Okay, do we start buying gold??

[SoonerDave]

At the risk of sounding like an alarmist, and after reading more than a few really sobering "treatises" (for lack of a better word) about the economy, I can't help but wonder if folks shouldn't start thinking about getting into precious metals (if they haven't already).

This may be completely stupid from a financial expert perspective, but I see the US printing money in the coming years like it never has before, and what I understand suggests that's the first chorus you sing before you enjoy a round of hyperinflation as companies race to increase prices to compensate for the loss in value of the currency.

That tells me gold is, once again, a potential haven. I've never been one to buy into hysteria, but when I hear a pretty mundane report about banks failing faster than the FDIC can clean them up, and that the FDIC itself is guaranteed to require additional funds (beyond the additional borrowing authority it was recently granted) just to keep up, it makes you scratch your head and go, "geez..."

'Splain to me why I'm nuts.

[RedDirt717]

Gold has dipped slightly, and the silver futures are down a little too.

I'd wait until the end of the year to really judge what the markets are going to look like.

And no, you're not nuts. With the Fed printing money like it's going out of style it's not out of line to prepare for the worst. Particularly if these Russian/Chinese talks about new alternate reserve currencies keep coming up, and now the UN getting involved. The dollar could be cut by 50-75%.

[mugofbeer]

It doesn't mean you need to buy bullion or gold coins but investing in gold mining companies, mutual funds that invest in gold and gold related companies or gold ETF's is a good idea. You don't want to put your entire portfolio into such a thing but 5% is a reasonable thought as a hedge against inflation that is nearly certain to come.

The other thing that I have heard but I havent read independently is that the Chinese are starting to move away from buying our Treasury securities and buying gold. If this is true, thats a far higher demand on gold - so a bullish situation for the price of gold long-term

[RedDirt717]

U.S. To Trade Gold Reserves For Cash Through Cash4Gold.com | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

[metro]

Now's the time to be selling not buying, you don't buy at all time record highs and sell when the economy stabilizes again and it drops....

[mugofbeer]

Thats often a good sign, but the reason for buying gold isn't as a profit making investment, it is a hedge against the near-certainty of inflation that is going to come in a year to 18 months. Gold will firm WHEN the economy stabilizes, not drop. When the economy stabilizes, the demand for commodities of all types, including gold, will increase. When the demand for commodities increases, that is when inflation will kick in and gold prices will rise even further. Your cause and effect on gold is wrong in this case.

[Thunder]

SELL!!! You must sell! Everything you have, sell them! Stocks! Gold! Even silver! SELL, SELL, SELL!!!

[mugofbeer]

SELL!!! You must sell! Everything you have, sell them! Stocks! Gold! Even silver! SELL, SELL, SELL!!!

And hoard more and more of that $ cash that will continue to devalue with every passing month!

[Karried]

My friend is affiliated with this company.... keep it local!

Here in Edmond - APMEX

https://www.apmex.com/Default.aspx?u...gn=FooterLinks

[metro]

Dave Ramsey, Peter Schiff, and Decline of U.S. Economy | Debt Prison

[Bunty]

The right time to ask about buying an investment is when it's selling at unusually low prices, which gold is not. How else are ya gonna buy low and sell high, though bearing in mind that what is low could go lower?

[Crosstimbers Okie]

I've got a little gold bullion, and a lot of silver bullion that I'll be willing to sell part of when gold tops $2,000 an ounce and silver $100 an ounce.

Until then, I'm buying all I can.

[metro]

At that point, I'll then trade you some vegetables and a loaf of bread for it.....because we'll be in a temporary barter based economy if that sort of thing starts happening.

[Crosstimbers Okie]

I won't need it. I have four months of food stored already... Good, nutritious food in the form of freeze dried and dehydrated meats, fruits & vegetables. And whole grains in the form of hard red winter wheat, brown rice, corn and a variety of beans along with a small mill to grind them. And don't forget a water source. I have one of those too.


Silver Prices: silver prices current; silver spot; spot price of silver

London Fix Historical - result

London Fix Historical - result

[Crosstimbers Okie]

My friend is affiliated with this company.... keep it local!

Here in Edmond - APMEX

https://www.apmex.com/Default.aspx?u...gn=FooterLinks

I've done business with them and have been very happy. Bullion Direct is another company I've had good luck with.

[dismayed]

Gold is a bubble. Be careful.

[mugofbeer]

Gold is a bubble. Be careful.

No, not this time. Gold may be the only place one can invest some of their portfolio as a hedge against the coming inflation. Forcasts of $2000 an ounce are not far flung for a few reasons. 1) Inflation - its always been a hedge against it and this time should be no different 2) It appears the economies of Asia and Australia are recovering faster than those in the US and Europe. As persons in India and China gain wealth, they will buy gold and other precious minerals. They love jewelry. 3) Our inflation will be caused by the further devaluation of our dollar. The world's infatuation with the dollar is starting to erode and as it does, the demand for dollars will decrease putting further downward pressure on the dollar. Dollar devalues, gold inflates in value.

Right now, there is nothing to stop the inflation of the price of gold. If its a bubble, its a tiny bubble that can still grow more.

[Crosstimbers Okie]

Silver is an even better bet. Historically it has done better than gold. It has demand advantages over gold in that it is an industrial commodity in addition to being used as jewelry and money. Plus, less of it is being mined because most has already been mined. What little is being produced is a byproduct of the mining of copper and other metals.

The US is facing a new situation. On August 15, 1971 Nixon ended the Dollar's link to the gold standard. Inflation has been the result, to the point that people nowadays take inflation for granted. It wasn't always so. How far can the value of a currency be diluted before the world loses confidence in it? How is the federal government going to pay its bills? Raise taxes? Create more money? Both?

The fiat Dollar system is the bubble that is likely in the process of bursting. Foreign holders of Dollars as a reserve currency are looking for ways to get rid of theirs without causing it to crash before they can unload them. Otherwise the value of the Dollar would have collapsed already.

Hell, even Wall Street is starting to discover precious metals as investments.

[dismayed]

No, not this time. Gold may be the only place one can invest some of their portfolio as a hedge against the coming inflation. Forcasts of $2000 an ounce are not far flung for a few reasons. 1) Inflation - its always been a hedge against it and this time should be no different 2) It appears the economies of Asia and Australia are recovering faster than those in the US and Europe. As persons in India and China gain wealth, they will buy gold and other precious minerals. They love jewelry. 3) Our inflation will be caused by the further devaluation of our dollar. The world's infatuation with the dollar is starting to erode and as it does, the demand for dollars will decrease putting further downward pressure on the dollar. Dollar devalues, gold inflates in value.

Right now, there is nothing to stop the inflation of the price of gold. If its a bubble, its a tiny bubble that can still grow more.

Over the long term gold has just kept up with inflation and not much more. I don't like that track record. This year alone gold mining activities are up what 5 - 10%? That has to increase inventories. And unlike previous US downturns there are actually competing currencies that are very, very strong alternatives to the dollar, such as the Euro. Not to mention the addition in recent years of commodities-based ETFs... So with respect to gold I just don't see it this time around. Just my opinion.

Plus it scares me that folks are chanting the gold mantra everywhere from cable TV to late night paranormal radio broadcasts now. It seems when the average Joe becomes that aware it's too late. Case in point HGTV, TLC, and all the other network's house flipping shows that hit the airwaves about six months to a year before the housing market crashed....

Look at the price of gold three years ago vs. today. Graph it. That graph looks familiar! Bubble!!

[mugofbeer]

Yeah, its usually not a good sign when all the sleazebags from Boca Raton start putting on commercials touting gold but I never said the investment had to be in coin or bullion. You can invest in gold mutual funds and exchange traded funds.

Regarding your point on increased gold production, that is in response to the fact gold is at record highs against the dollar. There are no gold inventories except gold owned by investors. Its not like oil where its stockpiled somewhere. Gold producers mine it out of the ground and refine it and then sell it to investors.

Yes, you can invest in foreign currencies but then you have to deal with the plethora of foreign tax issues. Gold will rise and fall inversely with the value of the dollar and the value of the dollar is sure to drop. Whether gold gives you a rate of return or holds you even with inflation still makes it a hedge. Find another safe-haven investment right now thats keepign up with inflation. I've already made about 28% since March on my gold investment so I'd say its a pretty good investment so far with no ceiling in sight.