Here’s a strange headline for you: “Gold prices near daily highs despite better-than-expected inflation in October.”
This headline is bizarre on a couple of levels. First, since when are rising consumer prices and good news? And second, why wouldn’t inflation be good for gold?
You really have to buy into the mainstream narratives to write that headline.
Gold mine output has flatlined over the last several years and that trend appears to be continuing in 2019. In fact, some analysts believe we may be at or near “peak gold.”
According to the World Gold Council’s Gold Demand Trends Q3 report, gold mine output fell slightly with total mine production coming in at 877.8 tons in Q3. On a year-to-date basis, mine production stands at 2,583 tons. That’s virtually identical to production levels at this point in 2018.
Gold is the third-most consistently bought investment globally.
This was just one of many findings in the World Gold Council’s recently released consumer research report that revealed a strong global gold market with the potential for future growth.
Globally, there are clear perceptions of gold as a safe, durable, traditional store of value. As an investment, it plays to these strengths – retail investors buy it to protect wealth and create long term returns. Jewelry buyers treasure it for sentimental reasons and as a reward for success.”
Gold continued to flow into ETFs after breaking a record in September. Gold-backed funds took in another 44.4 tons of metal in October, pushing global holdings to another record of 2,900 tons, according to the latest data by the World Gold Council.
The previous record for ETF gold holdings was set back in 2012 when the price of gold was near $1,700 per ounce.
It’s been a tough week for gold and silver and a record week for stocks because of — you guessed it — optimism about a trade deal. In this episode of the Friday Gold Wrap podcast, host Mike Maharrey breaks down the news of the week. Along the way, he also compares fickle investors obsessed with the latest trade war headline to a delusional sports fan who can only fixate on his team’s most recent game.
Stock markets made new highs on Wednesday, but as Peter Schiff explained in his latest podcast, there are a lot of cracks under the surface. The markets are surging forward even as they overlook bad economic data and chilly political winds.
Gold demand was up 3% in the third quarter, coming in at 1,107. 9 tons, according to the Gold Demand Trends Q3 2019 report put out by the World Gold Council.
Record inflows of gold into ETFs overcame weakness in the jewelry, and gold bar and coin markets to push overall demand higher.
Gold mine output dropped slightly, but a surge in recycling drove a modest gain in supply.
The central bank gold-buying spree shows no sign of letting up as countries seek to diversify their reserves away from the US dollar.
Globally, central banks added another net 47.5 tons of gold to their reserves in September, according to the latest data from the World Gold Council.
There were no significant gold sales by central banks in September.
Last week, the Federal Reserve cut interest rates for the third time. And the Fed isn’t alone. A majority of the world’s central banks have slashed rates this year. A World Gold Council report says this new regime of easy monetary policy will likely push bond yields down even lower, making gold a more attractive portfolio diversifier.
As negative yielding debt increases alongside stock-to-yield valuations to all-time highs, gold may become an attractive and more effective diversifier than bonds, justifying a higher portfolio allocation than historical performance suggests.”
Since moving to Florida, I’ve been able to spend a little bit of time on the beach. It’s interesting watching what people pick up. You can kind of categorize people based on their haul of beach-combing treasures.
First-timers to the beach will basically pick up anything. Broken cockle-shells are worthy of the newbies’ treasure bag, as are sticks, feathers and generic rocks. Hey – it came out of the ocean. It’s probably a whale bone!
