Friday (June 1st, 2012) was a banner day. Stocks plunged, but gold and silver rallied, hopefully signaling a change from May’s declines. With the credit market in turmoil, everyone is frantic for cash–among other things to meet CDS derivative margin calls. (I’ve been warning you about derivatives since 2006.) Hence the fire sale in stocks, metals, and even crude oil–both futures and spot markets. But the long term prospects for silver and gold look bullish. In the current era of “quantitative easing” monetization, the paper currencies are doomed to go down, and metals are the safe haven hedge. My favorite metals for investing are lead and brass. (When combined with nitrocellulose and a primer.)
California residential real estate is still in the dumpster, but not so the state’s productive farm and ranch land! Growers, ranchers holding onto their land amid high commodity prices. (Thanks to Sean B. for the link.)
Over at The Panama Perspective: Global Tax Topical Focus – FATCA Is Coming
Germany Faces A Growing Risk Of Disastrous Power Blackouts. (Since winds are generally higher at night, perhaps there might eventually be pressure to institute primarily night shifts for heavy industries in Germany that use lots of electricity.
The Causes of Inflation and a Commodity-Based Currency. (Ralph Borsodi)
Getting Out of Dodge: The online payments giant PayPal just announced that they have moved their primary data center from California to Salt Lake City, Utah. (Where they will be joining eBay’s flagship data center, as well as Overstock.com.) A large number of companies are partly or entirely bailing out of California because over-regulation, high taxes, high labor costs, and high electricity costs.
Shenandoah reports: The Prisons in Greece are Running out of Food. (Thanks to H.L. for the link.)
Items from The Economatrix:
Gold Vaults 4% for Biggest One-Day Rise in Three Years
Brent Oil Fails Below $100 a Barrel for First Time Since October
No Shelter: 2012 Gains Erased in Torrent of Selling