Archive for the ‘Silver’ tag

A Look At Precious Metals

Since their discovery, metals have always been known for their hardness. This dates back to the age of iron. They are also very easy to shape into various objects once heated up. Though, metals are not without flaws as prolonged exposure to openair causes many metals to rust. However, not all metals rust. Some of the metals that don’t rust are Gold, Platinum and Silver. Unfortunately, these metals are not as common as Iron or some of the other more widely spread metals. The availability these three metals are a major reason as to why they are considered precious metals. And out of all the precious metals the most desired is gold because it can be used for many different functions. Gold has always been cherished for its spectacular exquisiteness and because of this is often used as jewelry. Though, today gold is used in a plethora of different items. The automobile industry uses gold in some applications; it’s used in photography and electronics; and the medical industry uses gold for a variety of different reasons.

In the commercial market gold is usually not used in its purest form as pure gold is to soft for many applications. In these cases gold is combined with alloy or copper.

There have been many scientists that have tried to duplicate gold in their laboratories, but with no avail. The secret of gold, remains a mystery.

The Demise Of The Dollar Is Greatly Exaggerated

The value of gold and silver has been on a downward slide all week. Actually, silver has been losing value at a pace not seen in the last 10 years. And while the value of gold and silver have been on the decline, the value of the dollar has been increasing. Don’t get me wrong, we still feel like gold is an excellent long term investment, but we can’t stress how important it is to keep your portfolio diversified. And my advice for those of you stocking up on gold in anticipation of the collapse of the dollar would be to keep some greenbacks around. The dollar has been around for a long time. It is highly sought-after throughout the world and is the most powerful form of currency in the world. It is not going anywhere anytime soon.

Unbelievable Find! 650 Year Old Buried Treasure Found In Mans Backyard

Well this doesn’t happen every day – at least not to this extent. A man found a buried treasure as he is digging through his backyard to expand a small pond. The discovery happened in Wiener Neustadt, Austria and the man is only known as Andreas K. Andres found an unheard of amount of centuries-old jewelry along with other precious objects. All-in all the treasure contained hundreds of jewels containing gold, silver, pearls and diamonds. The jewels in this find are said to be 650 years old!

So far all of the details have not been released as the treasure is still being evaluated. Though, experts believe the value of this treasure could be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Aside from the monetary value, the historical significance of this medieval treasure could contain answers to many previously unanswered questions.

Gold & Silver -New Record Highs!!

Gold reaches a new record high! And has been gaining strength for three weeks in a row because the almighty dollar is declining and debt continues to pile up. In addition to Gold reaching record highs, Silver has also reached record levels. Silver has now reached $44.00 per ounce, its highest level in 31 years.

Gold reached its all-time high of $1,512.47 an ounce Thursday April 21st before closing at a slightly lower price. Most experts believe that the biggest factor in the rise of gold prices is the current declining value of the US dollar. So as the dollar stabilizes, so should the value of Gold. The dollar reached its lowest level since mid 2008.

Other primary reasons for the rise of gold prices are the mounting amounts of debt in Europe and the Japan nuclear disaster.

FDR Ends Gold Standard in 1933 – Will Gold Standard Be Back?

With all the talk lately concerning the collapse of the US dollar and possibility the return of the Gold Standard we though this video would be fitting. The fear of the collapse of the US dollar is nothing new, but it is certainly has been more publicized lately. You can’t visit a news/financial website without seeing a story on the collapse. Even though we don’t know for sure if the dollar will collapse or not, we do believe it is always a good idea to keep about 15% of your assets in gold and silver.

Gold Rises to Record on Increased Demand for Wealth Protection

Gold rose to a record in New York and London as investors sought protection against turmoil in the global economy and financial markets. Silver rose to the highest price since March 2008.

Bullion futures climbed as high as $1,279.50 an ounce. The dollar fell to a five-week low against the euro today. The metal usually moves inversely to the U.S. currency. Global holdings of gold by exchange-traded products are up 16 percent this year and this month reached a record, Bloomberg data show.

“People are worried about the European financial system and debt market, and the outlook for the U.S. and global economy,” said Mark O’Byrne, executive director of brokerage GoldCore Ltd. in Dublin. “People are worried about equities, debt, property” and currencies, he said.

Gold, up 16 percent this year, is heading for its 10th consecutive annual gain, the longest winning streak since at least 1920. Bullion has outperformed global equities, Treasuries and most industrial metals, prompting record investments in gold-backed ETPs. The metal reached all-time highs in euros, sterling and Swiss francs in June.

Gold futures for December delivery added $7.10, or 0.6 percent, to $1,275.80 an ounce at 8:51 a.m. on the Comex in New York. Prices surpassed the previous all-time high of $1,276.50 set Sept. 14. Bullion for immediate delivery in London gained as much as 0.8 percent to a record $1,278.02 an ounce and was last at $1,273.10.

Bullion has gained as the MSCI World Index of equities fell 1 percent this year. Copper added 4.1 percent and crude oil is down 5.3 percent. Silver and palladium have outperformed bullion this year. Gold priced in Swiss francs today climbed to the highest level since July 5.

Yen-Dollar

The yen advanced against the dollar today, paring losses from yesterday when Japan’s government intervened for the first time since 2004 to curb gains that threaten an export-led recovery. The greenback slipped as much as 0.8 percent against the euro today.

“The dollar has been weakening and that’s been helping gold,” said Eugen Weinberg, head of commodity research at Commerzbank AG. “Investors are looking for a safe haven.”

The Federal Reserve has kept its main interest rate at a record low to stimulate the economy. The central bank last month resumed direct purchases of Treasuries, also known as quantitative easing. The Fed first resorted to buying bonds as part of its response to the world financial crisis.

Quantitative Easing

Economists at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. expect the Fed to announce as early as November a new round of asset purchases to support a weak economy. Treasury purchases may total about $1 trillion in another round of quantitative easing, according to Jan Hatzius, chief U.S. economist for Goldman Sachs.

“Gold has recently been driven notably by the perceived increasing probability of a new round of quantitative easing in the U.S.,” said Anne-Laure Tremblay, a London-based analyst at BNP Paribas SA. “Quantitative easing tends to be supportive of asset prices and is fuelling concerns about the potential longer-term inflationary impact of such measures.”

Still, bullion has gained this year even as U.S. inflation slowed. The metal is traditionally bought as a hedge against rising consumer prices. Inflation expectations, based on the 10-year U.S. Treasury breakeven rate, have fallen to 1.78 percent from 2.25 percent six months ago.

Silver for December delivery in New York added as much as 1.1 percent to $20.795 an ounce, the highest price since March 2008. The metal was last at $20.725, taking its yearly gain to 23 percent.

Global holdings of silver by ETPs gained 45.8 metric tons to 13,211.9 tons yesterday, according to Bloomberg data from four providers. That’s the highest in at least seven months.

Platinum for October was 0.4 percent higher at $1,611.50 an ounce after yesterday reaching $1,613.50, the highest level since June 21. Palladium for December rose 0.7 percent to $563.50 an ounce. The metal earlier today reached $564.55, the highest price since April 27.

Via: bloomberg.com

Gold Coins Are Selling Like Hot Cakes

I read a USAToday.com article containing the following quote: “Gold coins are selling like hot cakes.”  My point for posting the previous quote is to show that even during a recession, precious metals rise in value.  With prices dropping on everything from, cars, to homes to employee income, gold, silver and other precious metals are not just holding a strong value, but excelling.  Investors and collectors are realizing that gold is a key commodity.  And they are spending what it takes to obtain as much gold, silver and other precious metals as possible.  They are investing not just for the long term, but investing to earn a quick profit as gold value keeps rising.  I personally believe gold is one of the wisest long term investments, but recently I am starting to see that it can be a very profitable short term investment.  Who knows, maybe the new fad will be flipping gold.

PRECIOUS METALS: Rally In New York On Sharply Weaker Dollar

Article clipping via Wall Street Journal

NEW YORK (Dow Jones)–Gold futures rallied Friday on a sharply weakening U.S. dollar as participants bought back previously sold positions.  December gold rose $18.50, or nearly 2%, to settle at $955.80 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.  “It’s definitely about the buck,” said Frank Lesh, broker and futures analyst with FuturePath Trading.  The ICE Futures U.S. dollar index hit its lowest point since December.  “That new low in the dollar is the big driver here,” Lesh said.

Gold is often bought as an alternative currency to hedge against greenback weakness. The dollar fell as the euro and other higher-yielding currencies benefited from resilient stocks and the stronger Chicago purchasing managers’ index. At the same time, worrisome signs in second-quarter gross domestic product underscored calls for a different safe haven than the dollar.  “The dollar’s getting creamed right now,” said Patrick Donnelly, a broker with Peak Trading Group.

Technical purchasing also was supporting gold as buy stops were triggered, Donnelly said.  “We hit some stops,” said Andrew Montano, director of precious metals at Scotia Mocatta. “It’s short-covering mostly.”  Silver futures gained with gold as the U.S. dollar tanked, Lesh said. Comex September silver rose 45.5 cents to settle at $13.940 an ounce.