Category: Economics & Investing

This year saw a battle for the direction of precious metals waged between speculators and short-term “paper gold” traders in the West, against record-breaking physical demand in the East. That physical demand from Asia reached new highs in 2013, underpinning a market that saw the outflows from precious metals ETFs eagerly snapped up by the Chinese and Indians. Gold and silver ended the year about where they ended 2010, while platinum was down only slightly from 2012. Palladium was the big performer, doing even better in 2013 than last year, but not as well as the all-time high reached in …

Reader H.L. sent: While the White House and Senate Democrats hammered guns and gun rights during 2013, investors put their money into gun company stocks and garnered “incredible returns.” Items from The Economatrix: Must-Know: Minimum Wage of $7.25 Isn’t As Low As People May Think US Wholesale Stockpiles Grow 1.4 Pct. In October Why Natural Gas Prices Jumped On The Latest Inventory Report

Reader H.J. sent this news of a trial balloon: Obama Admin Plans To ‘Force’ Americans To Move Into Cities – “Redistributing” the Wealth H.L. sent: Market Analyst Is Looking at Something He Says Should Be Causing ‘Panic Aplenty’ Rob McEwen: “Our [Currency] Is Being Debased, And One Needs To Protect Their Capital” Items from The Economatrix: 37 Reasons Why “The Economic Recovery Of 2013? is a Giant Lie US Job Openings Reach 5-Year High, A Hopeful Sign The Minimum Wage Ain’t What It Used To Be

Five Bullish Indicators That Will Drive Silver Prices Higher Andre recommended this photo collection: Modern Ruins of Abandoned Detroit. (Quite sobering, and hopefully not a preview of the demise of America’s other large cities.) Items from The Economatrix: Another Government Shutdown In Sight? Five Trends Beneath The Surface In Nov. Jobs Report Depreciating Cars And Expensive Diplomas Fueled By Easy Debt: 95 Percent Of Consumer Debt Growth In Past 12 Months From Cars And Student Loans

James W. recommended this market analysis: Five Charts: The Real Story Behind Silver If you’ve ever wondered which charities are top-heavy, R.B.S. recommended this site: Charity Navigator. BTW, I was pleased to see that Compassion International (one of my favorite charities) was so highly rated. Items from The Economatrix: Billionaire Eric Sprott – The End Game Is Absolutely Horrifying Chart Of The Day: US Labor Force Declines By 25,000 In Past Year Despite 2.4 Million Rise In Employable Americans Washington Is Standing In The Way Of US Recovery

North Dakota might have the strongest labor market in the world, with a jobless rate in the Bakken of less than 0.50%. (Adjoining eastern Montana has also greatly benefited from the Bakken Boom.) Life in the Obama era: Private sector shrank in 41 states Dr. Marc Faber: “World Central Banks Are Going To Bankrupt The World!” Items from The Economatrix: More Americans Are Working, But Pay Is Low Prof:  America In Worse Fiscal Shape Than Detroit Low Wages Are Stalling America’s Economy

Sherry K. suggested: Farmland holding value in tanked market Frequent content contributor H.L. sent this: Gold Smuggling Increases 7x In India And Surpasses Illegal Drug Trade J. McC. mentioned another peril of using social media: Two million Facebook, Gmail and Twitter passwords stolen in massive hack. [JWR’s Comment: In today’s world, your digital persona can be submitted as evidence in both civil and criminal trials. All that it would take is a malicious hacker gaining control of a moribund Facebook or Twitter account to commit wholesale character assassination that might not be detected for months or even years. You could …

Signs of the times: Kentucky town to pay police chief in Bitcoin. (A hat tip to Lynn G. for the link.) Marc Faber: World Bankers Are Going To Bankrupt The World G.G. flagged this: 41% of Net New Jobs in November Were in Government Items from The Economatrix: US Retailer Hell In One Chart Wages Relative To Profits Drop To All Time Low Big Banks Are Being Hit With Cyberattacks “Every Minute Of Every Day”

Mr. Rawles: Can you tell me in simple terms how will the current Federal budget crisis and the credit market turmoil play out, in like the long run? How can I protect my savings, in all this chaos? Which are the safe currencies? Thanks, – S.G. JWR Replies: Physical gold is presently heading to China in huge quantities, month after month. (Roughly 1,000 tons of gold per year!) At some point in the near future, the banksters of the West will run out of gold and be left with nothing but a paper-based house of cards. Following the current period …

B.B. sent: 1929 Analog Pierre M. spotted this: Coming Soon: The Coming Global Wealth Tax Axel Merk: Is the Fed increasingly monetizing government debt? (Thanks to G.G. for the link.) Items from The Economatrix: Strong US jobs report keeps markets in check Top 10 Percent of US Households Control Nearly 75 Percent of All Wealth – Average Americans Pretend to be Temporarily Embarrassed Millionaires by Going Further into Debt. Inflation Since 2000 is “Not Contained”

Professor Laurence Kotlikoff: $200 Trillion in Long Term Obligations and Fed is Printing 29 Cents of Every Dollar G.G. flagged this bellwether event: Chinese Yuan Surpasses Euro, Becomes Second Most Used Currency In Trade Finance After the recent looting spree in Cordoba, Argentina: “Cleanup on Aisle Three.” [JWR’s Comments: People will come unglued and start looting when the police go out on strike, or otherwise don’t show up for work. Count on it. Oh, and by the way, store owners will have to Go Full Koreatown, and gun up, or lose everything.] Items from The Economatrix: Too Big To Fail …

Reader Bob C. notes “…an interesting divergence between risk money (hedge funds), smart money (institutions) and dumb money (retail investors)”: Institutions Have Been Dumping Billions Of Dollars Of Stocks All Year, But Now The Selling Is Really Accelerating. (At the same time that some middle class suckers are borrowing money to buy over-valued stocks, the smart money is heading for the hills!) It Will Implode: “We Will See The Demise of the Dollar” Items from The Economatrix: ‘Underground’ Economy Signals Soft Growth US Car Sales Jump In November Expect Devastating Global Economic Changes In 2014

Icelanders Overthrow Government and Rewrite Constitution After Banking Fraud – No Word From US Media Which Currency Is Up Over 9000% This Year and Sells for Almost as Much as an Ounce of Gold? JWR’s Comments: I’ve been recommending the use of Bitcoin since May of 2011. $100 put into Bitcoin at that time would now be worth thousands. Of course Bitcoin is virtual, so it should not be confused with genuine money (like gold or silver), which has inherent practical value. But at least there is a finite limit for the world supply of Bitcoin, which is more than …