News Articles

There are several lessons to be taken from the fiscal crisis of 2008 and the ensuing recession. Not least among them is the simple fact that the US government is willing to do nearly whatever it takes to stave off recession, even if it means systematically destroying the dollar. As the crisis unwound, the government created money to prop up Fannie and Freddy. They created money to bailout AIG and a handful of banks. They created money for the “stimulus” package. Then they created money through “quantitative easing” not once, but twice. The pattern is clear: the only real tool at the government’s disposal is the creation of money, and they are not afraid to use it....

Published: April 12, 2011

After former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker was appointed in 1979, the consumer price index surged into the double digits, causing the now revered Fed Chief to double the benchmark interest rate in order to break the back of inflation. Using the methodology in place at that time puts the CPI back near those levels.

Inflation, using the reporting methodologies in place before 1980, hit an annual rate of...

For gold miners, success has been anything but fun lately.

Everything these companies prayed for a decade ago, they got. Collapsing global currencies. A gold price rising from US$250 an ounce to more than US$1,500. Incredible earnings and cash flow growth. It played out exactly as the gold bugs said it would, and then some.

Yet, you won’t find many gold CEOs with smiles on their faces these days, because..

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

The American working middle class (Good) have been deceived by the Federal Reserve, the banks that control them (Bad) and the Washington DC political class (Ugly) into believing that a fiat currency, un-backed by gold, supported by systematic inflation is beneficial to their wealth. This has been the Big Lie for the last century and has positioned the country for an epic...

China is on a gold drive and it has overtaken India as the world’s largest purchaser of gold at 90.9 million tons in gold bars and coins for Q1, 2011. This is up 123% from 40.7 tons last year for the same period. India meanwhile has purchased only 85.6 tons of gold this year.

There are seven factors that drive Chinese gold demand, according to the recent World Gold Council Report:..

Mexico, Russia and Thailand added gold now valued at about 6 billion US dollars to their reserves in the first quarter of 2011 as metal prices advanced to a record, the dollar weakened and US Treasuries lost investors money.

Mexico bought 93.3 metric tons since January, increasing holdings from about 6.9 tons, according to data from the IMF and the Central bank later said it purchased 100 tons in recent months. Russia increased reserves...

You can’t accuse the hedge fund manager John A. Paulson of lacking loyalty. Even as big-name investors like George Soros peel back their bets on gold, helping to send prices falling, Mr. Paulson, who heads the $37.5 billion hedge fund Paulson & Company, has chosen to stay the course, according to recent regulatory filings that indicate he actually increased his bets on certain companies exposed to gold.

Gold, to be sure, has treated him well. Mr. Paulson netted...

Gold and silver are higher this morning with the dollar, the British pound and commodity currencies falling in value. It is too early to tell whether the recent margin driven, paper sell off on the COMEX is over but physical supply remains limited while demand remains robust, particularly in China, India and wider Asia.

Knowledgeable experts continue to urge investors to own gold and silver due to the likelihood of much higher prices, currency and inflation risk.

One of the most respected global technical and macro strategists in the world, Robin Griffiths has said that silver and gold...

Chinese speculators have emerged as a big driver of silver’s spectacular rally and subsequent crash with trading in the metal in Shanghai soaring nearly 30-fold since the start of the year.

The commodity, nicknamed “the devil’s metal” for its wild price swings, surged 175 per cent from August to a peak of almost $50 a troy ounce two weeks ago. Since then, it has plummeted 35 per cent, hitting a low of $32.33 on Thursday.

At the same time, silver turnover on the Shanghai Gold Exchange...