When it comes to Bitcoin, you can count on one thing – volatility.
The price of Bitcoin plunged more than 11% Thursday morning, dipping below the $14,000 level after the South Korean government announced plans to more tightly regulate cryptocurrencies.
Last month, we reported on a Bank of America survey that indicated the mainstream has started to acknowledge that the stock market is a big, fat, ugly bubble.
The latest fund-manager survey by Bank of America Merrill Lynch found that a record 48% of investors say the US stock market is overvalued. Meanwhile, 16% of investors say they are taking on above-normal risk. BoA chief investment strategist Michael Hartnett called this “an indicator of irrational exuberance.”
Now, even the government has taken notice, acknowledging asset prices are floating in dangerous bubble territory.
We talk a lot about how central banks serve as the primary force driving the business cycle. When a recession hits, central banks like the Federal Reserve drive interest rates down and launch quantitative easing to stimulate the economy. Once the recovery takes hold, the Fed tightens its monetary policy, raising interest rates and ending QE. When the recovery appears to be in full swing, the central bank shrinks its balance sheet. This sparks the next recession and the cycle repeats itself.
This is a layman’s explanation of the business cycle. But how do the maneuverings of central banks actually impact the economy? How does this work?
The Yield Curve Accordion Theory is one way to visually grasp exactly what the Fed and other central banks are doing. Westminster College assistant professor of economics Hal W. Snarr explained this theory in a recent Mises Wire article.
As we pointed out a few weeks ago, we’ve now entered the prime time to buy Christmas cards, decorations, and wrapping paper. Why? Because with Christmas in the rearview mirror, Christmas stuff is all on sale.
There are a lot of reasons to believe gold is also on sale right now.
The investment world has focused most of its attention on stock markets and cryptocurrencies over the last few months. But as an article recently published in Forbes points out, there are at least 10 good reasons to believe now is the time to buy gold.
As we’ve reported, the US government is spending money like a drunken sailor. But nobody really seems to care.
Since Nov. 8, the US national debt has risen $1 trillion. Meanwhile, the Russell 2000 (a small-cap stock market index) has risen by 30%. Former Reagan budget director David Stockman said this makes no sense in a rational world, and he thinks the FY 2019 is going to sink the casino.
Earlier this month, World Gold Council chief market strategist John Reade said he expects gold to shine in 2018, and one of the primary reasons will be rising income growth in China and India.
A report recently published by the Centre for Economics and Business Research lends support to Reade’s prediction. According to the 2018 World Economic League Table, India will leapfrog France and England in 2018 to become the world’s fifth largest economy in dollar terms. The report also predicted that China will overtake the US as the world’s biggest economy in 2032.
Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays
It’s been another wonderful and eventful year for all of us here at SchiffGold. These are truly some of our favorite seasons with Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Christmas, New Years and other’s that bring family together to find joy in the holiday season and hopes for the new year to come.
The SchiffGold family would like to wish you and yours many blessings, happiness, and may your heart and home be filled with all of the joys the festive season brings. Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year!
-SchiffGold Staff 2017
The SchiffGold Friday Gold Wrap podcast combines a succinct summary of the week’s precious metals news coupled with thoughtful analysis. You can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes.
I can think of a lot of places you might not want to store $26,000 in gold.
For instance, it might not be a good idea to put your gold in a cat litter box. And you might not want to stick your gold inside an old boat. And if you did put your cat litter box filled with gold inside an old boat, you probably wouldn’t want to ask your druggie neighbor to help.
Well, a couple in Florida did a three-fer. They put their $26,000 in retirement gold in a cat litter box and asked their druggie neighbor to help them hide it on their boat.
The next part of the story won’t surprise you. The druggie neighbor apparently stole it.
In a recent interview on RT Boom Bust, Peter Schiff talked gold.
In a piece he wrote for the December issue of the World Gold Council Gold Investor, WGC chief market strategist John Reade outlined several key reasons he thinks gold will shine in 2018. He said rising global income will be the primary factor pushing demand for the yellow metal upward in the next year.
Peter put a little different spin on Reade’s analysis, saying it’s not just rising incomes in places like India and China that will help boost gold. Global inflation will play a key role.
