New website look - Coming soon! (more info)

January 2011

Spot Metals Rise
2011: Precious metals 8th major buying opportunity
"Crashing the Dollar" videos, reviews, news and more!
by DAVID BRADSHAW ~ Editor, Real Money Perspectives
features ~ links ~ wisdom ~ weekly email ~ daily email
Jan 31, 2011 ~ ((M-F podcast)) ~ gold fraud alert!

Gold future prices and the U.S. dollar index are trading steady to weaker, as markets await U.S. GDP report. Spot gold up modestly to $1330 per ounce, with silver also up to $27.54/oz.

Get Out of Your Dollar Assets Now! -KingWorldNews
"The real news, the critically important news, centers around the US dollar. It's as if you are reading a report on a building you want to buy. The report tells you all about the heating system, the repairs to the roof, the condition of the wood floors, but the report leaves out the critical fact that the foundation of the house is crumbling. If the dollar collapses, every investment you own will be adversely affected -- your home, your stocks, your insurance policies, your bonds, your 401K -- everything that is denominated in dollars. The Russell advice -- swap your dollars for physical gold or CEF, GLD, or SGOL. In other words, do as China and Russia and many other nation are now doing -- get out of your dollar assets."

* Which currency is going to crash first?: "There are even many that believe that authorities at the highest level actually want the dollar, euro and yen to fail. Why? Well, many of the same individuals and groups that brought us NAFTA, the WTO, the IMF, the OECD and the World Bank believe that it would be absolutely wonderful for humanity if we could all have a single, united global currency. If we allow the globalists to push a truly global currency down our throats it will be another giant step towards the creation of a totalitarian one world system," reports PressTV.

* "Silver coin sales have been on a tear in recent months and can be used as an economic indicator to show a lack of confidence in the U.S. monetary policy, said Nicholas Colas, chief market strategist at ConvergEx. 'Silver coins have become the proxy for people's confidence and worry about the U.S. dollar. Gold's gotten so expensive that folks can’t afford it, and the mint is minting fewer fractional gold coins, so many people have migrated to silver,' Colas tells CNBC.

* Commodities Prices Are Hitting Your Wallet: "The prices of many commodities -- including corn, cotton, wheat, coffee, sugar, cocoa and soybeans -- surged last year as severe weather crippled some crops and demand from nations like China and India continued to explode. And the trend is expected to continue this year," reports WSJ.

Chinese yuan-upmanship - UK Guardian
"Chinese premier Hu Jintao has called the dollar-dominated international currency system 'the product of the past'. A recent poll by the Guardian asked readers, "Is Hu Jintao right that the era of dollar dominance of the global currency system is coming to an end?" 61% said YES. 38% said NO. So, almost two-thirds of readers are already expecting the dollar era to soon end. Brother, can you share a yuan?

* "The dollar won't survive. And when it begins to limp and cough badly, some investors may go to Chinese yuan or Swiss francs. Most will want to go to real money... the kind you can trust... the kind that never goes away... the ‘last man standing' in a monetary crisis - gold," writes Bill Bonner at DailyReckoning.

* China prez questions dollar's future: "Ahead of his visit to Washington this week Chinese President Hu Jintao called the present U.S. dollar-dominated currency system a "product of the past" and highlighted moves to turn the yuan into a global currency. Mr. Hu's veiled criticism of the Fed reflects widespread feelings among developing nations that U.S. interest-rate policy is devaluing the dollar, prompting flows of capital overseas and creating inflation elsewhere," reports WSJ.

* The incredible shrinking dollar -Marketwatch
1.18.11 -- "Guess what? Your pocket has been picked. I don’t mean your wallet, or even its contents. What I am referring to is the buying power of the money it contains. The modern-day Fed has injected gobs of liquidity into the markets, which will turn into cash once the banks start lending. This will mean far more money in circulation than goods and services. This is a recipe for a new round of inflation if I ever saw one. Since wages are no longer indexed to inflation, rising prices will hurt people’s buying power, thus depressing consumer spending — the last thing this economy needs."

* Fate of U.S. Dollar and Economy May Be Decided This Week -CTDMedia
1.17.11 -- "The fate of the U.S. Dollar and America's economic future will be on the table at Wednesday's (Jan. 19, 2011) White House State Dinner for visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao, warns Swiss America CEO Craig R. Smith, who contends that America's economy depends on China continuing to extend credit to the U.S. President Hu and other Chinese officials have criticized Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke's creation of $600 billion out of thin air by this coming July - a policy called Quantitative Easing Two, or QE2. "This means the U.S. can repay China with devalued dollars," says Smith, "and it makes China's $2.85 Trillion foreign currency reserve worth a lot less."

* "The Labor Department says the Consumer Price Index rose 0.5 percent in December, the largest increase in 18 months. About 80 percent of the increase was due to an 8.5 percent rise in the gasoline index, also the sharpest increase in 18 months. Food prices ticked up 0.1 percent in December," reports CNBC. Note: Wholesale prices (PPI) jumped 1.1% in December, that's 12% annualized.

* New Move to Make Yuan a Global Currency: "China has launched trading in its currency in the U.S. for the first time, an explicit endorsement by Beijing of the fast-growing market in the yuan and a significant step in the country's plan to foster global trading in its currency. Bank of China limits the amount of yuan that can be converted by a U.S.-based individual customer to up to $4,000 a day. The restriction is designed to fend off speculation in the currency, bank officials say. Some analysts have predicted that it will be only a few years before 20% to 30% of China's $2.3 trillion in imports could be conducted in yuan rather than dollars. Some industry observers have called yuan trading outside mainland China a game-changer," reports WSJ.

* Harry Schultz’s last testament: "Roughly speaking, the mess we are in is the worst since 17th century financial collapse. Comparisons with the 1930’s are ludicrous. We've gone far beyond that. And, alas, the courage & political will to recognize the mess & act wisely to reverse gears, is absent in U.S. leadership, where the problems were hatched & where the rot is by far the deepest. For gold to match the growth in US M1, M2, public debt & budget deficit, gold will have to reach $1,800, $2,400, $7,800 & $13,200, respectively. While I can't imagine gold going to $13k, these numbers tell me that calling gold a bubble is a bit premature. In my view, money supply, public debt & the budget deficit are in a bubble, not gold, not yet. Wake me up at $2,400 gold," writes legendary investment newsletter writer Harry Schultz in his last issue, reports Marketwatch.

* Could the Federal Reserve Become Insolvent? -CNBC "As the monetary authority, the central bank is the master of the printing press. It can literally conjure up money at will, and arguably did exactly that when it bought about $2 trillion of mortgage-backed securities and U.S. Treasuries. ... some economists and market analysts have even begun pondering the unthinkable: could the vaunted Fed, the world's most powerful central bank, become insolvent? The Fed is sitting on paper losses of about $2.3 billion on the purchases of U.S. Treasuries it made from Nov. 12 until late last week, according to an analysis by Reuters Insider. "What would the international reaction be if the Fed suddenly had to go and be recapitalized?" said Bob Eisenbeis, chief monetary economist at Cumberland Advisors and a former head of research at the Atlanta Fed. "I don't think that would bode well for Treasuries, or for the dollar, or anything else."

* Outlook 2011: Fear and Love in Gold Trading: "There are two main drivers of gold demand: The Fear Trade and the Love Trade. The fear trade is what you often hear about from the media and the gloom-and-doomers. The love trade is significant and unique to gold. People buy gold out of love and those in emerging markets. It's impossible to predict where gold prices will be 12 months from now but we think gold prices could double over the next five years. This would mean roughly a 15 percent return, if you compounded it annually. However, it will by no means be a straight line. Volatility is always inherent in commodity investing," reports Frank Holmes of U.S. Global Investors.

* World's Richest Man Eyes Silver: "As gold and silver continue to gain prominence in the financial world, it may be the biggest money in the world which is now wanting a stake. Mexican telecom tycoon Carlos Slim may be looking to enter the silver market in a big way," reports King World News.

* The New Gold Rush: "Where will the price of gold go? In 2011, if gold repeats its average five-year increase of 19%, it will climb to $1,785 per ounce. If gold repeats 2010's projected performance in 2011, it could reach $2,010 per ounce. If the U.S. Federal Reserve unleashes more QE, gold's price will be much higher. Today, gold is telling us that it can protect our wealth as it has successfully done for thousands of years," reports Nick Barisheff of BMG.

Gold Forecast 2011; It starts with a New Year's Rally: "This decade will come to be known as the “Gold Rush” of the twenty first century, well at least the beginning of it! Gold compared to almost all other investments, outperformed brilliantly this decade. From a low of 255 per ounce to 1431, gold returned over 550 % in the past ten years. It took six years for gold to double from 250 to 500. It took only three years for gold to double from 500 to 1000. As we close out this decade we are at 1400. We have also been doubling the angle of accent. We are at a 45 degree climb as we bring in 2011. Gold has become the new 'Currency of Choice'," reports GoldIras. [Ed. Note: Sound familiar? Here's what we said last December Gold: Asset of the Century - Happy New Year!]

* Positive trends for Gold in 2011: "Historically January and February are good months for gold; in past years, buyers have bought back gold positions that they shed heading into the New Year. Continuing inflation concerns could help support gold prices in 2011. 'The two pillars of gold are, in any country’s currency, are negative real interest rates and deficit spending,' says Frank Holmes, CEO of U.S. Global Investors. Holmes thinks that low interest rates won’t be going anywhere anytime soon as it would be catastrophic for the financial system," reports IBTimes.

* Two Trillion Dollar Debt Crisis Threatens U.S. Cities: More than 100 American cities could go bust next year as the debt crisis that has taken down banks and countries threatens next to spark a municipal meltdown, a leading analyst has warned. Meredith Whitney, the US research analyst who correctly predicted the global credit crunch, described local and state debt as the biggest problem facing the US economy, and one that could derail its recovery. American cities and states have debts in total of as much as $2T. New Jersey governor Chris Christie summarizes: "We spent too much on everything. We spent money we didn't have. We borrowed money just crazily. The credit card's maxed out, and it's over. We now have to get to the business of climbing out of the hole. We've been digging it for a decade or more, reports Guardian UK.

* "Here we sit on the cusp of another year, where the bull market in gold and silver is now legislated into continuing, thanks to the sterilized tax base of the American government. There is now absolutely no doubt that gold and silver with both continue to power higher throughout 2011, as the crumbling U.S. Dollar, expanding sovereign debt crises, general economic deterioration in the G7 nations induces even more demand for the safe haven monetary metals. Gold will likely break through $1,700 an ounce by the end of 2011, and silver will likely see $35, and may even go through $40 an ounce. Ben Bernanke recently commented that the $600 billion ‘QE2” stimulus package might yet be expanded on if deemed necessary. That comment in and of itself is almost guaranteed to push gold through $1500 an ounce within the next two weeks. - James West, MidasLetter.com (More at GoldIRAs).

* Commodities Predictions 2011: "Overall, commodities markets will continue higher next year as the dollar weakens further and provides more support. Long-term investors, pension and investment funds, will continue pouring money into the asset class. Gold and silver prices will likely reach new highs in the first half of the year as Western economies will still face slow growth and investors remain eager to preserve their wealth," reports CNBC.


1.17.11 -- Dollar's Fate in China's Hands?
"America's economic future will be on the table at Jan. 19th White House State Dinner for visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao," warns author Craig R. Smith... media news WATCH "CRASHING THE DOLLAR" VIDEO - FREE OFFER: "2011 Economic Solutions" newsletter and CD. Breaking $ News

More Links

Weekly Charts

Current Spot Prices

Weekly Charts
Current Spot Prices

Gold

$2232.75

Silver

$24.95

Platinum

$910.29