Daily Market Report 7/17/12

GOLD

Gold initially sold off, reaching $1,571 per ounce this morning as Federal Chairman Ben Bernanke’s started his testimony to the US Senate Banking Committee. During that testimony Bernanke made it clear that the Fed was prepared to provide different types of monetary stimulus to give the U.S. recovery a jolt if our economy continues to weaken. Gold rallied back to $1,593 per ounce at one point. At 11am PDT, Gold is trading at $1,592, unchanged from Monday’s close. 

SILVER

Silver did it again, falling below $27 per ounce, reaching $26.68 per ounce at one point, following Gold’s early sell off. As Gold rallied back, Silver reached $27.52 per ounce. At 11am PDT, Silver is up $0.05, trading at $27.47 per ounce on good volume. 

GOLD & SILVER RARE COINS AND PRECIOUS METAL STATES SALES TAX EXEMPTIONS

The Wall Street Journal has reported on Monday, July 16, 2012 that Republican governors have joined Democrats in supporting federal legislation that would end the sales tax break for online purchases. This agreement is less to do with political ideology than a need for states to increase revenue. The National Conference of State Legislatures estimates collecting sales tax on online purchases could provide states with $23 billion in new revenue annually.

As Chairman of our community’s Gold & Silver Political Action committee, I am aware of and monitoring three different federal "internet sales tax" proposals currently under consideration by Congress - the Main Street Fairness Act (S. 1452, H.R. 2701), the Marketplace Equity Act (H.R. 3179) and the Marketplace Fairness Act (S. 1832).  All three of these proposed legislations could directly or indirectly affect current laws in many of the states that offer sales tax exemptions for rare coins and precious metals.