Category: Economics & Investing

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 Government Spending and Deficit Reduction. Precious Metals: Spot gold just posted another record high, yesterday. It was up $51.20 to $2,844.70 per Troy ounce at mid-day. That was a 1.8% gain for the morning.   Meanwhile, spot silver jumped $1.02 to $31.77. That was a 3.3% gain for the morning. Platinum was up …


Preparing For The Post-Apocalyptic Economy – Part 3, by 3AD Scout

(Continued from Part 2. This concludes the article.) Location, location, location So you assemble enough barter goods to open a small general store, where, when and how do you trade these goods? Living in a rural area with lots of Mennonite, Amish, and Hutterite families, many of whom own and operate their own small businesses now each one of these small businesses is a potential location for commerce or barter. There is value in forming business relationships now and maintaining those relationships in a post-SHTF world. Being a familiar and trusted neighbor before the SHTF will put you in a …


Preparing For The Post-Apocalyptic Economy – Part 2, by 3AD Scout

(Continued from Part 1.) Service with a smile Besides hard goods for barter, I have several “services” that I can provide. The key to being able to provide these services is to have the required tools and supplies on hand. Although I have several types of saws, I know that many people still have a rusty hand saw hanging up in their garage. Perhaps it was their grandfather’s but it has not been used since the cordless tool craze started. Those saws may need cleaning (rust taken off), sharpening, and perhaps even teeth resetting. Cleaning up the rust means sandpaper …


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 the recent spike in propane prices (See the Commodities section.) Precious Metals: The Next Phase Of Gold’s Bull Market Has Just Begun. JWR’s Comments:  2024 was a great year for gold investors. Spot gold posted a gain of 27.2% in US dollar terms, 37.1% in Swiss Franc (CHF) terms, and 35.6% in …


Preparing For The Post-Apocalyptic Economy – Part 1, by 3AD Scout

One of my survival planning assumptions is that regardless of my stored goods and planning, “Murphy” will appear with the proverbial monkey wrench in hand. At some point, my food stores will wear thin and, something will break along with its spares. Amazon and the local Acme hardware will long be a thing of the past. What is a Prepper to do? Well, like everything we do for our future survival, we ponder, plan and prepare for those contingencies. Bartering is probably about as old as the Earth’s soil. Even with all our economic advances through the centuries, bartering is …


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.