Sept. 15 marked the 10-year anniversary of the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy.
Many investors undoubtedly remember that day clearly. But as Jim Rickards pointed out in a recent article at the Daily Reckoning, that day was actually the culmination of a long meltdown. Investors should have seen it coming. In fact, they could have seen it coming had they been paying attention.
So, are we in the midst of a similar slow-motion meltdown today?
Could gold help us find space aliens?
It just might!
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is scheduled to launch into space in 2021. NASA claims the $10 billion telescope will allow scientists to “look back in time to see the very first galaxies that formed in the early Universe.” And thanks to its golden mirror and incredibly sensitive camera system, it may allow us to detect alien life out in space.
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’m a pretty cynical person. And I don’t really trust people. To call me skeptical would be an understatement. I’m the guy who wastes time Googling an even slightly sketchy sounding story posted on Facebook to see if it’s really true. So, I don’t think I would be very easy to scam.
Now, I’m not arrogant enough to think it could never happen. I’m sure there are ways I could be fooled. But I still find it really difficult to understand how some of these scammers ever make a dime. I mean, who actually believes that Nigerian prince is going to send them $8 million? Who actually goes to Target to buy gift cards to send to the Indian IRS agent? (Yes. That is a thing.) And who goes to a storage facility to buy cheap gold?
That last one … It just happened.
For the last 10 years, central banks have been on a gold-buying spree. At least some of them have.
On net, central banks globally added 193.3 tons of gold during the first half of 2018, according to World Gold Council data. That represents an 8% increase over 2017. The last time we saw this kind of central bank buying was in the 1950s, but as a report published by Forbes points out, the motivations are much different now than they were then.
Countries like Russia, China and Iran have been looking for ways to limit their dependence on the US dollar for years. More recently, we’ve even seen American allies looking to de-dollarize the world. Last month, German foreign minister Heiko Maas called for the creation of a new payments system independent of the United States.
It’s gotten to the point people are beginning to discuss a “post-dollar” world.
RT’s Max Keiser recently talked about the issue of the US weaponizing its currency with the head of research for GoldMoney.com, Alasdair Macleod.
3D printing is a rapidly evolving technology that could potentially change the world like the internet did. People are most familiar with 3-D printing due to the controversy surrounding 3D printed firearms. But the technology can be used to produce everything from tiny precision components to houses.
Now gold has a role to play in the evolution of 3D printing technology. Scientists at Vanderbilt University have developed a process using gold nanoparticles to reveal tiny defects in 3D printed parts.
When the New York Times published an op-ed from a White House insider claiming there are people inside the Trump administration actively working to undermine the president, the markets shrugged it off. In fact, as Peter Schiff said in a recent interview on thestreet.com, the markets are shrugging pretty much everything off.
Everything is bullish as far as investors are concerned. They believe the US economy is in great shape. According to President Trump, it’s in the best shape ever. This is the greatest boom in the history of the United States. And so that fantasy continues to dominate the narrative and markets are shrugging off all the bad news.”
Despite the optimism, Peter said the economy is headed for the “greatest bust ever.” And that’s the perfect storm for gold.
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.
OK. Here’s a dilemma for you. Should I burn my gold Nikes?
Of course, this is merely a theoretical question. I don’t own gold Nikes. But I could, for a mere $3,500. Yes. Genuine, gold Nike shoes. So, if I did, would I feel any compulsion to burn them?
Well, I can answer this question with an emphatic, “No!”
