Precious metals news

Gold is destined to eventually win our modern-day chapter of the ‘Battle of the Ages’ - the slow and silent war between gold and fiat currencies. But will victory come via a technical decision? Or it will it be delivered via a knockout blow?

In a fascinating new study has found that dozens of silver pieces found during excavations in Israel and the Gaza Strip were actually used as currency in ancient times.

The Central Bank of Iran is reportedly cooperating with the Russian government to jointly issue a new cryptocurrency backed by gold.

A group of experts have concluded that the current increased production rate will lead to the depletion of some finite resources, including gold.

Gold prices are expected to rise towards record highs above $2,000 an ounce this year, albeit with a little turbulence, as the United States slows the pace of rate hikes and eventually stops increasing them, according to industry analysts. Spot prices of the precious metal have shot above $1,900 an ounce, surging by about 18% since November as inflationary pressures recede and markets anticipate less aggressive monetary policy from the U.S. Federal Reserve. Fast-rising interest rates hammered gold prices last year, kicking them as low as $1,613.60 in September from a high of $2,069.89 in March - just shy of a record peak in 2020.

The gold withdrawals from the Shanghai Gold Exchange (SGE) amounted to 142t in December, which is down by 26% over the same month a year ago. United States Gold News

To be sure, Axel believes the risk of the U.S. defaulting on its debt is higher than it has been in years. He thinks it’s likely that a protracted political stalemate over raising the government’s borrowing authority will prevent the U.S. from paying some of its bills for a couple days or a few weeks later this year.

China's economic growth in 2022 slumped to one of its worst levels in nearly half a century as the fourth quarter was hit hard by strict COVID curbs and a property market slump, raising pressure on policymakers to unveil more stimulus this year.

The credit cycle is turning, which points to wider credit spreads, increasing loan-losses at banks, and rising equity volatility. Credit has exploded higher since the pandemic. But all good things must come to an end, with credit busts typically following close on the heels of credit booms. Cracks are now emerging in lending markets as the sharpest monetary policy tightening in decades begins to bite.

Many chief economists offered somber predictions about whether the global economy would fall into a recession in 2023, according to a World Economic Forum (WEF) survey released Monday.

Republicans' plan to pay some U.S. debts as they come due but not others is a "recipe for economic catastrophe" that threatens the global economy, the White House said on Tuesday.

Earlier this month, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy told employees in a blog post that the company was laying off about 18,000 people as it seeks to cut costs and would begin contacting impacted employees on Jan. 18.

Over the next few weeks, the "pain trade" is higher as investors chase stocks on hopes the Fed will soon pivot on monetary policy.

Michael Hudson (MH): Nothing’s really changed from last time. There’s more and more awareness that when the Federal Reserve raises interest rates (ostensibly to fight inflation) it isn’t really to fight inflation at all. It’s that they worry that with the prices going up, wages may go up, and they want to cut American wages by about 10% because as the market shrinks it’s harder and harder for companies to make a profit.

We can’t shake off the horrors of 2022 just yet; the season for announcing the earnings for the fourth quarter of last year is about to begin. As these are also full-year results, they tend to be the most tightly audited, and CEOs themselves are more likely to appear on earnings calls. This will be their opportunity to own up to the full extent of 2022’s damage and — more importantly — reveal what they’re bracing for this year.

Should the wealth effect reverse as assets fall, capital gains evaporate and investment income declines, the top 10% will no longer have the means or appetite to spend so freely.

Inflation is an enemy of the people, but it’s a friend of government recklessness.

Trump unleashed a wave of protectionism unlike anything we have seen for decades. But President Biden under guise of "Build Back Better", is out-Trumping Trump on "America First". The Inflation Reduction Act has nothing at all to do with reducing inflation. Rather it's a subsidy scheme illegal under WTO rules.

The Empire Strikes Out! No, not Klaus Schwab and the World Economic Forum, but the New York State Manufacturing index. For January, the index fell to -32.9.

We got trouble in Potomac City! No, I’m not talking about the numerous Top Secret documents that Biden carelessly left in his garage in Delaware and the UPenn Biden Center. And they found more over the weekend. I’m talking about the US Treasury 10Y-2Y yield curve being inverted for 135 straight days. And thanks to inflation, REAL wage growth has been negative for 21 straight months.