Gold Standard News Daily

10.21.24 - BRICS Control 20% of the World’s Gold Reserves

Gold last traded at $2,720 an ounce. Silver at $33.84 an ounce.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The BRICS nations control 20% of the world's gold reserves. There's an old saying, "whoever owns the gold, makes the rules". What's most frightening here is their very vocal desire to dethrone the US dollar. With this leverage, that won't be a difficult feat.

BRICS Control 20% of the World’s Gold Reserves -Watcher.Guru

by Vinod Dsouza

{Source: securityaffairs.com}

A recent report from the World Gold Council shows that the nine-member BRICS bloc controls over 20% of all the world’s gold reserves in 2024. The member nations have been massively buying the precious metal since 2022 after the US pressed sanctions on Russia. BRICS countries became the top buyer of gold in 2022 and 2023, and continue hoarding the metal even in 2024.

Russia leads the pack with 2,340 tons of gold and represents 8.1% of global reserves. China closely follows with 2,260 tons nearing 7.8% of all the reserves. India, Brazil, South Africa, and the UAE hold the other part of the reserves. Both Russia and China control 74% of all gold within the BRICS alliance.

Speculations were rife that the BRICS bloc could back their upcoming common currency with gold. The decision to launch a new currency was rumored to take place at the upcoming summit in Russia. The 16th summit will be held in the Kazan region and the nine countries will discuss policies at the table for the first time since the expansion in 2023.

A new BRICS currency backed by gold is off the cards as Russian President Vladimir Putin confirmed that the bloc plans to use local currencies for trade. The alliance could rewrite trade policies where payments between member nations could be settled in local currencies. READ MORE

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10.18.24 - Gold above unprecedented $2,700/oz milestone

Gold last traded at $2,721 an ounce. Silver at $33.74 an ounce.

EDITOR'S NOTE: As many in the investment world are waiting to see what happens in this next election, gold is putting the pedal to the metal. As the price now top $2,700, the $3,000 year end price point that many have predicted is a hop, skip and a jump away.

Global uncertainties drive gold above unprecedented $2,700/oz milestone -Reuters

By Anushree Ashish Mukherjee and Swati Verma

Gold surged above the historic threshold of $2,700-per-ounce on Friday, powered by escalating tensions in the Middle East, uncertainties around the U.S. elections and relaxed monetary policy expectations that pushed the metal into uncharted territory.

Spot gold was up 1% at $2,720.05 per ounce by 02:58 p.m. ET (1858 GMT) and has risen 2.4% so far this week.

U.S. gold futures settled 0.8% higher to $2,730.

"With the conflict intensifying – particularly following Hezbollah's announcement to escalate the war with Israel – investors are flocking to gold, a traditional safe-haven asset," said Alexander Zumpfe, a precious metals trader at Heraeus Metals Germany.

Pledges from Israel and its enemies Hamas and Hezbollah to keep fighting in Gaza and Lebanon dashed hopes that the death of a Palestinian militant leader might hasten an end to escalating war in the Middle East.

Rising geopolitical tensions prompt investors to seek safe-haven assets like gold, driven by risk aversion and concerns over global market instability.

"Adding to the momentum, concerns around the U.S. presidential election and anticipation of looser monetary policies have further fuelled the rally," Zumpfe added. READ MORE

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10.17.24 - Cuba Officially Asks to Join BRICS Coalition

Gold last traded at $2,692 an ounce. Silver at $31.66 an ounce.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The BRICS alliance continues to grow, seemingly by the day. This growth is largely due to the benefits of participation to member nations; one of which is no longer having the US Government dictate their economic moves thereby strengthening their own economy through de-dollarization. It's now starting to hit a little closer to home as North American nations are starting to see the benefit as well.

Cuba Officially Asks Russian President Vladimir Putin to Join BRICS Coalition -The Daily Hodl

by Alex Richardson

The Republic of Cuba has reportedly asked Russia if it can join the BRICS alliance, the coalition that’s competing against the US dollar hegemony.

In a post on the social media platform X, Cuban ambassador and foreign minisiter Carlos M. Pereira says the country officially asked Russian president Vladimir Putin to consider adding Cuba to BRICS.

“Cuba has officially requested to join the BRICS as a ‘Partner Country’ through a letter to the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, who holds the Presidency of the Group, which is consolidating itself as a key player in global geopolitics and hope for the countries of the South.”

BRICS was originally established as Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, but recently welcomed Iran, Egypt Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates, which would make Cuba the tenth country to join should its application be accepted.

The group, originally founded in 2009, aims to bridge relations with countries of the Global South and Global East, and to strengthen economic trade outside of the dollar reserve system.

Cuba’s request to Putin comes days before BRICS members meet at a summit in Kazan, Russia. READ MORE

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10.16.24 - Silver Market Soon On Fire

Gold last traded at $2,674 an ounce. Silver at $31.70 an ounce.

BRICS Advances ‘Multicurrency System’ To Break US Dollar Dominance -Watcher.Guru

If you're are wondering if anything is capable of ending the US dollar and its world dominance, this is probably a good read for you. The new BRICS multicurrency payment system is aiming to do just that by circumventing the West entirely.

by Vinod Dsouza

BRICS member Russia is pitching a new idea of a ‘multicurrency payment system’ option to break the US dollar dominance. Russia is proposing changes to cross-border transactions where all currencies of existing members will be used to settle trade. The move will bolster local currencies of member nations leading to lesser dependency on the US dollar.

The new BRICS multicurrency payment system will be a ring of all currencies and become a center for mutual trade. The main agenda is to circumvent the Western financial powers and usher into a new era of global authority. Russia is pitching the multicurrency system to sanction-proof its economy and that of the existing members of the alliance.

Russia wants the new BRICS multicurrency payment system to be an alternative option to the US dollar. The “multicurrency system” will need to “ring-fence its participants from any external pressures such as extraterritorial sanctions,” read the report prepared by the Russian Finance Ministry, the Bank of Russia, and Moscow-based consultancy Yakov & Partners.

The report also read that the US interests “are not always aligned with the interests of other participants.” Russia will discuss the report and pitch the idea of a multicurrency system at the upcoming BRICS summit. The idea could find takers from China and Iran as the two countries are eager to end reliance on the US dollar. READ MORE

Silver: This Hidden ‘Risk On’ Indicator Is Breaking Out, Silver Market Soon On Fire -Investing Haven

The silver market continues to heat up. It is no wonder given the growing investor demand, industrial uses and supply shortages. Hopefully you have a good amount socked away before the real breakout occurs.

The silver market is preparing a breakout after the ultimate ‘risk on’ indicator has started breaking out. In this article, we discuss this hidden indicator and its importance to the entire silver market.

We look at the long term silver price chart (super bullish), and complement it with the silver chart adjusted for CPI (super bullish) as well as our hidden silver indicator (super bullish).

Did we say that we believe the silver market is super bullish? Yes, we did, in this article published one week ago: Silver Reaches All-Time Highs in Most Global Currencies…. Silver in USD is Next!

First things first, the silver price chart pattern, not edited.

The spot silver chart on 20 years is shown below.

While not as powerful as the 50-year silver price chart, it is clearly exhibiting a very bullish chart pattern! VIEW CHARTS AND READ MORE

Bank Paying $29,500,000 To Americans After Allegedly Bombarding People With Illegal Phone Calls, Demanding Nonexistent Debt Payments -The Daily Hodl

Yet another bank making headlines for all the wrong reasons. The misconduct committed here seems horrible if it were being done by a sophisticated crime network; but by one of our established and trusted financial institutions? Granted there was no admission of guilt by the bank in making the settlement, but $29.5 Million seems like a lot to pay if the bank could prove their innocence.

One of the largest banks in the US is preparing to hand out $29.5 million to settle accusations that the lender illegally called hundreds of thousands of people.

Citibank is accused of making unsolicited, prerecorded calls requesting debt payments to people who don’t even have accounts at the bank.

Lead Plaintiff Christine Head claims the calls violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.

Without making an admission of guilt, the bank has agreed to pay the $29.5 million, which will be distributed equally among class members.

The maximum amount of money each participant can claim is $2,500, unless the class member can prove they were called more than five times. READ MORE

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10.15.24 - $34B owed to customers at AmEx, Chase and Capital One

Gold last traded at $2,661 an ounce. Silver at $31.49 an ounce.

EDITOR'S NOTE: As they say, "use it or lose it". This is an interesting new twist on the topic of inflation. Customers of some major financial companies have over $34 billion worth of earned miles or rewards that are losing value. How you ask, inflation.

$34,000,000,000 Owed To Customers at American Express, JPMorgan Chase and Capital One As Reward Hoarders Get Squeezed: Report -The Daily Hodl

Customers at American Express, JPMorgan Chase and Capital One have racked up billions of dollars in unspent credit card points – but the value of those rewards is decaying.

The financial giants’ customers are sitting on a staggering $34 billion worth of unused rewards as of 2023, reports the Wall Street Journal, citing annual reports.

And the value of those rewards is falling due largely to inflation, as goods and services now require more points than they used to.

The end result is that someone who gathered 100,000 Capital One points in 2020 and left it alone now has a pile that’s effectively worth about 82,600 points.

Airlines and hotels have also quietly tweaked the number of points required for redemptions through dynamic pricing models, which tie prices to the current cash price.

Overall, the number of points or miles needed to book a flight has surged 28% since 2019, according to a study from the aviation consultancy firm IdeaWorks. READ MORE

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10.14.24 - North American Countries Joining BRICS?

Gold last traded at $2,650 an ounce. Silver at $31.28 an ounce.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The financial wildfire, affectionately known as BRICS, continues to burn out of control. The latest development is North American nations looking to get on board. This is frightening, when one considers the central focus of this alliance is total de-dollarization

North American Countries Start Applying For BRICS Membership -Watcher.Guru

by Vinod Dsouza

The BRICS alliance received applications for membership from countries in Asia, Africa, South America, and Eastern Europe. For the first time, BRICS has officially received an application to join the bloc from a developing country in North America. This puts the spotlight on the US as neighboring nations are finding the de-dollarization agenda lucrative.

Around 48 countries have now applied to join BRICS before the October 2024 summit. While 27 countries have formally applied to join the alliance, 21 nations have informally expressed their interest in BRICS membership.

The North American country Cuba has officially applied for BRICS membership in October 2024 on the heels of the upcoming summit. Russian Ambassador to Cuba Viktor Coronelli confirmed that the North American country has applied to join the alliance.

“Cuba has shown interest in joining the BRICS association,” confirmed Coronelli. “Moreover, they have already submitted an official application to the Russian side for partner status, as Russia is chairing BRICS this year. The Cubans have interest and the corresponding application has been formalized,” he said. It is now up to the other member countries to decide if Cuba will be given BRICS membership. READ MORE

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10.11.24 - The Gold Bull Cycle Has Just Begun

Gold last traded at $2,656 an ounce. Silver at $31.54 an ounce.

EDITOR'S NOTE: As this author puts it, "periods where gold outperforms tend to be chaotic." We are most assuredly living in chaotic times and the chaos is increasing by the day. Now is a time to diversify into safe havens and weather the storm.

The Gold Bull Cycle Has Just Begun -Daily Reckoning

by Adam Sharp

Cycles surround us. In markets, astronomy, and our lives.

Every day is a circadian cycle for us all. Our bodies move through phases based on our exposure to light or darkness.

Markets are also remarkably cyclical, responding to the environment around them. Interest rates, regulation, monetary policy and investor psychology all play important roles.

Precious metals are no different. The sector’s performance ebbs and flows over time.

From 2000 to 2011, gold crushed the S&P 500.

An even better example is from 1972 to 1980 when gold returned 1,256% to the S&P 500’s 97%.

Of course, stocks take their turn in the spotlight too.

From 2012 to 2021, stocks returned 336% vs gold’s 16%. And from 1980 to 1999, stocks were absolutely dominant as gold went dormant for nearly two decades.

Over the past few years, both have done well.

The point here is that it’s a cycle.

Just take a look at the chart below. It shows the ratio of S&P 500 performance vs gold through 2021. VIEW CHARTS AND READ MORE

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10.10.24 - Silver Reaches All-Time Highs in Most Global Currencies

Gold last traded at $2,629 an ounce. Silver at $31.17 an ounce.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Silver is still going. At this pace, $50 an ounce silver will be here soon. It speaks to the mounting uncertainties over the future of our country, government and economy. If our government does indeed "reboot", physical metals are the place you will want your assets to be.

Silver Reaches All-Time Highs in Most Global Currencies… Silver in USD is Next! -Investing Haven

We compare silver in USD with silver in other global currencies. Out of 10 currencies, silver is setting new ATH in 4 and silver is inches below ATH in 3 currencies.

We conclude that the global trend of silver is up. Silver is in a global bull market despite the fact that silver in USD did not hit new all-time highs (ATH).

Take-away – Is this an epic opportunity for silver in USD investors? The most likely answer is YES; it is a matter of time, most likely, until silver in USD is going to test its ATH.

This is the secular silver chart (silver in USD) without annotations. This chart has a clear setup that any analyst and chartist will recognize as a bullish cup and handle – the chart says that it’s on its way to $50 an Ounce. It’s a matter of time. VIEW CHARTS AND READ MORE

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10.9.24 - Warren Buffett's BofA Dump-A-Thon Tops $10 Billion

Gold last traded at $2,609 an ounce. Silver at $30.47 an ounce.

Billionaire Hedge Fund Manager John Paulson Predicts a Market Crash If Harris Wins – Here's What He Said -Yahoo! Finance

As we draw nearer to the Presidential election, the theories are building on how markets will react to the chosen President-Elect. This couldn't be a more pivotal moment, given the fragility surrounding our economy today. Billionaire Hedge Fund Manager John Paulson believes if Kamala wins, our markets are going to lose ... and lose big.

by Aditi Ganguly

John Paulson, the founder and President of the hedge fund turned family office Paulson & Co., has been one of the most vocal supporters of former President and Republican nominee Donald Trump. He was also reportedly under consideration as the Treasury Secretary provided Trump succeeds in the upcoming election.

The billionaire hedge fund manager first rose to prominence in 2008 after making nearly $15 billion by shorting the housing market, making him legendary on Wall Street.

Paulson has long supported Trump and was one of the biggest donors to his 2016 and 2024 campaigns. The 68-year-old Harvard graduate is estimated to have raised $48 million for Trump's current reelection campaign.

Paulson distrusts Harris because of her plans to increase corporate and personal taxes. Furthermore, the current vice president and Democratic nominee's plans to implement a "billionaire minimum tax" on unrealized capital gains have also been a source of contempt for the hedge fund manager. READ MORE

Warren Buffett's BofA Dump-A-Thon Tops $10 Billion, Nears Key 10% Non-Reporting Level -ZeroHedge

It would appear Warren Buffett hasn't changed his sentiment on his BofA stock as he continues to unload it by the truckload. Billionaire Buffett has been pretty vocal when it comes to the problems that lie ahead for BofA; along with our stock market in general. Yet another reason to be diversified into metals.

by Tyler Durden

94-year-old Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway has been on a multi-month dump-a-thon of Bank of America shares. The reason for the abrupt selling, which began in mid-July, has yet to be officially disclosed but should be viewed as an ominous sign that the 'Oracle of Omaha' foresees economic trouble ahead.

The latest Bloomberg data shows that Berkshire's total proceeds from selling BofA shares have now topped a whopping $10bln.

Traders at Berkshire began paring down the massive investment in mid-July, pressuring the bank's shares ever since. In the last three trading days, Berkshire sold $383mln worth of shares.

The latest selling is the first round of Berkshire selling BofA shares since right before the pandemic. READ MORE

BRICS Make De-Dollarization New Member Entry Rule -Watcher.Guru

If you were wondering whether or not the BRICS alliance was intent on dethroning the dollar by way of de-dollarization, wonder no more. It's now a requirement for the growing list of nations that have been jumping on board this bandwagon. This could prove to be the death blow to the dollar.

by Joshua Ramos

With a plethora of nations looking to join the ever-growing BRICS bloc, the collective is set to implement new de-dollarization rules for new members. Indeed, the alliance’s 2024 chairmanship holder, Russia, announced the increased standards it will place upon nations wanting to join.

Continued expansion has been a prevailing question for the bloc. In 2023, it grew for the first time in more than two decades. Moreover, it has continued to embrace projects that oppose Western dominance in global economics. Now, the bloc is assuring any future members are on board.

The BRICS bloc has grown massively over the last two years. Since 2022, it has enjoyed a far more prominent role on the global stage. Additionally, it grew in numbers, issuing a four-nation expansion effort at its 2023 summit.

Last year, the bloc welcomed the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt, Ethiopia, and Iran as its first expansion nations since South Africa in 2001. There are many who predict that could be echoed this year. Yet, it appears as though the collective is seeking to implement some new standards. READ MORE

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