Ideas and analysis on money, markets and the world around us.
The first half of the week saw gold and silver consolidate recent gains, which given the sharp rise since early December was only to be expected. However, the upward trend resumed from Wednesday. Gold on the week gained…
Read the articleWe understand our politicians to be human, with much that that implies. In a democracy, politics is a competitive business, which means that generally well-balanced individuals tend to succeed, while those who are…
Read the articleSince gold bottomed at $1237 on 11 December, it has gained 6.5%, and silver 9.5%. In early European trade this morning gold was at $1317.50 and silver at $17.15. Our headline chart has been rebased to the December low…
Read the articleConclusion: US petroleum inventories showed a small counter-seasonal build this week, but crude stocks still drawing relatively fast. We believe this will ultimately lead to a narrowing of the WTI-Brent spread, but we…
Read the articleThis might seem a frivolous question, while the dollar still retains its might, and is universally accepted in preference to other, less stable fiat currencies. However, it is becoming clear, at least to independent…
Read the articleDoubtless, that is what this year-end rally would be called in Trumpian lingo, and the “bigliest” of squeezes is in silver, where shorts have been closing more rapidly than longs being opened, leading to a fall of…
Read the articlePredicting the future is a mug’s game, and in financial markets we simply cannot know tomorrow’s prices. All we can do is make assessments of the factors that can be expected to influence them. Economists’ forecasts…
Read the articleAt least, that’s how the bullion bank traders must be thinking. Ahead of the Fed’s quarter-point rise in the Fed funds rate, they spooked the longs out of their positions to close their shorts, profitably. Nice bonuses…
Read the articleWe approach 2018 having seen the seeds planted in recent years for a monetary revolution. They include the massive world-wide expansion of credit and debt since the last credit crisis, and the advent of potentially…
Read the articleDespite the appetite for investment gold in the aftermath of the global financial crisis, western gold jewelry demand remains in a multi-decade decline. This is mostly the result of an industry that has tended towards…
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