Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. Most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor, JWR. Today, we look at the return of some ammunition to gun store shelves. (See the Tangibles Investing section.)
Precious Metals:
All eyes are still on Afghanistan. Mark my words: If you begin hearing the words “American Hostages” coming out of Afghanistan, then you can expect to see precious metals zoom up 10% or more, within a few days. If any hostage situation drags on, then we might see a 30% gain in gold. Buy low and sell high, folks.
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Platinum still looks strong enough to reach that long term sub 1:1 equilibrium versus gold.
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Gold to Silver Ratio: Long Term Trend 1693 to Present. JWR’s Comment: I still predict that the silver to gold ratio will revert to below 20-to-1 before 2030.
Economy & Finance:
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Fed Signals Pullback of Monetary Stimulus Likely to Start This Year.
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U.S. consumer sentiment nosedives as Delta variant spikes.
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At Wolf Street: The Extra $300/Week Unemployment Benefits Encouraged Many to Not Work: Details about the “Labor Shortage” Pile Up.
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Who Bought the $5 Trillion Piled on the Monstrous US National Debt in 15 Months?
Commodities:
Oil in Longest Run of Declines Since 2019 After Fed Taper Signal.
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OilPrice News reports: Oil Sinks On Signals Fed May Soon End Stimulus.
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Semiconductor Shortage Puts World’s Largest Automaker At Risk.
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LP prices seen heating up for U.S. corn harvest drying season.
Inflation Watch:
NAA Inflation Tracker: August 2021. JWR’s Comments: Some of these charts — especially the Producer’s Price Index (PPI) — do not bode well. I firmly believe that the United States Dollar and the currencies in most of the western world will experience substantial inflation for several years. Plan accordingly. I suggest that you shift your investment portfolio to inflation-proof tangibles!
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National Review: Is Inflation Really Transitory?
Forex & Cryptos:
Dollar Digests Gains, Canadian Dollar Recovers Mildly after CPI.
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Reported on Friday: Week of Bad News Limping to a Close.
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SEC head Gary Gensler warns of ‘even more’ crypto regulation.
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Here’s What Bitcoin Exchange Inventory Levels Means For The Bull Rally.
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Brazil’s central bank president endorses crypto regulation.
Tangibles Investing:
Some ammunition is returning to gun store shelves: Are Ammo Supplies and Prices Headed Back to Normal? Here is an excerpt:
“It could still be well into next year before ammunition supplies return to levels that could be considered normal, but as production is now running at near capacity – and round-the-clock at a few facilities – store shelves aren’t continually bare. Shooters that take the time to look online and shop around can increasingly find more ammunition than they could a year ago, and as a result prices have begun to level off. However, it will also be months before ammunition prices fall to pre-pandemic levels.”
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Though the selection is still scanty and prices are still elevated, the ammo re-supply situation seems to be improving most rapidly in the sporting goods megamarts in the heartland, as evidenced in this video: AMMUNITION IS COMING BACK. But meanwhile, here in The American Redoubt most stores are still chronically sold out.
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Yes, the rumors are true: Russian-made guns and ammo will be import-banned, after September 7th, 2021.
Provisos:
SurvivalBlog and its Editors are not paid investment counselors or advisers. Please see our Provisos page for our detailed disclaimers.
News Tips:
Please send your economics and investing news tips to JWR. (Either via e-mail or via our Contact form.) These are often especially relevant because they come from folks who closely watch specific markets. If you spot any news that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers, then please send it in. News items from local news outlets that are missed by the news wire services are especially appreciated. And it need not be only about commodities and precious metals. Thanks!