Category: Economics & Investing

Get Ready for Tariff War 2 or World War 3

This brief essay serves as a reminder, for the new year. As we enter 2025, both geopolitics and global economics are displaying some profound changes.  The Ukraine war, the fall of Assad’s government in Syria, and the ongoing civil wars in Burma (aka Myanmar), Yemen, Sudan, South Sudan, and Ethiopia all have the potential to spill over into wider conflicts. Ditto for potential invasions in Taiwan and South Korea. Meanwhile, the rise of the BRICS trade bloc, the out-of-control U.S. National Debt, global debt as a whole, and the run-up of precious metals prices are all evidence of deep-seated economic …


Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. This column emphasizes JWR’s “tangibles heavy” investing strategy and contrarian perspective. Today, we look at credit cards and their proper use. (See the Credit Card Use and Credit Card Debt section.) Precious Metals: China’s central bank purchases 10 tonnes of gold in December, analysts say it’s nowhere near done buying.  JWR’s Comments:  Those are just the official numbers on Chinese gold purchases. The word in the Comex …


Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. This column emphasizes JWR’s “tangibles heavy” investing strategy and contrarian perspective. Today, we examine the prospect of new tariffs, starting in 2025. Precious Metals: From BullionVault: Volatility Hits Gold and Silver Prices on ‘Tweak’ to Trump’s Trade Tariffs. o  o  o Reuters reported on Tuesday: Gold pares gains as dollar rebounds following US jobs data. Here is a key quote: “Uncertainty surrounding the tariff policy in the …


Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. This column emphasizes JWR’s “tangibles heavy” investing strategy and contrarian perspective. Today, we look at some 2025 market predictions. Precious Metals: 2025 Silver Price Predictions. o  o  o Gold set for brightest year since 2010 on rate cuts, safe-haven demand. o  o  o Matthew Piepenburg: Gold in 2025? Tragically Predictable. o  o  o Gold Price 2025 Forecast: Rising Support Sets Stage for Second-Half Breakout. JWR’s Comment:  With …


December, 2024 in Precious Metals, by Everett Millman

Welcome to SurvivalBlog’s Precious Metals Month in Review, where we take a look at “the month that was” in precious metals. Each month, we cover gold’s performance and silver’s performance and examine the factors that affected metal prices. WHAT DID GOLD AND SILVER DO IN DECEMBER? Despite enjoying a terrific annual performance, the precious metals fared poorly to close out the year. Gold ended the month down 1% while silver endured another monthly loss in excess of 5%. The metals started the month trending lower: on Dec. 2nd, spot gold fell about 0.5% to $2,636 per troy ounce, and silver …


Demographics, Dollars, and Our Destiny

The United States and many other Western nations are facing a demographic disaster. As I’ve mentioned before in SurvivalBlog, birth rates have fallen below the population replacement rate. In this essay, I will spell out some root causes of these demographic shifts that might surprise you, as well as some practical solutions. The primary cause of the current negative societal trends goes even deeper than a liberalized academic system, an activist mass media spouting progressive blather, entrenched D.C. “Swamp” politicians and bureaucrats, and uncontrolled illegal migration. The taproot of the pernicious weedpatch of our societal problems is monetary.  It all …


Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. This column emphasizes JWR’s “tangibles heavy” investing strategy and contrarian perspective. Today, we look at crop price predictions for 2025. (See the Commodities section.) Precious Metals: NASDAQ: Silver Price Forecast: Top Trends That Will Affect Silver in 2025. o  o  o At Gold-Eagle.com: Gold SWOT: BMO: Conditions Appear Favorable for a Broader Gold Equity Rally in 2025. o  o  o How Macro Changes Will Impact Gold in …


Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. This column emphasizes JWR’s “tangibles heavy” investing strategy and contrarian perspective. Today, another look at Equities markets. (See the Equities section.) Precious Metals: On Wednesday (December 18, 2024) “the bell rang” when spot silver dipped down to below $30 per Troy ounce. To restate my position from my recent investing columns: Silver is a bargain, anywhere below $30.50.  So stack it deep! – JWR o  o  o …


Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. This column emphasizes JWR’s “tangibles heavy” investing strategy and contrarian perspective. Today, a year-end look at the gold markets. (See the Precious Metals section.) Precious Metals: Market speculators did their best to push down the prices of gold and silver this week, but they failed. Spot gold seems quite resiliently holding above $2,690, and silver above $30.75, per Troy ounce.  I’m repeating my assertion that $30.50 is the …


The Amazing Vetterli

The title of this article might sound like the marquee sign for a magic act.  But this piece is more like a segment of Ian McCollum’s Forgotten Weapons video series. In the late 1860s, the Swiss inventor and gunmaker Johann-Friedrich Vetterli designed a bolt-action repeating rifle (“Repetiergewehr“) that was a true innovation. With its very large magazine capacity, I consider the Vetterli an 1870s Sturmgewehr predecessor.


Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. This column emphasizes JWR’s “tangibles heavy” investing strategy and contrarian perspective. Today, another sobering look at the National Debt. (See the National Debt and Deficit section.)  Oh, before you jump to the conclusion that I picked an “old” photo of the National Debt Clock…  It is only about four years old.  That is how rapidly the National Debt has blossomed. Precious Metals: Largest gold deposit in the …


November, 2024 in Precious Metals, by Everett Millman

Welcome to SurvivalBlog’s Precious Metals Month in Review, where we take a look at “the month that was” in precious metals. Each month, we cover gold’s performance and silver’s performance and examine the factors that affected the metal prices. WHAT DID GOLD AND SILVER DO IN NOVEMBER? The inevitable finally happened: gold and silver had a down month. Both metals traded slightly lower on November 1st, with silver dipping to $32.40 per troy ounce and gold holding above $2,730/oz. The following week began with modest gains until the wheels fell off on Wednesday, Nov. 6th: gold lost 3% to fall …


Economics & Investing For Preppers

Today’s E&I column is a special “Black Friday” edition that highlights some items available on sale for Christmas or Hanukkah gifts, some items for prepping, and many that double as items for tangible investments. The classic investing rule of “buy low and sell high” is immutable. It also applies to tangible investments. Today is the best day of the year to buy many items. But of course, shop responsibly. Avoid debt! Please shop with our banner advertisers first. If they don’t have what you are looking for, then see our Affiliates page.  Thanks, – JWR. — Seed for Security, LLC …


Thoughts on Retreats: History and Land – Part 5, by Single Farmer

Editor’s Introductory Note: This is the last part of a multi-part article series on retreats written by a Christian farmer who is praying and searching for a wife. Please prayerfully consider all of the topics that he discusses. (Continued from Part 4. This concludes the article.) Solutions: The Journey for Possible Future Retreat Owners It would be nice if there were other easy solutions out there. But for a family man the road of hard work done intelligently will often yield good results over many years. There are some who claim that you cannot save to afford land without a …


Thoughts on Retreats: History and Land – Part 4, by Single Farmer

Editor’s Introductory Note: This is part of a multi-part article series on retreats written by a Christian farmer who is praying and searching for a wife. Please prayerfully consider all of the topics that he discusses. — Economics of Land in the 21st Century Arable land is no longer free nor available at reduced cost. As you learned in Part 2, over a hundred million acres of land in our country were sold for some sweat, initiative, and a small filing fee during the main Homestead years from the 1860s to the 1930s. Even earlier, land was available for a …