Gold supply took another hit, as output in Australia mine production slumped in the first quarter of this year.
Output fell 8% in Australia, according to data released on Sunday by Australian mining consultancy Surbiton Associates. Australian mines produced 71.5 tons in Q1. This was a drop from 77.5 tons in the previous quarter.
Governments will tax just about anything.
Of course, we are all intimately familiar with income taxes, property taxes, and sales taxes. But these are just the tip of the iceberg. Governments around the world have come up with some amazingly creative ways to tax their citizens.
The London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) has launched a code of conduct to boost confidence in the $5 trillion London gold market.
The code sets out standards and best practices expected from participants in the global over the counter (OTC) wholesale market for precious metals. It focuses on four primary areas: ethics, governance, compliance and risk management, and information sharing and business conduct. The LMBA formulated the code with input from members, along with participants from from the wider precious metals market.
For the past decade, Mike Pung has scoured the Oklahoma hills and rivers in search of gold.
From what he told Tulsa’s Channel 8, it hasn’t exactly proven to be a fruitful venture.
You know, I’ve been in this for 10 years now, and I have never found a nugget, ever.”
But for Pung and other members of of the Gold Prospectors of Oklahoma City, gold hunting is a labor of love. They spend hours panning in Oklahoma rivers and sifting piles of dirt in hope of finding even the tiniest flakes of gold. After all that work, you may need a magnifying glass to examine the haul. Nevertheless, Gary Whited said the thrill of the find is hard to even explain. He said even a speck can make you feel like you made your way into Fort Knox.
In his most recent Gold Videocast, Peter Schiff pointed out that Pres. Trump inherited an economic mess from Barack Obama. Even if he can manage to get his policies implemented in the midst of the political circus going on in D.C., it isn’t going to be enough to stop the downward economic spiral.
Yes, having Donald Trump president is better than having Hillary Clinton as president. But he is not a get out of jail free card for the economy… The problem is the damage is going to hit on Donald Trump’s watch. Barack Obama got out of Dodge just in time.”
Brandon Smith at Alt-Market.com agrees that the economy is due to take a plunge. He takes things a step further, asserting that Trump is just the scapegoat the central bankers have been waiting for. Now they can nudge up interest rates and blame the chaos caused by popping bubbles on the president specifically and Republican policies in general.
Good news for precious metals investors in Arizona.
On Monday, Gov. Doug Ducey signed a bill into law that eliminates states capital gains taxes on buying gold and silver specie. It tax repeal will not only benefit Arizonans who invest in gold and silver, it will also facilitate their use as currency and undermine the Federal Reserve’s monopoly on money.
Some have dubbed it the “Trump Bump.”
Since the election of Donald Trump, the stock market has soared. Many Americans believed the new president would turn things around and “make America great again!” Meanwhile, the sale of precious metals has slumped in the US. While sales of gold and silver have soared in places like China and India, Americans have been buying up US stocks.
But is the unbridled optimism warranted? Peter Schiff doesn’t think so, and believes now is the time to think like a contrarian, and buy gold and silver. In his latest Gold Videocast, he explains why
The US government isn’t the only one piling up debt.
We’ve reported on the ticking debt bomb in the US. Apparently, the timer is ticking in China as well. This week, Moody’s downgraded the country’s credit rating from A1 to Aa3, and changed its outlook from stable to negative. It was the first downgrade of China’s credit rating since 1989.
Meanwhile, Chinese investors are buying gold.
Over the last few weeks, the media has fixated on whether or not firing FBI director James Comey and allegations of Russian collusion will turn into Donald Trump’s Watergate. But in a recent column, economic analyst Jim Rickards said that really isn’t the most significant thing that‘s happened.
While everyone is focused on the Washington circus this week, they’re missing what could be the real news — gold.”
This article was submitted by Joel Bauman, SchiffGold Precious Metals Specialist. Any views expressed are his own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Peter Schiff or SchiffGold.
In my previous article, Being a Good Financial Steward: A Lesson from the Parable of Talents, I encouraged readers to follow the example of the good servants by finding a return on their precious metals. The good servants traded their talents (literally weights in gold and silver) in order to gain more talents.
And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey. Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents. And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two.” Matthew 25:15-17
While it’s not clear what activities were in involved in the trading of these talents, we are confident that the good servants were productive. (Matthew 25:20) Comparing this with the bad servant who simply dug his talent in the ground out of fear readers are given clear examples of both productive and unproductive financial stewardship.
