill. The largest denomination in the UK is just 50 pounds." (end quote)

Your money is already losing value due to inflation and currency devaluation programs such as QE. Holding cash may avoid the negative interest rate of the banks, but even cash loses value because food and other necessities get more expensive.

Now take a look at this picture on the Church's website. It intrigues me that the picture is not of Blue Chip stocks or a savings account statement.

financial reserve.jpg (12.88 KiB) Viewed 8222 times

https://www.lds.org/topics/family-finances?lang=eng" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

In the next installment, let's discuss the plans to ban all cash.

[Older/wiser?]

Well said Silver, I have spent 30 years making money off of what people don't value...and that includes silver ...jewelery stamped 9.25 is my easiest find sometimes with semi precious stones or diamond chips, price .50 or as high as $1.00 silver candle sticks always stamped weight of several pounds(solid) $1.00 maybe $2.00 Americans don't value silver like the Brits
To much work for us to polish..what many don't get , is coin shops now take junk silver and will cash you out at almost spot.. Found silver candelabras at thrift store, got over $500. At coin store. We are a throw away society. I often wish I could teach people to recognize value
In anything and how to make money from it... Many don't even know what junk silver is and what year you want to keep (pre 1964) the pioneers kept silver dimes in the canteens. As a natural antibacterial or germ fighter..Hence the saying born with a silver spoon in there mouth, this was to keep them heathy ...so maybe in your own personal foods storage a bag of junk silver dimes might have many uses. As a small measure of trade or to put in your water. I've said it before and I will say it again. I won't take your dollar, for a time I may take your gold (silver) but I will always take your wheat on any debt I may hold. Taxes will have to be payed on properties , paper loses value what will you do, I know what I will do. So to anyone who has ever had a garage sale I say for crying out loud check you daughters jewelry or your wife's earrings or your mothers candle sticks before you give away the farm..

[Silver]

Revelation 13:
16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

We are approaching conditions under which governments will try to prevent private or anonymous transactions. If everybody carried a "debit card" tied to an account through will all financial transactions are routed, and if cash were not allowed for buying or selling what would you do to avoid being subject to the beast?

The answer is bartering. One easy way to barter is to have something that everyone recognizes and accepts as money and that retains its value over long periods of time. Precious metals fill that role.

I've copy/pasted a portion of an article on the subject below. Click on the link to see more.

They Are Slowly Making Cash Illegal
http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/arch ... sh-illegal" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
By Michael Snyder, on March 23rd, 2015

Cash - Public Domain
The move to a cashless society won’t happen overnight. Instead, it is being implemented very slowly and systematically in a series of incremental steps. All over the planet, governments are starting to place restrictions on the use of cash for security reasons. As citizens, we are being told that this is being done to thwart criminals, terrorists, drug runners, money launderers and tax evaders. Other forms of payment are much easier for governments to track, and so they very much prefer them. But we are rapidly getting to the point where the use of cash is considered to be a “suspicious activity” all by itself. These days, if you pay a hotel bill with cash or if you pay for several hundred dollars worth of goods at a store with cash you are probably going to get looked at funny. You see, the truth is that we have already been trained to regard the use of large amounts of cash to be unusual. The next step will be to formally ban large cash transactions like France and other countries in Europe are already doing.

Starting in September, cash transactions of more than 1,000 euros will be banned in France. The following comes from a recent Zero Hedge article which detailed what these new restrictions will do…

Prohibiting French residents from making cash payments of more than 1,000 euros, down from the current limit of 3,000 euros.

Given the parlous state of the stagnating French economy the limit for foreign tourists on currency payments will remain higher, at 10,000 euros down from the current limit of 15,000 euros.

The threshold below which a French resident is free to convert euros into other currencies without having to show an identity card will be slashed from the current level of 8,000 euros to 1,000 euros.

In addition any cash deposit or withdrawal of more than 10,000 euros during a single month will be reported to the French anti-fraud and money laundering agency Tracfin.

French authorities will also have to be notified of any freight transfers within the EU exceeding 10,000 euros, including checks, pre-paid cards, or gold.

Of course Spain has already banned cash transactions of more than 2,500 euros and Italy has already banned cash transactions of more than 1,000 euros.

We don’t have these kinds of outright bans in the United States just yet, but what we do have are some very strict reporting requirements.

For example, if you regularly deposit large amounts of cash, there is a very good chance that you have been the subject of a “suspicious activity report”. In 2013, approximately 1.6 million suspicious activity reports were submitted to the federal government. (end quote)

[Silver]

Older/wiser?

Very good comments and tips for making money, or for hanging on to some items of real value. A few years ago I was in a parking lot and noticed something shiny on the ground. I picked it up and discovered that I had found a piece of gold designed as a crown for a molar tooth. Took that little chunk to my local coin shop and got paid enough to make it worth my time.

[Silver]

What is money?

Article 1 details the rights and powers of the legislative branch. (Note that tyrants like Bush and Obama superficially belong to the branch of federal government that is not mentioned first in the Constitution. The founders were pretty smart, huh? Inspired, in fact. They were tired of kings and gave us a representative form of government for the most freedom.) Well, Article 1 mentions money in a couple of sections.

Section 8:
To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;

Section 10:
No State shall enter into any Treaty, Alliance, or Confederation; grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal; coin Money; emit Bills of Credit; make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts

Paper fiat notes (debt) created by an accounting entry in the books...the people of the US owe $X, the owners of the privately held Federal Reserve will receive $X plus interest...are not money as defined by the Constitution...the Law of the Land that every scalawag in office swears to defend.

Enjoy the interview below.
https://www.caseyresearch.com/articles/ ... n-the-gold" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Published April 30, 2016
Weekend Edition: What You Don’t Know About Gold – The Biggest Myths on the Gold Market
Editor's Note: Gold isn’t an investment. Gold is money.

In today’s Weekend Edition, we're sharing an interview with Casey Research Director Brian Hunt. In it, Brian reveals some of the biggest misconceptions about gold… and why you should own it.

Casey Research: Brian, as you recall, we probably get more questions and reader feedback on gold than on any other subject here at Casey Research… And we've noticed there are quite a few myths and misconceptions about gold out there. Can you go over some of the big ones for us?

Brian Hunt: Sure. Probably the biggest misconception investors have about gold is that it's an investment.

They'll listen to people on CNBC pick apart and analyze every $30 move in the metal, just as they would talk about a move in crude oil or stocks or bonds. They'll check the price quote every day… to see how their "investment" in gold is performing.

That just isn't a useful way to view gold.

Gold isn't an investment. A thousand shares of Coca-Cola is an investment. An income-producing rental property is an investment.

Coke is a business that stands a good chance of growing its cash flows… which will allow it to pay increasing dividends to its shareholders. Bought at the right price, a rental property will return all of your original capital in the form of rent checks… and the rest is gravy.

Gold isn't like those two examples at all. Gold is money.

Gold has been used for money for thousands of years because it's easily di­visible, it's easily transportable, it has intrinsic value, it's durable, and its form is consistent around the world. And, as Doug Casey reminds us, it's a good form of money because governments can't print it up on a whim. It’s the only form of money that is not someone else’s liability.

Gold doesn't pay interest or a dividend. It doesn't have profit margins. Your gold holdings amount to lumps of metal held in storage.

The sooner investors realize that gold is money… and not a con­ventional investment, the better off they'll be. It's just a timeless form of money. That's it.

Casey Research: People can also view it as insurance, right?

Hunt: Right. Since gold is real wealth you can hold in your hand, it's also "crisis insurance"… or "wealth insurance."

Like regular insurance, you buy gold and hope you don't have to use it.

Gold is insurance against governments doing foolish things with their finances. It holds its value, while paper money does not. The value of every paper currency plummets over time. Gold doesn’t.

A currency is sort of like the share price of a country. Over time, if a country produces more than it consumes, saves money, and maintains a modest amount of debt, its cur­rency will rise.

If a country consumes more than it produces… if it spends lots of money and borrows a lot in order to do all of that spending, its currency will fall in value. While currencies fluctuate for all sorts of reasons in the short term, over the long term, countries that manage their checkbooks will enjoy strong currencies. Countries that mismanage their checkbooks see their currencies plummet.

I wish I lived in a country that produces more than it consumes… that values personal responsibility and saving money. I wish our government valued fiscal responsibility. But it doesn’t.

About half the U.S. is on the government dole in some form or an­other. More than 45 million people are on food stamps. People are being paid by the government not to work. The people employed by the govern­ment enjoy huge, outsized salaries for what they do. There are more tax recipients now than tax payers. There is no political will to rein in spending and borrowing.

This situation could easily result in a crisis. That's why I own gold… and recommend people keep at least 5% or 10% of their wealth in gold.

But here's where I differ from the average gold owner: I'd love to see gold fall down to $300 or $400 per ounce. I'd love to see the value of my crisis insurance fall, rather than skyrocket… just like I don't want my family's house to burn down… or like I don't want someone to T-bone my car in an intersection.

But when I look at the gang of clueless college professors and career politicians that occupy the White House and Congress, I’m not very optimistic.

Casey Research: We all need insurance from those people. Do you think at least large institutional investors, like mutual-fund companies, understand gold?

Hunt: Absolutely not. They are just as ignorant about gold as the average Joe on the street. They might even be worse.

From the early 1980s to 2000, nobody worried about insurance. Stocks and the economy boomed for nearly 20 years. Gold languished for a long time.

Its importance as real money – as a crisis hedge – was forgotten by most people… even by the supposedly smart folks who run big investment funds.

They learned their trade during a period of rising stock prices and falling gold prices, so they think gold is something right-wing nuts stockpile alongside canned food in a bomb shelter. It's amazing how a few decades of smooth sailing will make folks forget gold's importance as insurance against disasters.

I've heard lots of supposedly smart institutional investors pooh-pooh gold because it didn't perform well during the 1980s and 1990s. They'll post charts showing how it lagged behind stocks and real estate.

It's a silly comparison, because gold isn't an investment like stocks and real estate can be. Gold is just gold. Like I said, you own it and hope to never have to use it. You don't get it confused with a stock like Johnson & Johnson.

Casey Research: We think you've made your point. Any parting shots?

Hunt: It's tempting to make comparisons to other wild periods like the 1970s or the 1930s. But those historical comparisons aren't worth anything. And I'm going to catch hell for saying this, but they aren't worth anything because this time is different.

I know "this time is different" is a dirty phrase in the investment business – but given the global debt situation, our runaway entitlement spending, and the emergence of Asia as a large gold accumulator – this is a different gold market than any market we've ever seen.

For those reasons, I don't place any value on forecasts based on gold’s past price action. I don’t place any value on attempts to value gold.

I just own a lot of it. I hope I never have to use it. For me, it’s that simple. (end quote)

[Silver]

Q: What is the opposite of Constitutionally-mandated silver and gold?
A: Totally fraudulent and privately-owned Federal Reserve Notes.

Q: What is easiest way to debauch a currency?
A: Creating too much of it either through actual printing or through cronyism-centered activities such as QE.

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-05-0 ... anipulator" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Exceprted from One River Asset Management's Eric Peters,

“We have created new tools to determine whether an economy may be pursuing foreign exchange policies that could give it an unfair competitive advantage against the United States,” announced the Treasury, late Friday.

“China, Japan, Germany, and Korea will be closely monitored as a result of a material current account surplus combined with a significant bilateral trade surplus with the United States."

"Taiwan will be monitored as a result of its material current account surplus and its persistent, one-sided intervention in foreign exchange markets,” continued the Treasury, bending to the stiff winds of political change sweeping the nation.

The 2016 election has laid bare the deep insecurity of America’s ageing working-class, their resentment toward foreigners, competition, change.

While America’s youth clamor for fairness, a future free from crushing student debt, the oppression of a government owned by and run for big business, the US Treasury is responding, warning our trading partners against artificially weakening their currencies, stealing our growth, depressing our wages, destroying our jobs.

But by singling out the countries with the world’s largest current account surpluses, they’re also demanding they spend their national savings, unleashing fiscal stimulus.

Japan’s central bank chief surprised markets, holding stimulus measures unchanged, announcing they, “Want to take more time to assess the impact of negative interest rates.” The Yen soared 3.6%, the Nikkei sank 5.2%, struggling to adjust to the possibility of a new reality; a less trade-friendly world, pressed up against the political limits of extraordinary monetary policy.

Of course, America is Earth’s greatest currency manipulator, and as long as we retain the power that comes from minting the world’s reserve currency, we always will be. Naturally, no one likes a hypocrite, particularly one barking orders, making threats.

Which is why this new chapter in the great monetary experiment will be so fascinating. Unpredictable, volatile.

[Sandinista]

Well, it's been a while since I posted anything about precious metals. Given my username, I just couldn't ignore the topic any longer.

Please note that I am not a financial adviser, and I am especially not YOUR financial adviser. The information is for you to ponder or ignore. OK, here goes...

Have you heard of negative interest rates? They are interest rates below zero. In other words, if you have $100 in you savings account on January 1st, and the interest rate is -1%, if you add no money to the account throughout the year, on December 31st you will have $99.

Already there are countries in Europe like Sweden and Switzerland that have instituted negative interest rates. The European Central Bank has also set some of the rates in negative territory. Japan, which for years has been stuck in a low-growth pattern despite very low interest rates, has gone negative. It won't help to restore their economy to good health.

Now, even in the US, there are banksters speaking of implementing negative interest rates here. Not good.

From Zerohedge: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-04-3 ... rest-rates" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
"Rising Demand for Safes, Cash and Gold

In Japan, the European Union and Switzerland, where negative nominal interest rates have already been adopted, it was observed that demand for safes and cash increased. When negative rates took effect in mid-February in Japan, queries about home safes surged, especially from customers aged 50 and over. Sales of safes are now running some 40 to 50 percent above this time last year, according to a Reuters article.

In the European Union Reuters reports the same trend. The European Central Bank’s negative interest rates are sparking demand for safe deposit boxes, where bank customers can store cash to avoid the prospect of eventually having to pay interest on their account balances, German bankers told Reuters. The same trend was observed recently in Switzerland as well, not only with private investors but also with pension fund managers (see: “The War on Cash Migrates to Switzerland” for details).

At the same time, we learn that negative rates have boosted demand for gold in Japan. According to Takahiro Ito, chief manager at Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo K.K.’s store in Tokyo’s Ginza shopping district, “Many customers are wagering that it’s better to turn their savings to gold as a safe asset rather than deposit money at banks that offer low interest rates,” reports Bloomberg.

Sales of gold to Japanese consumers rose to 32.8 metric tonnes in 2015 from 17.9 tonnes a year earlier, Bloomberg reports in the same article. Gold bar sales climbed by 35 percent to 8,192 kilograms in the three months ended March 31 from a year earlier, according to Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo K.K., the country’s biggest bullion retailer.

A boom in safe-deposit-box companies was also observed in Switzerland in the canton of Ticino. The rising popularity of safe-deposit boxes has created a boom for jewelers along Lugano’s Via Nassa, home to Cartier, Bulgari, and Bucherer boutiques, as people race to convert cash into assets they can lock away. Bloomberg reports:

“Investors are buying more gold as an alternative to holding Swiss franc cash deposits, according to Vontobel Holding AG, a Swiss bank and wealth manager… “We keep noticing that gold is coming back into favour with investors,” said Vontobel’s Chief Executive Officer Zeno Staub.”

In a negative interest environment, gold is the best way to store large amounts of cash. A gold coin of 1 troy ounce (31.1 grams) stores about $1,250 while a one-kilogram bar of gold stores about $39,620 today and is just about the size of your palm.

With the looming threat of cash bans and with the one-hundred-dollar bill the largest denomination both in the U.S. and Canada, one can easily see the advantage of holding gold in a safe or under the mattress. In the European Union there is also talk of banning large euro denominations like the 500-euro bill. The largest denomination in the UK is just 50 pounds." (end quote)

Your money is already losing value due to inflation and currency devaluation programs such as QE. Holding cash may avoid the negative interest rate of the banks, but even cash loses value because food and other necessities get more expensive.

Now take a look at this picture on the Church's website. It intrigues me that the picture is not of Blue Chip stocks or a savings account statement.

financial reserve.jpg

https://www.lds.org/topics/family-finances?lang=eng" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

In the next installment, let's discuss the plans to ban all cash.

Great series of posts. I have a question. For someone new to buying Gold or Silver what is a good way to start? Are there some things I should do or not do, things to look for, etc.?

[iWriteStuff]

Good stuff..... Thanks for posting all of this awesome material.

Back in November and December, when gold and silver funds (ETFs) were at a multi-year low, I started buying them up like crazy. I cashed them out last month for a 40% return on investment. Sort of wish I'd held on even longer now, but I make a lot of moves in the market and don't like to leave myself exposed while on vacation....

At any rate, back to buying some gold today while it's on a dip. It'll be a nice hedge when things go south (hopefully).

[Silver]

Great series of posts. I have a question. For someone new to buying Gold or Silver what is a good way to start? Are there some things I should do or not do, things to look for, etc.?

Education is the key. I will provide below some websites that will help.

Next, think about your goals for owning precious metals. Personally, my little bit of accumulation came after making sure my family had enough to eat for a year plus some to share. Other tools, some of them highly engineered and capable of projecting power down range were also a priority.

My best advice is to never use your grocery money to buy metals. They are not an investment. The market for gold and silver, as Deutsche Bank just confessed, is highly manipulated. Eventually though, materials made by Jehovah and Michael will be accepted over paper fiat.

http://www.coinflation.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; will give you an up-to-date value of America's silver coins. Coin shops will charge more, of course. Call it their profit or their premium. However, the closer you can buy to the intrinsic value shown on coinflation, the better.

I rarely buy at coin shops since I found http://www.providentmetals.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; The president of the company is LDS. Based in Dallas.

http://www.kitco.com/kitco-gold-index.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; for watching price moves.

Silver vs. Gold?
Right now, based on the historical gold price to silver price ratio, silver is the better deal. My research says silver will rise a larger percentage than gold in the near to mid-term. Gold is purty too though. Canadian Mint gold is actually of a slightly higher purity than US, but less expensive. (You can check it out on Provident Metals.)

If I were you...
Start off buying US dimes minted in 1964 or earlier. Roosevelt, the Socialist, should be on the coin because the older Mercury dimes are usually more expensive due to rarity.

When?
When will Federal Reserve Hiney Wipes go away and precious metals be restored to their rightful place? I wish I knew exactly. But just a little while longer, my friend, then the troubles begin.

[Silver]

Good stuff..... Thanks for posting all of this awesome material.

Back in November and December, when gold and silver funds (ETFs) were at a multi-year low, I started buying them up like crazy. I cashed them out last month for a 40% return on investment. Sort of wish I'd held on even longer now, but I make a lot of moves in the market and don't like to leave myself exposed while on vacation....

At any rate, back to buying some gold today while it's on a dip. It'll be a nice hedge when things go south (hopefully).

You are a brave man for buying digital precious metals. I haven't personally owned stock in anything for several years. Your timing was very good though so Conga Rats!

[Sandinista]

Great series of posts. I have a question. For someone new to buying Gold or Silver what is a good way to start? Are there some things I should do or not do, things to look for, etc.?

Education is the key. I will provide below some websites that will help.

Next, think about your goals for owning precious metals. Personally, my little bit of accumulation came after making sure my family had enough to eat for a year plus some to share. Other tools, some of them highly engineered and capable of projecting power down range were also a priority.

My best advice is to never use your grocery money to buy metals. They are not an investment. The market for gold and silver, as Deutsche Bank just confessed, is highly manipulated. Eventually though, materials made by Jehovah and Michael will be accepted over paper fiat.

http://www.coinflation.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; will give you an up-to-date value of America's silver coins. Coin shops will charge more, of course. Call it their profit or their premium. However, the closer you can buy to the intrinsic value shown on coinflation, the better.

I rarely buy at coin shops since I found http://www.providentmetals.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; The president of the company is LDS. Based in Dallas.

http://www.kitco.com/kitco-gold-index.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; for watching price moves.

Silver vs. Gold?
Right now, based on the historical gold price to silver price ratio, silver is the better deal. My research says silver will rise a larger percentage than gold in the near to mid-term. Gold is purty too though. Canadian Mint gold is actually of a slightly higher purity than US, but less expensive. (You can check it out on Provident Metals.)

If I were you...
Start off buying US dimes minted in 1964 or earlier. Roosevelt, the Socialist, should be on the coin because the older Mercury dimes are usually more expensive due to rarity.

When?
When will Federal Reserve Hiney Wipes go away and precious metals be restored to their rightful place? I wish I knew exactly. But just a little while longer, my friend, then the troubles begin.

Thanks!

[iWriteStuff]

Good stuff..... Thanks for posting all of this awesome material.

Back in November and December, when gold and silver funds (ETFs) were at a multi-year low, I started buying them up like crazy. I cashed them out last month for a 40% return on investment. Sort of wish I'd held on even longer now, but I make a lot of moves in the market and don't like to leave myself exposed while on vacation....

At any rate, back to buying some gold today while it's on a dip. It'll be a nice hedge when things go south (hopefully).

You are a brave man for buying digital precious metals. I haven't personally owned stock in anything for several years. Your timing was very good though so Conga Rats!

Is that like....

conga rats.jpg (82.23 KiB) Viewed 7709 times

?

I've been watching the price of gold and silver for years... Made about 20% on it before. This timing just happened to be, as you say, very good. That being said, the price of gold and silver didn't rebound 40%.... but the long term holdings of the ETFs did. That should be a sign.

I don't hold too many *physical* assets, usually. But when I do, I prefer them to be of three kinds: food, water, and lead ;)

[Silver]

Lead, the other precious metal.

[Silver]

Pay attention to the gold/silver ratio.

Wikipedia sez: ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_as ... lver_price" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; )
Like most commodities, the price of silver is driven by speculation and supply and demand. Compared to gold, the silver price is notoriously volatile. This is because of lower market liquidity, and demand fluctuations between industrial and store of value uses. At times this can cause wide ranging valuations in the market, creating volatility.[7]

Silver often tracks the gold price due to store of value demands, although the ratio can vary. The crustal ratio of silver to gold is 17.5:1.[8] The gold/silver price ratio is often analyzed by traders, investors and buyers.[9] In Roman times, the price ratio was set at 12 or 12.5 to 1.[10] In 1792, the gold/silver price ratio was fixed by law in the United States at 15:1,[11] which meant that one troy ounce of gold was worth 15 troy ounces of silver; a ratio of 15.5:1 was enacted in France in 1803.[12] The average gold/silver price ratio during the 20th century, however, was 47:1.[13] (end quote)

Money Metals Exchange sez: ( https://www.moneymetals.com/news/2016/0 ... tio-000860" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; )
Silver started a bit slow out of the gate in 2016, but it hit its stride in April. The white metal is now up 29% (or $4/oz) since January 1, eclipsing gold’s 22% gain.

Silver outpacing gold is good news for metals bulls, and not just for the obvious reasons. The move is an important signal that we can expect sustained higher prices for both metals.

The gold/silver ratio is calculated simply by dividing the gold price by the silver price to see how many ounces of silver it takes to buy one ounce of gold. This ratio has been a good indicator of market turning points. Why? Because silver historically leads the way, either up or down. Some investors questioned the recent rally in metals prices until silver confirmed the move higher by heading to the forefront.

After peaking at 83 in February, the gold/silver ratio has fallen sharply. The good news for metals investors is that the move may be just getting started. The ratio currently sits at just over 72, still in extreme territory.

Furthermore, the last time we saw the ratio as high as we saw it just two months ago was at the end of 2008. That marked the beginning of a spectacular run for the metals, especially silver. Silver went from under $10 an ounce all the way to $48 in less than 30 months, and the gold/silver ratio fell from the low 80s down to 32 by the spring of 2011.

So if history repeats, the ratio could be headed back below 40. In fact, a powerful bull move could drive the ratio well below 40. If markets revert to the long-term average set over the course of centuries, as many expect, we could easily see fewer than 20 ounces of silver needed to buy an ounce of gold. (end quote)

What this all means is that for someone wanting to decrease the amount of cash in their bank account before it gets "bailed-in," silver has the greater potential for appreciating.

Here's something else to think about. When I was 9-10 years old gas was around a quarter per gallon. Now a silver quarter from about that same time period is worth $3.19 in precious metal content, more than enough to buy a gallon of gas today. So what changed the most? The value of silver or the value of the US paper money?

[Silver]

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-05-0 ... rest-rates" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

"A few key players have reached their breaking points and are starting to engage in acts of defiance.

I told you recently how the Bavarian Banking Association in Germany advised its member banks to hold physical cash instead of reserve deposits with the European Central Bank (ECB) at negative interest.

Some major insurance funds are also jumping on board, choosing to hold physical cash instead of bank deposits earning negative interest.

In its effort to avoid negative interest rates, the Canton of Zug in Switzerland asked its citizens to delay paying their taxes.

Now even the political and media establishments in Germany are rebelling against the ECB, saying that negative interest rates chip away at the savings of pensioners.

In response, the ECB opted for the ‘blame the victim’ approach, pointing the finger at all of us little people because we’ve been saving too much money.

So according to the unelected bureaucrats who printed all the money to begin with, people have been saving too much.

Consequently, everyone must be punished with negative interest rates. And they’re your fault.

That’s like a rapist saying, “she deserved it.” It was an appalling response, and astonishingly stupid.

You’re supposed to save money. That’s what the Universal Law of Prosperity is based on: produce more than you consume. Save more than you spend.

Penalizing savers is the exact opposite of what bureaucrats should be doing.

But people are starting to figure this out. The resentment is growing, even within the financial system itself.

Last week we talked about the importance of holding physical cash.

You won’t be worse off for taking some savings out of the banking system.

And you’ll be protected against problems like negative interest, bank bail-ins, or withdrawal controls.

(All of these, by the way, already exist or have happened recently.)

But cash is not a panacea. Because if there really is a major reset in the financial system, your paper money might lose significant purchasing power.

That’s why it makes sense to hold gold and silver in addition to cash." (end quote)

[Silver]

Stand Aside JP Morgan, A New Player In The Silver Market Has Arrived

Filed in Precious Metals by SRSrocco on May 3, 2016

The days of JP Morgan controlling the silver market may be numbered as a new player in the silver market has arrived. For the past several years, JP Morgan held the most silver on a public exchange in the world. While the LBMA may hold (or did hold) more silver, their stockpiles are not made public.

Regardless, JP Morgan held the most silver at nearly 74 million oz (Moz) in its warehouse, up until recently. Over the past two month, JP Morgan’s silver inventories have fallen nearly 7 Moz to 67.1 Moz today:

JP-Morgan-Silver-Stocks-050316.png (40.58 KiB) Viewed 7203 times

As I mentioned in my previous article, Why Are The Chinese Stockpiling Silver? Big Move Coming?, JP Morgan increased their silver inventories from 4 Moz in April 2011 to 69.4 Moz April 19, 2016. However, the Shanghai Futures Exchange silver inventories surged from 7.5 Moz in August 2015 to 54.7 Moz on April 19, 2016:

Shanghai Silver.png (40.17 KiB) Viewed 7203 times

There's more at the link below. The point is that suddenly there is huge interest in silver.

https://srsroccoreport.com/stand-aside- ... s-arrived/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Silver]

500 Euro.jpg (22.1 KiB) Viewed 7173 times

"The War On Paper Currency Officially Begins: ECB Ends Production Of €500 Bill
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 05/04/2016 12:42 -0400

Following the denial in February that this action is in any way about reducing cash, The ECB has made its decision on the EUR500 Bill:
•*ECB ENDS PRODUCTION AND ISSUANCE OF €500 BANKNOTE
•*ECB SAYS ISSUANCE OF EU500 NOTE TO STOP AROUND THE END OF 2018
•*ECB SAYS OTHER EURO BANKNOTES WILL STAY IN PLACE
•*ECB: EU500 CAN BE EXCHANGED AT CEN BANKS FOR UNLIMITED TIME

And just like that the second highest denominated European bank note in circulation (after the CHF1000 Bill) is dead...

And so now, everyone rushes into the CHF 1000 note.

$100 bills account for $1.08 trillion of the $1.38 trillion total in circulation. So should the Fed react to the ECB's "scrapping" of the €500 bill, which accounts for 30% of the value of currency in circulation, then the Fed would respond in kind, by eliminating 78% of all paper currency in circulation by value.

Not a bad way to launch a global ban on paper currency ahead of a global NIRP regime, and all, of course, in the name of fighting "tax evasion, financial crime, terrorism and corruption." " (end quote)

Have you got that mark in your hand yet, 'cause cash is going bye-bye?

[Silver]

Add new silver bullion coins

Posted on May 4, 2016 by Dave Harper

With silver attempting $18 an ounce in recent days after being below $14 at the beginning of the year, it is no surprise that interest in bullion coins is rising among investors.

One of the ways of owning silver is to buy the old pre-1965 dimes, quarters and half dollars.

I checked the APMEX website for prices.

If you want $100 face value of Franklin half dollars, the cost is $1,536.54 with silver at $17.40 a troy ounce.

For 1964 Kennedy half dollars, the price is the same.

The markup, therefore, is roughly 24 percent from melt value figured at .715 ounce of silver per $1 face value.

Why do investors acquire these coins?

Sometimes they are a good deal.

Sometimes these silver coins are touted as the way to make change in the event of an economic catastrophe. It is this latter use that gave me an idea.

The Mint should strike more 90 percent silver coins to be sold in the bullion coin market.

Currently the Mint has 90 percent silver blanks made for use in the annual silver proof sets.

Why not ramp up the quantity of blanks made and make uncirculated versions as bullion coins and sell them to bullion buyers who want to make change in a catastrophe?

With a 24 percent margin between melt value and the retail price, the Mint should be able to find a pricing sweet spot where it can ship new 90 percent silver coins by the bag directly to its Authorized Purchasers.

In addition to bullion investors, average collectors might get a kick out of assembling silver dime, quarter and half dollar sets year by year.

Because hobbyists have often objected that collector coins sold by the Mint have markups that are too high, collectors of bullion coins distributed through the Authorized Purchaser network would catch quite a price break.

It works for collectors of bullion silver American Eagles, why not for collectors of new silver dimes, quarters and half dollars dated 2016, 2017, 2018 and on into the future?

It appears to me the Mint could create a popular new avenue of silver coin sales that would satisfy both investors and collectors.

Buzz blogger Dave Harper has twice won the Numismatic Literary Guild Award for Best Blog and is editor of the weekly newspaper “Numismatic News.”

[mirkwood]

My mom just cashed out her digital precious metals. I've been on her case about that for a while now. Her now deceased husband did a 75/25% split between digital and rounds (in hand.) I would never do precious metal investments that did not involve my having physical possession of the metals.

[Older/wiser?]

Some posters don't advise precious metals, may I be so bold as to give you my pre 1964 dimes
Worth of experience. When an average person deals in precious metals you have to have a long range attitude, My dad bought gold at $32 oz. I believe in the late 70's ..I won't say what I have or haven't done , all precious metals do is keep up with inflation and act as an insurance policy against" if something were to happen". Paper is just paper, in the bank you
Lose money..could metals be confiscated ? Yes but so could anything else of value that is deemed needed. Land is also an asset, anything bought at the right price will make you money. Remember you make your money when you buy it...how much did Apple just make stripping the gold out of old computers? I think it was about $40 mil. Also metals are pretty liquid. The article above was right , it is not an investment it is money, everyone should have
Some real hard cash, the trick is not on being a smart investor , ahead of the market, smarter and more informed than the rest. The trick my friend is living on less than you earn
And being frugal and wise with the rest.

[Silver]

Here's an article which explains why the "recovery" didn't really happen. Please read it and see if you can find another reason to get started on your financial reserve, or to continue strengthening your reserve of real wealth.

Wednesday, May 04, 2016
One Chart Says It All

http://charleshughsmith.blogspot.com/20 ... t-all.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

People sense the 'recovery" is bogus, and their rational response is to save more money rather than squander it.

Sometimes one chart captures the fundamental reality of the economy: for example, this chart of money velocity and the civilian-population ratio. (thank you, Joseph Y. for posting it on my Facebook feed.)

MV-employment-ratio5-16a.png (75.5 KiB) Viewed 6907 times

When the blue line is up, more of the population has a job. (the blue line is the Employment-Population ratio.)

The red line is money velocity, the rate at which money changes hands. (Money buried in the coffee can in the back yard has a money velocity of zero.)

As Joseph noted, the correlation between the percentage of people working and money velocity was strong until 2010. In the post-2009 recession "recovery," the percentage of the populace with jobs rose modestly, but money velocity absolutely cratered to unprecedented lows.

(The one other disconnect was triggered by the 1987 stock market crash, which caused money velocity to dip even as more people entered the workforce. This absence of correlation was relatively brief.)

The correlation between more people working and money velocity is commonsensical. More people working = more household income = more spending = higher money velocity.

But something changed in 2010. Did the quality and compensation of work change? Joseph observed: People started going back to work after the official recession ended in Q4 2009 but they were working for lower pay. With lower pay comes less disposable income, hence the cliff-like drop off in velocity.

Another potential factor is higher inflation. Some recent estimates (Where's The Beef? ‘Lies, Damned Lies, And Statistics’) suggest the gap between official inflation and actual inflation in rent, food, energy and medical care in the past 20 years has subtracted 20% from paychecks.

The four "biggies" for the average American are rent, food, energy, and medical care, in approximately that order. These "four horsemen" have been galloping along at a faster rate than headline CPI. According to the BLS definition, they compose about 60% of the aggregate population's consumption basket, but for struggling middle-class Americans, it's closer to 80%. For the working poor, spending on these four categories can stretch to as much as 90% of total spending.

(If we add exposure to higher education's soaring costs, the rate goes even higher.)

So even if wages held steady, once we factor in "real" inflation, real take-home pay has declined by 5% to 20%, depending on the household's exposure to rent, food, energy, medical care (love those co-pays and out-of-pocket expenses) and higher education.

Another potential factor is the figurative coffee can in the back yard: people sense the 'recovery" is bogus, and their rational response is to save more money rather than squander it. Even though central banks have reduced the yield on savings to less than zero, people are still saving whatever they can.

Data suggests it's all three: lower incomes, higher inflation and a recognition that savings are more important in a ‘Lies, Damned Lies, And Statistics’ economy than more spending.

This chart says it all: real income is declining and the bottom 95% are poorer.No wonder people are socking away what they can and tightening their spending: they have no other choice, even as the Federal Reserve strip-mines their savings. (end quote)

[Sandinista]

Great series of posts. I have a question. For someone new to buying Gold or Silver what is a good way to start? Are there some things I should do or not do, things to look for, etc.?

Education is the key. I will provide below some websites that will help.

Next, think about your goals for owning precious metals. Personally, my little bit of accumulation came after making sure my family had enough to eat for a year plus some to share. Other tools, some of them highly engineered and capable of projecting power down range were also a priority.

My best advice is to never use your grocery money to buy metals. They are not an investment. The market for gold and silver, as Deutsche Bank just confessed, is highly manipulated. Eventually though, materials made by Jehovah and Michael will be accepted over paper fiat.

http://www.coinflation.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; will give you an up-to-date value of America's silver coins. Coin shops will charge more, of course. Call it their profit or their premium. However, the closer you can buy to the intrinsic value shown on coinflation, the better.

I rarely buy at coin shops since I found http://www.providentmetals.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; The president of the company is LDS. Based in Dallas.

http://www.kitco.com/kitco-gold-index.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; for watching price moves.

Silver vs. Gold?
Right now, based on the historical gold price to silver price ratio, silver is the better deal. My research says silver will rise a larger percentage than gold in the near to mid-term. Gold is purty too though. Canadian Mint gold is actually of a slightly higher purity than US, but less expensive. (You can check it out on Provident Metals.)

If I were you...
Start off buying US dimes minted in 1964 or earlier. Roosevelt, the Socialist, should be on the coin because the older Mercury dimes are usually more expensive due to rarity.

When?
When will Federal Reserve Hiney Wipes go away and precious metals be restored to their rightful place? I wish I knew exactly. But just a little while longer, my friend, then the troubles begin.

Thanks!

So I took your advice and dipped my toe into precious metals. I looked at all the websites you recommended and a whole bunch more that linked off those, read a lot from various people, and then took about a fourth of my monthly savings/investment and went to provident.com to purchase some silver. I was a little anxious waiting for the package that came yesterday, and had a lot of fun opening it. I have to say, instead of just having numbers on a piece of paper or website showing me my "wealth" it was satisfying to actual hold something in my hand that signified something of tangible value. Thanks for giving me a push and getting me to jump in. I think it will be well worth it in the long run,

[Silver]

I'm honored that you would diversify based on my advice. Don't worry about price fluctuations. The manipulation of spot price is now well-known and documented and even confessed to by Deutsche Bank. Other banks are also involved.

Jehovah organized the elements. You hold in your hand one of his works.

[Sandinista]

I won't be worried by the fluctuation in price. I probably won't even watch it. What I really got from your post and then from one of the things I read (I think it was from JMBullion) is that this is not an "investment" that I am hoping will "grow". It is real "money " that has real value, will always have real value no matter what happens on Wall Street, and will be just one component of my overall investment strategy. It will always have "worth", no matter what happens to the stocks, 401K, IRA, etc. that I have on paper.

Interestingly, I asked the financial advisor who handles my wife's IRA (he works in my building) what he thought of investing in precious metals. His blank look was enough of an answer in return. Her IRA is not doing that well, maybe I hit on why!

[Lexew1899]

This will give you a laugh...