WORLD FINANCIAL REPORT ON RADIO MAY 14 2013

WWPMC.COM  PRECIOUS METALS TELEPHONE # 1-866-623-2002

RARECOLOREDDIAMONDS.COM  DIAMONDS TELEPHONE # 1-800-432-1022

HSFINEAUCTIONS.COM NEXT AUCTION TBA

GOLD

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Doug Pollitt of Pollitt & Company Gold Chart. The data out last week borders on the extreme. Every time sentiment has reached these levels over the course of this secular bull market, a strong bounce has ensued. Either that or the crowd could be right and we could be on the cusp of a bear market, a la 1981. But this is simply not corroborated by the underlying. The Great Reflation is in full swing, the Fed gropes the bond market as though on a bad date that won’t end and there’s nary a Paul Volcker in sight. Right now is the time when you wished you had bought. Read more here-http://bit.ly/18xse9H

-CHART OF THE WEEK: David Chapman’s Gold Chart. Below is a very long-term chart of gold adjusted for the CPI. A few things stand out on the chart. Gold prices for years were fixed. Gold only broke out of its long channel once it was set free to find its market level. Major lows in gold prices on an inflation-adjusted basis were seen during the American revolution, the War of 1812, the US civil war, WW1 and the Vietnam War. The last major low was in 1999-2001 following years of low gold prices. Overall gold has proven over time to be an excellent hedge against inflation and a long-term store of value. However, there are periods to own gold and periods not to own gold. Despite the recent setback, the reasons to hold gold have not abated. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YxGDP6

-Egon von Greyerz: Swiss Refiners Unable To Keep Up With Massive Gold Demand. While the mainstream media focuses on the paper gold price, savvy investors around the world are now buying all of the physical gold that is available. In country after country we hear about how sales of gold are absolutely booming and everyone is running out of stock. Gold dealers and jewelers can’t keep up with demand, to the point that some of them have empty shelves. People are queueing up to buy gold. Look at the Swiss refiners, they are continuing to have major delays in delivering gold.

These delays are several weeks and this is in spite of running at full capacity, 24/7. Refiners’ premiums for prompt delivery right now are around $6 to $7, and it’s been as high as $20 recently. At some point this extraordinary physical demand will result in a massive surge in the gold price. What will happen to the gold price when the world financial system comes under real pressure again, and money printing has to accelerate? There will only be physical gold available at massively high prices at that time in order to compensate for what will be a total lack of supply.

So investors must not be concerned about the correction in the gold price. It has nothing to do with reality. Gold will continue to reflect the destruction of paper money. Even with the pullback in the price of gold, over the last 12 years gold has produced a 16% compounded annual return. That gain will only accelerate in the next few years. So investors should just focus on buying physical gold and storing it outside of the banking system. Read more here-http://bit.ly/147l3Sa

-Stephen Leeb: China Moving To Dominate The World With Gold Purchases. China also imported over 200 tons of gold for the most recent month. That is an extraordinary number. At that rate that’s over 2,400 tons of gold per year on an annualized basis. This simply speeds up the point at which China will be the largest gold holder in the world. China saw gold come down and they didn’t just buy on the dip, instead they bought as much as the market would give them. And, again, you see the yuan going up so that is making the price of gold even cheaper for the Chinese.

It’s only a matter of time before the Chinese back the yuan with gold. This will push the yuan front and center as a key element in terms of being part of the world’s reserve currency basket. China gets the message. They are doing whatever it takes to establish their dominance in the world, particularly in the commodity arena. Their currency is flying and they are importing as much gold as they possibly can. All of this spells incredible upside for gold. Hang on to your gold, and buy more if it comes down in price. And especially buy silver. When gold takes off, silver will be gold on steroids. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11jO3Jr

-China’s Gold Purchases From Hong Kong Expand to Record. Gold imports by China from Hong Kong more than doubled to an all-time high in March as buyers in the biggest consumer after India boosted purchases, underscoring increased bullion demand in the world’s second-largest economy. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10qBCW2

-China’s Gold Consumption Jumps 26% in First Quarter Before Rout. Gold consumption in China, the world’s largest user after India, jumped 26 percent in the first three months of 2013 from a year ago amid strong bullion sales and rising jewelry demand, an association said. Total consumption reached 320.54 metric tons in the first quarter, the China Gold Association said in a report. Purchases of gold bars surged 49 percent to 120.39 tons, while jewelry gained 16 percent to 178.59 tons, it said. Gold output in China, the world’s largest producer, gained 11 percent in the same period to 89.91 tons, according to the association. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10rmUCU and http://reut.rs/18Zs1cF and http://bit.ly/13A8Rtx

-Jeff Nielson: China’s real gold reserves at 4,000 tonnes? Read more here-http://bit.ly/YH7ri8

-Lawrence Williams: Who’s smartest on gold Chinese housewives or George Soros? The huge surge of purchasing by Chinese particularly Chinese women is reported to have amounted to more than 10% of annual global mined gold output in just 2 weeks of frenzied buying. Read more here-http://bit.ly/15tNsqf

-What a ‘bear market’! India’s gold imports seen topping 100 tonnes for second month. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10GHbhL

-Gold rush in the UAE as expats take advantage of plunging prices. Jewellery and coins are much in demand in Dubai and Qatar amid rumours that gold bars have been pulled from store shelves until prices recover. Read more here-http://bit.ly/18Z98GR

-Demand for metal remains enormous; fake silver eagles discovered in Ontario. Read more here-http://bit.ly/18uoPs5

-Gold plunge was not natural market event, fund manager Marshall Auerback says. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12VF3V8

-Steve Forbes: Why Gold Plunged. Ben Bernanke has pulled off a neat trick that could well give us the worst of all worlds: a brief commodity deflation, future inflation and a stagnant economy. It will earn him a prominent place in the central bank’s Hall of Infamy. Usually central bankers earn opprobium from history the old-fashioned way, by debasing the currencies under their care. But Bernanke has added a new twist. Read more here-http://onforb.es/10vkvqK

-Jim Sinclair: Technical analysis of gold market is a waste of time. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZJLcmU

-Jim Sinclair: Liberation of gold from the paper market is at hand. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13kVApx

-Gene Arensberg: Small traders are net short gold for first time as big traders cover. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10u02CB

-Chris Martenson: Why There May Be a Lot Less Gold than We Realize. A recent and thought-provoking study regarding gold leasing was done by Sprott Asset Management in March. After accounting for all known flows of gold into and out of the US over the past 22 years, the Sprott team arrived at a figure of nearly 4,500 tonnes of gold that cannot be accounted for. Read more here-http://bit.ly/18wdjfK

-Dan Norcini: God Help Us All Because This Sure As Hell Will Not End Well. Physical market demand for gold is extremely strong on bouts of price weakness, but that in itself is not able to overcome sentiment among many investment fund managers in the West. The general feeling out there amongst most fund managers is that the decade-long bull market in gold has come to an end. If you believe the gold bull market is over, why would you want to own shares in the companies that mine gold out of the ground? Keep in mind that this is not my view of the gold market but it is currently the prevailing view in the West at the immediate moment. Little if any thought is given to the long-term implications of this experiment in unlimited money creation. The thinking seems to be, “Things are okay for now, not great, but okay. We will worry about the other stuff later and cross that bridge when we get to it. But for now, it’s equity buying time. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10l4myu

-Dr. Paul Craig Roberts: Former US Treasury Official Gold, Silver, The Fed & Bank Runs. It’s hard to fly out of banks. You can’t escape the banks, you can only escape how much money you keep in any one bank. If you pull out (your money), what are you doing to do with it? Where do you put it? Are you going to put it in a safe in your house? Or you have to look for some other financial asset. Are you going to put it in the stock market when the stocks are at an all-time high and there is no economic activity, and profits are due to layoffs? Are you going to put it in the bond market when the real interest rates are negative and the bond market is the biggest bubble in human history?

So they’ve kind of got people trapped. So what can they do? They can put it in precious metals, gold and silver, if they can find a place to store it that’s safe. To prevent that the government and the Federal Reserve short the bullion market in order to drive the prices down, to scare people away from that alternative. So when you have this kind of rigged system it’s hard for people to protect what they have. It’s a dangerous time, and it looks like the authorities both in Western Europe and the United States are not really concerned with what happens to the wealth of the citizens, only whether or not a few giant banks can be kept afloat. Read more here-http://bit.ly/1473FwO

-John Hathaway: I Haven’t Seen This In Gold In 15 Years. Even though the paper market crushed the gold price, the physical market came alive. If you look at the numbers for the US Mint, the reports out of the Far-East, and many of the contacts we have, people are lining up to buy gold. So it’s kind of the opposite of a bubble. What came out of this to me is that people around the world don’t trust the banking system. They want some of their wealth in a secure asset and they want it outside of the banking system.

So what we are doing is preparing to launch a fund which will allow accredited investors to store their gold with us and actually source well known vaulting services like VIA MAT, a Singapore facility, or Brinks. So that’s what we are doing about it. Investors have to realize that the rationale for owning gold has never been stronger because not only do we have money printing by all of the global central banks, but at the same time the zero interest rate environment is stymieing economic growth. So these debts that have been piling up and accumulated by governments, in order to paper over the weakness of the private sector, are not going to go away. Instead they will just get bigger and bigger.

Austerity has now become a bad word, and now we’ve learned that your uninsured deposits anywhere in Europe or the US are at risk. In a banking crisis you could become a creditor of the bank and take a real haircut on your deposit just as we just saw in Cyprus. If people think it can’t happen here, I’ve got news for you, look at the derivative books of the seven or eight large US banks. They are completely opaque, incomprehensible, and they are going to be a big source of trouble at some point in the future. So I think having money in a monetary asset where there is no counterparty risk is probably the best idea since sliced bread. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10J1Lhz

-James Turk: Extraordinary Delays For Physical Gold & Silver. If the central planners want to keep the precious metals at these low prices, to meet the demand for physical metal they will need to empty more metal from central bank vaults, or borrow metal from the ETFs as some have suggested is happening. Otherwise, the central planners will have to step back and stop their intervention, thereby letting the price of gold and silver rise so that demand tapers off, bringing demand and supply of physical metal back toward some kind of balance. We’ve seen this same situation several times over the last twelve years. It is what I have been calling a “managed retreat.” Despite the current weakness, I firmly believe we have again entered a critical period where the central planners will need to retreat once again in order to let the gold and silver prices climb higher. Read more here-http://bit.ly/15PhNiX

-John Hathaway: This Is The Truth About Where The Gold Market Is. To be realistic you have to say that we are in a healing mode and it may take a period of months for the market to get its footing. That is assuming there is no major event or market-moving change of sentiment, which could happen at any time. So if you are thinking about trying to time this, I think that’s a big mistake. If you enter or add to positions in physical gold and the shares, you just have to be prepared to wait it out.

It will take some patience going forward, but the ultimate end game is as palpable and real as ever now. Ultimately I think the dam will break, and whoever is sitting on the gold price and keeping it from going higher will get out of the way and people will wonder why the price exploded higher in such a violent manner. But trying to time that is a very risky business. It’s better just to be invested, stay patient and add to positions. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10dWXFe

-GoldMoney’s Alasdair Macleod interviewed on ‘The Keiser Report.’ Watch more here-http://bit.ly/ZJLEBz

-GATA Chairman Bill Murphy interviewed by Jay Taylor. Listen to more here-http://bit.ly/18YVnrJ

-Diplomatic cables show central banks conspiring to rig gold even after demonetization. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11TwkDR

-MineWeb’s Lawrence Williams: GATA gaining credence. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12enwu0

Back to Top

SILVER

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $33.33

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $40.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $66.67

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $100.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $133.33

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $41.67

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $62.50

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $83.33

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $125.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $166.67

-”It’s time for the CFTC to come clean about silver and stop pretending it is investigating. It will be better for everyone (except holders of long COMEX contracts) for the CFTC to simply shut down this crooked exchange instead of letting the manipulation continue. At one time I did think the exchange could be reformed, but I no longer feel that is possible. The corruption goes too deep. It’s bad enough that an important American financial institution is corrupt beyond repair, but it is more a loss that the COMEX has dragged the CFTC down with it. In my latest article, I referred to the commissioners and other high officials of the agency as traitors to the American people. I still feel that way. Not only are none of them fit to hold their current positions, they should never hold any other public office again.” Silver analyst Ted Butler May 8 2013 via Ed Steer Casey Research-Read more here-http://bit.ly/YIt0yD

-”I now hold the opinion that the commissioners and other high officials of the CFTC are traitors. That’s a real ugly word, but Merriam-Webster defines traitor as one who betrays another’s trust or is false to an obligation or duty. It may be ugly, but the CFTC has betrayed the public trust and has been false to a sworn obligation and duty to uphold commodity law. How else to describe a phony 4.5 year investigation and never a comment on the series of unprecedented price declines in silver while the supposed investigation was in place? I don’t know how these people live with themselves by betraying the public on a daily basis. Silver analyst Ted Butler May 4 2013 via Ed Steer Casey Research-Read more here-http://bit.ly/10wABAy

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Citi analyst Tom Fitzpatrick, Silver Market Update. If you look at the move we had down in silver during the 2008/2009 time frame, in percentage terms we haven’t quite equalled that move. I think the correction is nearing the end, but could we have a bit more pressure where silver breaks to a new low? That’s definitely possible, particularly if we do have the danger of seeing the $1,260 level in the gold price. But the reality is there is strong support between the zone just below $20 on silver and just above $21 as well. That area would be consistent with the type of bottoming pattern we put in during 2008. In the event silver does trade just below $20, that should be a platform to see silver push higher and most likely advance to new all-time highs. There is, however, the danger that we may see this one more push to the downside.

Obviously triple digits (over $100) would be quite a move in silver, but it’s not inconceivable that we could see that kind of advance over time. We’re much more focused right now on the gold price and that would be a feedback loop into silver. We still follow the same view that central banks around the world are expanding their printing activities across the globe with the idea of reflating and inflating. Despite the recent pressures we have seen in both the gold and silver markets, our belief is still that this is a setup which is going to be very positive for gold, and subsequently for silver as well.

We have a long-term target on gold to get in the region of $3,400 to $3,500. We see no reason at all to change that target. We still believe over the course of the next couple of years we could see a move of that magnitude. This would obviously mean new all-time highs for silver. We will just have to wait and see if that means a silver price in the triple digits. It would mean at least $70 to $75 silver and it’s not inconceivable that silver will in fact trade in the triple digits. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11VIax4

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Hubert Moolman, Silver Bull Market Is Following The Structure Of The 70s Bull Market. If the current bull market structure continues to follow the basic structure of the 70s bull market, then price should, at least, clear $140. Read more here-http://bit.ly/17PwcZQ

-Bill Haynes: Largest Wholesaler In U.S. Sold Out Of 100 Ounce Silver Bars. The largest wholesaler in the United States is no longer taking orders for 100 ounces silver bars. They have sold out their allotment of Johnson Matthey 100 ounce (silver) bars. Their whole allotment for the month of May has been sold. They will not take orders for bullion they are not sure if they can get. The remaining wholesalers that are still selling 100 ounce silver bars, they’ve kicked their premiums up.

One ounce silver rounds, they will quote them, but there is 4 to 6 weeks for delivery. Silver (American) Eagles, Silver Maple Leafs, still 4 to 5 weeks out. 90% (coin) is still very difficult to get. This buying is continuing unabated and I think for good reason. The people are waking up. There is a world of difference between holding physical gold and silver, and holding an ETF. I think a lot of that money that went out of the ETF’s in the past 6 to 8 weeks went into the physical market. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11W4hng

-Robert Fitzwilson: The Global Run On Silver & What It Means Going Forward. The silver coin in most of human history has allowed the owner to purchase goods and services. It has also been one of the primary mechanisms for the storage of wealth. The amazing thing about the coin is that it also has tremendous utility. Silver is the best conductor of electricity, so it is essential to our technology driven world. Computers and solar panels all rely on the electrical properties of silver. Silver also is one of the best natural anti-microbial elements in Nature.

There is an ever expanding list of potential uses for the metal. At the same time, the surplus of silver that we had not too long ago has been consumed. The ore grades that we are mining continue to decline. At a time when supplies are tight and getting tighter, the demand for industrial, jewelry and monetary uses continues to grow. Returning to the coin and currency on the table, you can see that they both have been used to exchange goods and services throughout history. The currency has virtually no intrinsic value. The silver coin has a great deal of it. The supply of currency grows exponentially every day. The supply of silver will stabilize and eventually decline as mines are depleted and the other uses for the metals increase.

Common sense tells us that one will get more valuable and the other will suffer a decline. If you own the dollar, the value of it has been virtually destroyed in the last 100 years, all but 2% according to one estimate. For currency that is saved for future exchanges of goods and services in the form of bank deposits and other forms of fixed income, the interest has been taken away through the zero interest rate policy. There is now talk of completing the confiscation in the form of applying the Cyprus model to bank deposits. Whether that is an imminent prospect or not, the legal mechanisms are now in place.

In a perfect world, the amount of the unfinished transactions, the currency, would be roughly equivalent to the amount of goods and services that might be exchanged now and in the foreseeable future. As grotesque amounts of debt/currency are being created, these representations of unfinished transactions have completely overwhelmed any possibility of several generations being able to provide an equivalent amount of goods and services. We know the currency has no intrinsic value. We now know that the utility has been and will continue to be systemically destroyed, particularly if there is a new global currency or a new reserve currency such as the Chinese Yuan.

The choice between the wealth and the utility of the silver coin and the lack of wealth and diminishing utility of the currency should be an easy one. Assets denominated in currencies are being destroyed at an accelerating pace while the safety and desirability of real assets such as the silver coin grow commensurately. The recent run on silver is a sign that the general population is starting to understand the stark differences between the safety of sound money and peril of paper money. We can only hope that more and more people reach that same conclusion before it is too late. Read more here-http://bit.ly/17OYqEd

-Mike Kosares: Silver eagle sales show metal’s recognition as safe haven. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10uxbJM

-US Mint to limit purchases of “America the Beautiful” silver coins. The U.S. Mint will limit dealers’ purchases of its “America the Beautiful” five-ounce silver bullion coins when they go on sale next week because strong demand exceeds the mint’s inventory. Read more here-http://reut.rs/YxFaIz

-Ted Butler: The Worst Regulator Possible. Sticking with the theme of milestones, we’ve just crossed a few important anniversary dates that relate to silver that taken in proper perspective point to a disturbing conclusion. That conclusion is that the US commodities regulator, the CFTC, has done more public harm than good over the past few years. Simply put, the public and our markets would have been better off had the agency not been run by the commissioners in place, specifically including Chairman Gensler and Commissioner Chilton.

In fact, rarely has so much promise for genuine regulatory reform been squandered as badly as has been the case over the past few years. Four years ago tomorrow, Gary Gensler was sworn in as chairman of the CFTC, following the financial crisis that brought the system to the brink. He hit the road running and immediately began to speak publicly in terms of position limits and concentration that paralleled exactly what I had been espousing for more than 20 years. Gensler followed up his public speeches with a series of unprecedented public meetings designed to garner industry consensus for how to prevent concentration and manipulation and how to institute legitimate speculative position limits in those commodities where they did not exist, such as silver. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12k0hgK

Back to Top

CHARTS OF THE WEEK-QUOTES-QUICK HITS

-CHART OF THE WEEK: The Scariest Jobs Chart Ever. Read more here-http://read.bi/12hjgsc

-Dr. Paul Craig Roberts: Former US Treasury Official Friday’s Jobs Report A Total Farce. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10ufxFX

-Dark side to U.S. jobs report: Big drop in hours worked. Shorter work week equivalent to 500,000 jobs lost. Read more here-http://on.mktw.net/15JnnTS

-10,962,532: U.S. Disability Beneficiaries Exceed Population of Greece. The total number of people in the United States now receiving federal disability benefits hit a record 10,962,532 million in April, which exceeds the 10,815,197 people who live in the nation of Greece. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16i5F9F

chartoftheday.com

-CHART OF THE WEEK: The Worst Unemployment Crisis In Modern History Is Unfolding Right Now. At 27.2%, Spain is suffering the worst unemployment rate in modern history. Spain is tied with Greece, and is worse than the approximately 25% unemployment rate that the U.S. saw during The Great Depression. Read more here-http://read.bi/12fwXJx

-”This buying stampede in stocks is now 89 days in length, which is historic. Buying stampedes tend to last 17 to 25 sessions, with only 1 to 3 session pauses or pullbacks, before they exhaust themselves. There have been a few that have lasted 25 to 30 sessions, but it’s rare to have one go more than 30 sessions. This one has gone 89 sessions as of today. The next longest one was the 53 session buying stampede in 2010. The longest one before that was the 38 session buying stampede in 1987 that marched itself up into the August high. We all know what happened after that in October of 1987.” Jeffrey Saut

-”Well, there is obviously going to be a big blow up. We have the three biggest bubbles in human history: The stock market bubble, the bond market bubble, and the dollar bubble.” Dr. Paul Craig Roberts

-”You hear about shortages of coins. Sometimes that can be attributable to the mints not having enough equipment. Bars, the same thing. I read recently that more than half of the gold which has been ordered has been on a delayed delivery of some sort. Everything I get confirms the activity is overwhelmingly on the buy side. So this pullback has not at all disheartened people who want to own more gold. In fact they are just looking at it as if it was a ‘blue light special,’ and they are just standing in line to buy.

Sometimes you have to give the average citizen some credit in terms of common sense. They can look at what’s going on and say, ‘This doesn’t make sense. Money printing can’t be good over the longer-term.’ They don’t need CNBC or Bloomberg to tell them to go out and buy it. They are thinking for themselves. I mean if anything the media is so dead set against gold right now, the fact that the public buying remains so strong, to me, is very, very significant and if you look at the traders’ commitments, they are extremely bullish. The smart money is on the buy side, and the specs are very heavily on the short side.” John Hathaway

-”Gold and silver are their (the central planners) worst nightmare. The fact is they have to print unlimited quantities of money in every Western nation just to keep the thing from imploding. Now if the gold and silver prices were correctly reacting to this, i.e. they were rising sharply in price as they should be, then the whole scam would be revealed for what it is. Interest rates would start to rise precipitously and the thing would collapse.” John Embry

-”Fair-weather investors in gold jump at the first sign of turbulence because they do not have a clear concept of the monetary transformation that is taking place. They see other gold investors as greater fools who they must beat to the safety of US dollars when the music stops. Fortunately for those who know better, these momentary panics allow us to buy their gold at steep discounts.” Peter Schiff

-German euro founder calls for ‘catastrophic’ currency to be broken up. Oskar Lafontaine, the German finance minister who launched the euro, has called for a break-up of the single currency to let southern Europe recover, warning that the current course is “leading to disaster.” Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZQUAIG

-532 billion euros to rescue five countries. Cyprus is clearing the last hurdles for money to flow from the European rescue fund, ESM. Five eurozone states now have loans for half a trillion euros. Who pays what and who receives the loans? Read more here-http://bit.ly/177fMy7

-David Rosenberg: The Fed Is Trying Like Crazy, But Nothing It’s Doing Can Save The Economy. David Rosenberg, the veteran Wall Street economist and bearish strategist at Gluskin Sheff, gave an intense presentation on Friday at John Mauldin’s Strategic Investment Conference. Titled “Bernanke: The Wizard Of Potemkin,” this presentation offers a sobering look at the anemic U.S. economy, the labor market mess, and the Federal Reserve’s controversial efforts to get everything back on track. Before you can even think about getting bullish, you must consider the eye-opening charts from Rosenberg’s presentation. Read more here-http://read.bi/12gVVHk

-Paul Singer: The Fed Is Creating ‘Class Warfare’ And The Recovery Is Being Distorted. Billionaire hedge fund manager Paul Singer, who runs Elliott Management, opened the Sohn Investment Conference and his talk was pretty much a downer. Singer made the point that quantitative easing has caused a “distorted recovery.” He explained that this means people who own stocks and bonds financiers, bankers, hedge funds are doing fine.

“Most of the people in this room are doing just fine,” Singer said, adding, “The ordinary person is not experiencing the effective equivalent of Dow Jones 15,000. The average person is paying a lot of money for the necessities of life is worried about his or her job or the job of his or her family is experiencing an economy that has basically recession level employment.” This distortion is helping to fuel class warfare, he added. “I think that’s a poisonous atmosphere in which to rely upon the private sector to generate growth,” he said. Read more here-http://read.bi/YIMcfI

-Greg Hunter: Interview with Karl Denninger, Fed Money Printing Games Out of Gas. Financial analyst Karl Denninger has never bought the so-called “recovery” story. Just the opposite is happening right now. He says, “When you look at these indices in the context of the last three or four months, what you see is a deteriorating picture deteriorating employment, deteriorating final demand, deteriorating basically everything.” So, will the Fed print even more money?

It might, but Denninger says it won’t help, “We’re seeing the leading edge of a great deal of softness, and this means the Federal Reserve’s money games have run out of gas.” A weak economy will be the backdrop for Obama Care in 2014, which Denninger says basically transfers healthcare costs to the government. Denninger warns, “If you shift more of the private expense into the government, all you do is bankrupt the government faster. How does this solve a healthcare problem?” Denninger says, “We are sowing the seeds of the next crash and yes, there will be losses.” Watch more here-http://bit.ly/10rMEu2

-Jeff Gundlach: Anyone Who Says Interest Rates Will Rise Soon Is ‘Absolutely Wrong.’ Read more here-http://read.bi/11UjxRA

-Diminished Housing Wealth Effect Keeps Pressure on Fed. The wealth effect from rising house prices may not be as effective as it once was in spurring the U.S. economy. Rather than using their properties as ATM machines to boost spending, homeowners increasingly are paying down the principal and shortening the maturities of their mortgages in a move Florida banker Rob Nunziata calls “forced savings.” Cash-in refinancings in which borrowers invest more of their own money in the house outnumbered cash-outs by more than two-to- one in the fourth quarter, according to Freddie Mac. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/17NyTLq

-The Most Plugged-In Budget Analyst In America Gives A Great Crash Course On How The Government Spends Its Money. Read more here-http://read.bi/15OlDst

-Jim Jubak: Will the age wars bankrupt us? Underlying all our recent global crises is the issue of an aging population. Yet we’re refusing to fund the growth and productivity our economies need. Read more here-http://on-msn.com/YHWxsc

-Mohamed El-Erian: Unhedged Stock Market Investors Will Pay A High Price For Taking Excessive Risk. Why is it that the Pimco’s of this world are not disciplining a system that is becoming more and more artificial? Why do we allow the manipulation? In a classroom you can discipline a single a person. However, if the whole class misbehaves it is an entirely different issue. Currently the whole class is misbehaving and that is a very different paradigm than what we have seen in the past which has led to unprecedented, unproven and untried interventions that are likely to have far reaching outcomes.

Investors that are overly invested in stocks will eventually pay a very high price for taking on excessive risk. We are approaching the end of the journey for this experiment and it will either result in a return to organic growth or economic disaster. The problem is that we really don’t know which it will be. What we do know is that eventually, regardless of the outcome of these monetary experiments, the disconnect between the fundamentals and the markets will revert which will prove painful for unhedged stock investors. Read more here-http://read.bi/174LMmv

-Five million U.K. families ‘relying on loans and savings to cover their food bills.’ Five million British households are relying on loans and savings to meet grocery costs, research suggested today, as they approach financial ‘breaking point’. One in five families said that their monthly incomes would not stretch to cover their total food bill in April, consumer group Which? found. That meant they had to use a credit card, overdraft or loan, or plunder their savings instead. This would equate to five million families if the findings were projected across the UK, Which? said. Read more here-http://bit.ly/171zLy5

-Mark Mobius: Let Me Separate Myth From Reality About These So-Called ‘Ghost Cities.’ Read more here-http://read.bi/15OkH7t

-Greg Hunter: Gerald Celente Interview, Middle East Out of Control. Trends researcher Gerald Celente predicts war in the Middle East. He says, “It is out of control. What are people waiting for–an Archduke Ferdinand moment?” Celente thinks Israel bombing Syria means World War 3 is on its way. The cycle leading to war started with the crash of 2008. Celente says, “Crash, depression, currency wars trade wars and then real wars.

That’s what we’re seeing again.” Celente charges, “This is a proxy war against Iran because when Syria is choked off, then Iran is left alone surrounded by enemies. So, that’s what we’re really looking at. The end game is Iran.” What would happen if Iran and Israel went to war? Would the Strait of Hormuz close, gasoline explode to $10 a gallon, markets implode? Celente says, “All of the above.” Read more here-http://bit.ly/10lRng1

-Egypt Investment Collapsing as Citizens Turn Into Vigilantes. A growing number of Egyptians think that “you can actually achieve your goals using violence,” said Ezzedine Choukri Fishere, a political scientist at the American University in Cairo. Beneath that lies the “dashed expectation and hope of the youth,” he said. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/145mu3m

-Gates Says Wealthy Should Pay More to Help Reduce Deficit. Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates said the wealthy should pay more as the U.S. continues to grapple with how to rein in its budget deficit. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/YGMt2V

-Yankees Selling Half-Off Tickets on Groupon as Attendance Drops. The New York Yankees are selling tickets at more than a 50 percent discount on the coupon website Groupon Inc. as attendance lags behind last season, even though the team is off to a better start. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/12hj9×5

-Cezanne ‘Les Pommes’ Leads Sotheby’s $230 Million Tally. Paul Cezanne’s “Les Pommes” sold for $41.6 million at Sotheby’s in New York last night, the top price in a $230 million Impressionist and modern art sale. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/11kipvC

-Pentagon Accuses China of Cyberspying on U.S. Government. The Chinese military has targeted U.S. government computers with intrusions that seek sensitive data, according to a report in which the Pentagon for the first time directly accuses China of a cyber espionage campaign. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/11Uj1ms

-Are All Telephone Calls Recorded And Accessible To The US Government? Read more here-http://read.bi/17MhBhZ

-U.S. Weighs Wide Overhaul of Wiretap Laws. The Obama administration, resolving years of internal debate, is on the verge of backing a Federal Bureau of Investigation plan for a sweeping overhaul of surveillance laws that would make it easier to wiretap people who communicate using the Internet rather than by traditional phone services, according to officials familiar with the deliberations. Read more here-http://nyti.ms/ZIHYjl

-Gore Is Romney-Rich With $200 Million After Bush Defeat. In 1999, Al Gore, then U.S. vice president and a Democratic candidate for president, sold $6,000 worth of cows. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10HQoXo

Back to Top

-Rarecoloreddiamonds.com Featured Diamond of the Week. This week’s Diamond is a 0.96 Carat Radiant Cut Fancy Vivid Pink Argyle. Harold Seigel-Watch video here-http://bit.ly/LIsp98

-”Unlike gold, diamonds are light and pack tremendous value in small portable sizes. The big money is well aware of this, and the price of gem-quality diamonds keeps advancing at around 5% a year. The early Christie’s auction this year was supposed to realize $35 million. It actually totaled $81 million. At the auction, a 34.65 carat diamond, fancy intense pink, sold for $39 million. And that was for a single stone. At Sotheby’s an early auction totaled $53 million, the highest ever total for a spring sale. The top selling lot was a 74.79 carat diamond, potentially flawless, that went for over $14 million. Obviously, big money is investing in top quality diamonds. It’s concentrated wealth which is portable just in case. Richard Russell

-Christie’s Hong Kong Jewels Sale Features 75-Ct. Briolette Diamond. Christie’s Hong Kong will hold its magnificent jewels sale on May 28, offering 290 jewels for a presale estimate total of $74 million (HKD 590 million). The top lot of the sale is diamond pendant necklace with a marquise-cut purplish pink diamond suspending a 75.36-carat, D, internally flawless, type IIa briolette diamond and a presale estimate of $8.5 million to $12.5 million. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12WRL6c

-Avi Krawitz: Big & Beautiful Diamonds. Unique diamonds are the talk of the town. While the rest of the trade struggles along, ‎dealers at this week’s Basel show reported strong demand at the very top-end of the ‎market. Therefore, as the jewelry auction scene moves from New York to Geneva in ‎mid-May, the special diamonds on display are expected to fetch strong, even record ‎prices. ‎Read more here-http://bit.ly/YGeLKH

Back to Top

CURRENCY WARS

-Axel Merk: Currency Wars, Winners and Losers. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16kQSuO

-USDJPY Finally Breaks ¥100. The U.S. dollar just hit the key ¥100 psychological level against the Japanese yen. The currency pair hasn’t traded north of ¥100 since April 14, 2009. Read more here-http://read.bi/15QkrVp

-RBA Cuts Key Rate to Record-Low 2.75% to Combat Aussie. The Reserve Bank of Australia cut its benchmark interest rate to a record low, driving down a currency that has damaged manufacturing and boosted unemployment. Governor Glenn Stevens reduced the overnight cash-rate target by a quarter percentage point to 2.75 percent, saying in a statement that the Aussie’s record strength “is unusual given the decline in export prices and interest rates.” Read more here-http://bloom.bg/17N074V

-Rates Reining in Aussie Seen Beating Kiwi Peashooter. Australia’s interest-rate cuts will prove more successful than New Zealand’s intervention in foreign-exchange markets at curbing gains that made their currencies the world’s best performers since 2008. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/17NehD1

-South Korea Joins India-to-Europe Rate Cuts for Growth. The Bank of Korea cut interest rates, following the lead of policy makers in Australia, Europe and India this month, as strength in the won and weakness in the yen dim the outlook for the nation’s exports. Governor Kim Choong Soo and his board lowered the benchmark seven-day repurchase rate to 2.5 percent from 2.75 percent, the central bank said in a statement in Seoul. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/145PZlC

-Borg Joins Wheeler in Escalating Response to Currency Gains. Sweden’s government abandoned its hands-off stance on the krona and New Zealand announced it sold the kiwi, joining a growing band of countries to escalate their response to strengthening currencies. The New Zealand dollar fell to a five-week low after Reserve Bank Governor Graeme Wheeler said the central bank sold the kiwi and can do so again to protect growth. In Sweden, Finance Minister Anders Borg said the krona’s appreciation warrants central-bank consideration. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10rpxQi

-Bank of England keeps interest rates and QE unchanged. The Bank of England has kept its stimulus programme of quantitative easing (QE) unchanged and also held interest rates at 0.5%. Read more here-http://bbc.in/18wfzDY

-Draghi Says ECB Ready to Cut Interest Rates Again If Needed. European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said policy makers are ready to cut interest rates again if needed after reducing them to a record low last week. “We will be looking at all the data that arrives from the euro-area economy in the coming weeks and if necessary, we are ready to act again,” Draghi said in a speech in Rome. “Monetary policy will remain accommodative.” Read more here-http://bloom.bg/16isWIq

-Yahoo Records $273 Million in Gains From Hedges on Yen. Yahoo! Inc. has recorded $273 million in gains resulting from steps taken to guard against swings in the Japanese yen that can affect the value of its Asian operations. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZQKWG1

Back to Top

CANADIAN BANKS GOT BAILOUT

-Canada Bank Bailout Cost $114 Billion At Peak, CCPA Says. Canada’s banks were bailed out by U.S. and Canadian institutions to the tune of $114 billion, says a new report from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. The report puts a large dent into the perception that Canada’s banks survived the financial collapse of 2008 without the need for the sorts of government bailouts seen in the U.S. and Europe.

According to the report, titled The Big Banks’ Big Secret: Estimating Government Support for Canadian Banks During the Financial Crisis, Canada’s biggest banks relied heavily on support from the Bank of Canada, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. and the U.S. Federal Reserve between October, 2008 and July, 2010. By the CCPA’s estimates, that works out to $3,400 for every man, woman and child in the country. On a per capita basis, that’s more than what U.S. banks needed. The most liberal estimates for the U.S.’s Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) place the cost at around $3,000 per person.

“At some point during the crisis, three of Canada’s banks CIBC, BMO, and Scotiabank were completely under water, with government support exceeding the market value of the company,” CCPA Senior Economist David Macdonald said in a press statement Monday. “Without government supports to fall back on, Canadian banks would have been in serious trouble.” Over the same period, the CCPA notes, Canada’s big banks recorded a combined total of $27 billion in profits and the banks’ CEOs received an average pay raise of 19 per cent. “For instance, Edmund Clark of TD Bank saw his overall compensation jump from $11.1 million in 2008 to $15.2 million in 2009,” the report states. Read more here-http://huff.to/11TIBrZ

Back to Top

WORLD FINANCIAL REPORT ON RADIO MAY 7 2013

WWPMC.COM  PRECIOUS METALS TELEPHONE # 1-866-623-2002

RARECOLOREDDIAMONDS.COM  DIAMONDS TELEPHONE # 1-800-432-1022

HSFINEAUCTIONS.COM NEXT AUCTION TBA

GOLD

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Jewelry Demand May Revive Gold, Mining Stocks. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/YhwhT9

-Jeff Clark: Buy Gold Now. The important thing to realize that if gold and silver were to see another leg down, we fully expect buying physical metals to get more difficult and expensive, not better. At this point, there is no evidence that supply is easing up. Even or perhaps especially at lower spot “paper gold” prices, it could become very difficult to get your hands on bullion. And you’ll pay even higher premiums on items with the tightest supply. We don’t care to predict how long delivery times could get. Don’t be fooled by what happened in the futures market. The retreat is a buying opportunity for physical metal. If you wish you’d bought tech stocks in 1990 or real estate in 2000, you now have a moment like that in gold. So yes, we are buying right now. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12YpJJT

-Jim Sinclair: The Elites Frightening Plan To Control The Masses. The price of gold is going to significant new highs, and that drive to new highs will be as a result of a continued move into physical gold. Because the manipulative tool of the paper market has been revealed as a fraudulent determiner of price, the physical gold price will now be free to move to levels that even you and I will be surprised at, and it will be maintained at that level for generations. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YmGW1b

-Jim Sinclair: The Gold War & Unprecedented Financial Destruction. The physical market for gold has quite clearly proven to have an insatiable appetite for the ‘Metal of Kings.’ We have also seen that the supply of physical gold, at best, is questionable. The net result of high demand and low supply is always significantly higher prices, and that is without a doubt what we will see in the coming days, months, and years ahead. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12VSsiL

-Jim Sinclair: Day Of Financial Infamy As Cyprus Depositors Flushed. Yes, Cyprus depositors have now been flushed. The Bank of Cyprus, the island’s largest bank said it has converted 37.5% of deposits exceeding 100,000 euros into a Class A share, with an additional 22.5% held as a buffer for possible conversion in the future. Another 30% will be temporarily frozen and held as a deposit. So the amount of money that has been taken from the Cyprus depositors is in all practicality almost their entire accounts.

Major depositors funds have now been taken in grand style. Depositors everywhere are now defined as lenders to the banks. Today is a day of financial infamy. History will see this event as serious as the flushing of Lehman Brothers. Gold is for saving. The price of gold will not only reach our original target of $3,500, but it will greatly exceed that level as the fires that are burning in the financial world turn now into an inferno, but physical gold will allow you to survive the massive blaze and financial destruction. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12n5AdK

We have already seen that the physical gold market has had a white hot flame underneath it. The paper market would still like to take gold lower, but in truth it doesn’t stand much of a chance. The price of gold going into the spring and summer and all the way into 2014 is going to make new highs. About that there is no question. I would add that if an investor has any sense at all, gold is for savings, and currency is simply for transactions.

-Jim Sinclair: Media Blackout, Panic & A Major Short Squeeze. What that tells me is that ‘bail-in’ is now a go globally. There is no question that if you were to analyze the various initiatives in New Zealand, Canada, the United States, Great Britain, etc, you would know that ‘bail-in’ is definitely being framed and will now be applied as a replacement for ‘bail out.’ So the fact that the news of the $4.2 billion which was just stolen from accounts in Cyprus didn’t make any mainstream US news, and wasn’t even mentioned on financial media during the day, tells me there is definitely a feeling that what has taken place, and what is still to take place, will disturb the ‘social order.’ Read more here-http://bit.ly/10Ws6jD

-John Embry: This May Create A Massive Upside Breakout In Gold. People keep asking me, is the bull market in gold over? This is exactly the kind of mindset they wanted to create with this ridiculous takedown which took place a couple of weeks ago. That was the most artificial paper smash in history. It worked in the sense that a lot of people that don’t fully understand the fundamentals of gold are really shaken and wondering if they should remain in the space.

But people need to keep gold as insurance because the financial system will just keep edging closer and closer to collapse. I see all of these economic numbers emanating from the United States, and the inconsistency is staggering. The latest one that had me shaking my head on Monday was the report of a massive increase in service spending, and this was in the face of relatively weak disposable income and a collapsing savings rate. I don’t consider that the least bit bullish. In fact I consider that catastrophic from the longer-term perspective, because you have to ask yourself how long can that continue? But the stock market went up and everyone acted like everything was just fine.

Then, on the heels of that report we had the Dallas Fed number which just literally imploded. It recorded the biggest drop and miss on record. So there is all of this inconsistency. But as you know I have believed for the longest time that there is no vitality whatsoever in the US economy. The only thing keeping it afloat is the US is running trillion dollar plus deficits, the vast majority of which is being monetized at interest rates which are absolutely preposterous given the longer-term risk to paper in the United States. This is clearly unsustainable. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11WBLTX

-Eric Sprott: Historic Panic Bottom Ushers In New Gold Bull Market. We’ve obviously had a bit of a mini-panic on the buy side here. People have said, ‘Oh my God, I’ve got to own some gold.’ It’s symptomatic of what’s going on throughout the world. One thing we haven’t seen yet is what did the sovereigns do in April? But I suspect that they will have been significant buyers. As Andrew Maguire has told you, he thinks something like 1,000 tons has gone from the LBMA over to Asia.

There is no room for people to buy an extra 1,000 tons, which happens to represent almost 50% of the non-China, non-Russian market. I mean how do you buy an extra 50% more of a market and not have the price go up? I think it was Japan where people were paying $500 above the spot price of gold. So it just shows you that the desire to own it, and perhaps the beginning of a real threat of shortages could have quite a significant impact on the precious metals markets. Read more here-http://bit.ly/18cWk1R

-Eric Sprott: Incredible Global Gold Rush Triggers $3,000 Target. So we see all of these paper (trading) volumes going through that bear absolutely no relationship to what’s going on in the physical markets. As you know I have always been a proponent of the fact that supply in the gold market was way less than demand, and by a very large factor. I think demand exceeds supply by at least 60%. The central banks are surreptitiously supplying that gold, and ultimately they will be running on fumes.

When we hear about the LBMA not willing to deliver gold, and JP Morgan’s inventories at the COMEX have gone from 2.4 million (ounces) down to 160,000 ounces, it just makes you realize that all of this paper trading means nothing. It’s the real physical market that you have to rely on. Everything I believed in keeps pointing to more and more buying. God forbid that I might be able to say that investment demand might go up 100% this year because everyone is buying gold. Where would it come from? There is already a shortage. So it’s just pure insanity.

I think we will look back at the gold chart and you will see this panic selling at the bottom and (we will be at) new highs in the market. We will realize when we breakout through $1,920, and we got down to $1,320, it’s going to count for the gold price being another 50% higher. We are going to have an excellent shot at $3,000 gold because this thing is totally sold out here based on the action of the Friday and Monday of the previous weeks. The whole exercise backfired. If it was central bank manipulation or somebody trying to break the market, it totally backfired.

I can’t believe that I can say to you that the US Mint has sold 1,000% more gold this month, than April of last year, and the month is not even over. I’m shocked that I can say the UK Mint has sold 200% more. You hear numbers out of China and India of hundreds of percent differences. I mean these are staggering developments in a market where the supply has been essentially fixed for 13 years. The mining supply went down last year. Mining supply will go down this year, and yet we see a huge surge of physical buying all over the place. This has been a wonderful response from people who realize the ridiculousness of what the central planners are doing. Read more here-http://bit.ly/159O445

-Bill Fleckenstein: Massive Shorts May Create Squeeze In Gold. Read more here-http://bit.ly/18dixgm

-CME President Terrence Duffy on Gold: “They Don’t Want Certificates, They Want the Real Product.” Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZALqzS

-Dwindling U.S. gold stocks signal surge in physical demand. Physical gold stocks held at CME Group’s Comex warehouses in New York have dropped to a near-five year low in a further sign that gold’s price crash unleashed a frenzy of demand as investors scramble to buy bars and coins. Read more here-http://reut.rs/12YrSWf

-Gold buyers forced to go on waiting list. Gold buyers are having to wait up to six weeks for their bars and coins after a price dip led to increased interest. Investment company Physical Gold said there were waiting lists of three weeks for some coins, and four to six weeks for gold bars. “Previously all would have been available within a few days,” the company said. The company said that it had seen a 50pc increase in enquiries about purchasing gold and a 35pc increase in sales, with people buying tax-free gold coins.

“We are now starting to experience physical gold shortages,” said Daniel Fisher, CEO of Physical Gold. “In particular there are waiting times on some gold bars and a real difficulty in obtaining mixed year Sovereigns. “However, many clients are willing to ‘do a deal’ and wait for delivery as they want to secure the current price as they feel it will be higher in the near future.” Read more here-http://bit.ly/18fuEJV

-Perth Mint testifies to exploding demand for gold after price fall. Australia’s Perth Mint, which refines nearly all of the nation’s bullion, said that demand has jumped to the highest level in five years after prices plunged, with the factory kept open through the weekend to meet orders. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11YJGA6

-Gold Rush From Dubai to Turkey Saps Supply as Premiums Jump. Surging demand for gold from Dubai to Istanbul has pushed physical premiums in the region to levels not seen in years as the biggest price slump in three decades lures consumers, according to MKS Switzerland SA. Premiums paid by wholesalers and bulk buyers in Dubai to secure a 1 kilogram bar of bullion are being quoted between $6 an ounce and $9 an ounce over the London cash price, said Frederic Panizzutti, global head of marketing and sales at the Swiss-based bullion refiner. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZC6JkO

-U.S. Mint Sales of Gold Coins Jump to Highest in Three Years. Sales of gold coins by the U.S. Mint rose to the highest since December 2009 after the price of the metal in April fell the most in 16 months. Last month, sales totaled 209,500 ounces, up from 62,000 ounces in March, data on the mint’s website show. The amount for December 2009 was 231,500 ounces. Silver-coin sales rose to 4.2 million ounces from 3.36 million in March. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/18fE0VQ

-Bron Suchecki: The most important Comex drawdown metric. Read more here-http://bit.ly/18s0dNV

-Big commercials cover big share of their gold shorts, Arensberg says. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12oYJ3y

-Clive Maund: Gold Market Update. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11DFxzT

-Louise Yamada: 3 Absolutely Incredible Gold Charts & Commentary. The outstanding question, of course, is whether or not the bull market for Gold has come to an end. We have offered much higher conceptual potential for Gold, but those levels may not be forthcoming, at least not at the moment. The answer lies in future price action. Given the fact that the advance in the current Gold bull market is far short of that achieved in the 1971-1980 bull market, one might opine there could be further to go eventually. But we have to remember there is “Concept vs Reality.” We may have a Concept based on the charts, but if the price action eventually counters that concept, we have to respect the price action and go with Reality to preserve capital.

During the last bull market in Gold (see Figure 21, log scale), from August 1971 with Gold at 43, to December 1980 with Gold at 850, Gold was up 1,877%. But from the low near 43 to February 1975 with Gold at 184, up 328%, the price dropped to 104 in August 1976, off 43% (see circle), putting the structural bull market for Gold into question. It wasn’t until July of 1978 when the price of Gold exceeded 184 and broke out to 195 that the next leg up was defined. The repair process took two years prior to the lift-off. A similar period of repair may lie ahead once the ultimate low is in place. It is possible that the decline may not yet be over (unless the suggested structured product decline was a one-time event). Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZqKlr6

-Rick Rule: What investors Should Do With Their Money Right Now. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZD40HE

-Jim Rickards: Gold at $4,000 an Ounce? Watch more here-http://bit.ly/18wV3jx

-Jeff Nielson: Investors, central banks flee government currencies, not gold. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11YHJnr

-Gold plunge was not a natural market event but an intervention, Kirby tells Schall. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZpNG9N

-Bill Buckler’s farewell: Denying gold market manipulation is silly. Read more here-http://bit.ly/1642e6s

-Kinross probably can’t make big Mauritania mine work even at $1,500 gold. Read more here-http://bit.ly/1321tH5

Back to Top

SILVER

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $33.33

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $40.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $66.67

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $100.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $133.33

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $41.67

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $62.50

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $83.33

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $125.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $166.67

-”There is no doubt that we are currently immersed in the most severe retail silver shortage in history, with premiums rising and delays stretching out like never before.” Ted Butler

-”This current set up seems to have my entire wish-list in place. A super-bullish COT structure, following an epic sell-off amid indications that physical silver conditions, both retail and wholesale, are as tight as a drum and public sentiment on gold and silver in the gutter. I wish the crooks at JPMorgan were less short, but it’s not a perfect world. As it stands, this is the best silver set up I think I’ve seen.” Silver analyst Ted Butler May 1 2013 via Ed Steer Casey Research-Read more here-http://bit.ly/YpJADj

-”I am taken aback by the growing pervasiveness, more on the Internet, but also in the mainstream media of stories about silver having to do with the COMEX, short positions, manipulation, the COTs and how JPMorgan is the big silver short. Please try to understand how other-worldly this all is to me. I’m not trying to pat myself on the back in having introduced all these things (and others); I’m trying to convey that the ascension of these issues to the forefront seems to me to automatically increase the likelihood that the end of the silver manipulation is drawing near.

After all, at some point, the whole scam must unravel once we pass the critical mass of public awareness. It is this growing awareness of the real issues in silver that has me both thunderstruck and more encouraged than ever before about silver’s investment prospects. We have a wildly bullish COT structure in silver and gold combined with what could be a nuclear fire emerging in silver physical demand. I don’t recall such a similar bullish price set up. JPMorgan is still a manipulative force to reckon with, but the growing spotlight on this crooked bank and the crooked exchange on which the price of silver is set, is bright and this doesn’t bode well for the crooks.” Silver analyst Ted Butler April 27 2013 via Ed Steer Casey Research-Read more here-http://bit.ly/11ZiAcm

-Greg Hunter: Gregory Mannarino interview, Mania in Gold and Silver Coming. The Fed is reversing course. Instead of talking about curtailing money printing, it is now extending it. This comes as no surprise to financial analyst Gregory Mannarino. He says, “There’s no way out of it. The Federal Reserve cannot and will not stop printing money. If they do, it is party over at that moment.” Mannarino points out people are running away from fiat currency and are pouring into gold and silver and predicts, “There is going to be a mania in metals because they’re going to want to get away from the Ponzi scheme of currency, and they’re going to rush into metals because they’re real assets.

“Mannarino goes on to say, “We have created an alternate reality. We have borrowed cash from the future to live better today. That has created a population boom. When that bubble bursts, it is going to correct, and millions are going to get wiped out here.” Mannarino goes on to say, “This is not just a financial thing but a human life issue, and people are going to suffer as great as if there were a global nuclear exchange.” Read and watch more here-http://bit.ly/1341k5W

-Stephen Leeb: Investors Should Be Buying Silver Aggressively Here. I would be buying silver hand-over-fist here and not looking at prices. Be accumulating it whether it be coins or any other way. Read more here-http://bit.ly/163TM78

-Eric Sprott: Silver To Skyrocket Hundreds Of Dollars in Price. If gold goes to a new high this year, I think silver is going to a new high, which means above $50. Where is it ultimately going to go? I think it will be in the hundreds of dollars. If gold goes to $3,000, silver is (already) going to be (trading) $150 to $250. That’s a big, big gain from here. You are not going to get those kinds of gains in other instruments. You are not going to get that owning bonds or (general) stocks. The metals are the place to be. It’s so unfortunate that we’ve had this ridiculous sell down here in the face of all things that are great for gold.

But there are reasons that people, the central planners, may have wanted to have it down. If it was the central planners that knocked it down, man did they lose that game because it just ignited the interest in (physical) gold and silver. I just think we are going to be many times higher than we are today. It’s going to be a long-run, we are going to have this bull market go on for another 5 to 7 years. I just don’t know how high the price is going to be (for silver). There is total insanity going on amongst the central planners right now. You tell me how desperate central banks are going to be and I can tell you how high the price is going to go. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YnvEd1

-James Turk: The Mother Of All Short Squeezes In Gold & Silver. The short position in both gold and silver is now so huge, it won’t take much to push the shorts into a buying panic. I have been looking for possible triggers that could panic the shorts, and we got a hint last week of one possible event which may do this. Because of various problems, there have been news reports that Barrick is considering what to do with its huge Pascua-Lama deposit after a Chilean court ordered it to stop development work.

The project is already well behind schedule, with big cost overruns from its initial plan, but here’s the important point, The market has been expecting that when production begins, the mine would produce 800,000 ounces of gold and 35 million ounces of silver annually. Those ounces will of course never materialize if development work remains suspended. But also consider that according to its 31 March 2013 financial report, Barrick has hedged 65 million ounces of silver, which is 8% of the world’s annual silver production. What is the bullion bank, who sold that hedge to Barrick, going to do if those 65 million ounces don’t get mined and delivered to it? What is Barrick going to do if the bullion bank forces it to deliver physical silver to close the hedge?

What are the shorts in silver going to do when they realize that there is a potential time bomb here that could substantially reduce the near-term forecast of silver supply? In other words, it is pure insanity to be short silver here, and for that matter, gold as well. Round two of the buying panic may be just around the corner when the paper shorts rush to the exits. They will learn the age-old and time-proven adage about the precious metals, namely, that it is easy to sell gold and silver in large quantities, but very, very difficult to buy in size. Read more here-http://bit.ly/103sR2V

-Robert Fitzwilson: World Changing Events & The Global Run On Gold And Silver. We could see some real fireworks in the markets in the next few weeks. This past week saw a run on bullion, particularly silver. We also found out that inventories of gold and silver are dropping precipitously at the well-known bullion repositories, particularly Western central banks and commodity exchanges. Refiners are severely backlogged, inventories of popular products have been depleted, and premiums on available items have gone up significantly. Panic buying swept the globe since the coordinated takedown of paper prices for precious metals. It feels as if we are very close to some sort of resolution with the potential for world changing events. There is no question that a form of a bank run on gold is occurring all over the world. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZAeCXT

-Clive Maund: Silver Market Update. Read more here-http://bit.ly/18sizy5

-Silver Slump Lures Buyers as Waiting Time Rises in Singapore. The slump in silver this month has spurred demand for products from Silver Bullion Pte, one of Singapore’s largest suppliers of coins and bars to retail investors, depleting inventories and doubling delivery times. Holdings of bars fell to just 54 ounces from 60,000 ounces two and a half weeks ago, according to founder Gregor Gregersen. It now takes at least six weeks for new supplies to arrive in the country up from two to three weeks previously, he said. The company, set up in 2009, counts the Perth Mint in Australia and the Royal Canadian Mint among its suppliers. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/152HlIM

-Guillermo Barba: Silver coin demand rises sharply in Mexico. Mexican financial journalist Guillermo Barba reports tonight that demand for his country’s silver Libertad coins has exploded, according to information provided to him by the Bank of Mexico. Read more here-http://bit.ly/1632baU

-Arizona lawmakers pass bill making silver, gold legal tender. Read more here-http://reut.rs/Yidlns

Back to Top

CHARTS OF THE WEEK-QUOTES-QUICK HITS

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Europe’s Scariest Chart Leaves 1 in 4 Young People Unemployed. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16vj65T

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Albert Edwards, The Party Is Over, The US Is Just One Recession Away From Japan-Style Doom. Over the last 15 years most investors have refused to contemplate that events in the West are playing out in a similar fashion to Japan in the 1990s. But the latest inflation data out of both the US and eurozone should ram home the fact that we are now only one short recession away from Japanese-style outright deflation. Similarly, investors refuse to believe that equities can fall in an environment of rampant QE. They are wrong. Basically, we’re so close to deflation, that all it will take is another downturn, and we’ll be toast. Read more here-http://read.bi/18uRISg

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Near-Record NYSE Margin Debt Leads to Caution. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/17Acnpi

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Here’s What A Beer Will Cost You At Every Major League Baseball Stadium. Read more here-http://read.bi/ZVTWt1

chartoftheday.com

-”Are you a depositor in your bank? Then know you are now lending your money to that bank with virtually no return. So the bank earns big money and you get none of it, but assume all of the risk. If the bank goes broke because of their criminal activities, you lose your money.” Jim Sinclair

-”I still like gold, and as far as I’m concerned, it’s the only real safe haven.” Richard Russell

-”It’s just pure insanity. When gold and silver got hit, gold traded about 120% of its annual production in one day (in the paper market). We had offerings of 25% of the world’s mine production at one time, and who in the hell would have 25% of the world’s mine production available for sale in a minute? And who would want to sell it in one minute? It’s just ridiculous.” Eric Sprott

-”The world economy is starting to disintegrate. What we are entering now is the culmination of a Ponzi scheme of printed money and credit that started with the creation of the Fed in 1913. So for 100 years the world has lived in a dream that printed money creates prosperity. What we are going to see in the next few years is a hyperinflationary depression of unimaginable proportions. All of us will of course be affected, and many very badly. Only a privileged few will be able to preserve their wealth.” Egon von Greyerz

-”It is frustrating to think that many investors are not taking action to protect themselves, but the truth is that most of them have delegated the decisions to others and are unaware of the issues and the perils to which their savings are exposed. Most account holders are oblivious and will remain so as long as the stock and bond markets are artificially elevated. They are also trapped in programs that do not allow for any allocations to gold and silver.” Robert Fitzwilson

-”Revenue to the government was $2.58 trillion in fiscal 2007. But despite all the government spending and money printing by the Fed, revenue for fiscal 2013 is projected to be just $2.7 trillion. The growth in Federal revenue has been just over $100 billion in 6 years! Nevertheless, our publicly traded debt has grown by $7 trillion during that same time frame. The fact is that the U.S. economy isn’t growing fast enough to significantly increase the revenue to the government, but our debt is still soaring. It all comes down to this, the U.S. government will not be able to service its debt once interest rates normalize, and that will be the sad truth regardless of what voodoo tricks Washington uses to report GDP. It’s a shame they won’t just implement real measures to grow the economy like reduced regulations, simplifying the tax code and balancing the budget. At least we can still purchase precious metals and mining shares to protect our portfolios when the curtain finally comes down on the government’s magic act.” Michael Pento

-’There will be more wealth confiscation, without a doubt.’ Savers and investors face further “wealth confiscation” in Europe as the continent struggles to resolve the single currency’s problems, a bank chief has said. European politicians will take the “easy option” of taking money from the rich rather than raising taxes and cutting spending to deal with the continent’s debt problem, Lars Christensen, the head of Saxo Bank, said. Asked if the raid on uninsured savings in Cyprus would be repeated, he told City AM: “There will be future bail-ins [loss of deposits] and other types of confiscation of wealth in the eurozone, without a doubt. “There’s no other realistic way forward if politicians continue to fail to deal with the basic indebtedness problem across Europe. They will either have to raise taxes and cut spending, or politicians will take the easier route and take money from the rich.” Read more here-http://bit.ly/10WMrFi

-Bill Gross: Here Are The 4 Big Ways That The Government Will Steal Money From Bondholders. (1) Negative Real Interest Rates “Trimming the Bangs,” (2) Inflation-Currency Devaluation “the “Don Draper,” (3) Capital Controls the “Uncle Sam Cut,” and (4) Outright Default the “Dobbins.” Read more here-http://read.bi/YfkPYq

-Draghi Leaves Door Open to Further Monetary Easing. European Central Bank President Mario Draghi opened a new front in the battle against the debt crisis after cutting the benchmark interest rate to a record low. Draghi signaled that officials may take the unprecedented step of charging banks to park excess cash with the ECB overnight and that another reduction in the main rate is possible. “We will look at all the incoming data and stand ready to act if needed,” Draghi said at a press conference after the ECB cut its key rate by a quarter point to 0.5 percent. Asked if further action could include taking the deposit rate negative from its current level of zero, he said: “We will look at this with an open mind.” Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZBRV5A and http://bloom.bg/1069PKk

-Neil Macdonald: The ‘monarchs of money’ and the war on savers. Power Shift: First in a series on the rise of the central bankers and the global imposition of cheap credit. Quietly, without much public fuss or discussion, a new ruling class has risen in the richer nations. These men and women are unelected and tend to shun the publicity hogged by the politicians with whom they co-exist. They are the world’s central bankers. Every six weeks or so, they gather in Basel, Switzerland, for secret discussions and, to an extent at least, they act in concert. The decisions that emerge from those meetings affect the entire world. And yet the broad public has a dim understanding, if any, of the job they do. In fact, these individuals now wield at least as much influence over the lives of ordinary citizens as prime ministers and presidents. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11YGUd4 and http://bit.ly/ZqTxvn

-Everything Is Rigged: The Biggest Price-Fixing Scandal Ever. The Illuminati were amateurs. The second huge financial scandal of the year reveals the real international conspiracy: There’s no price the big banks can’t fix. Conspiracy theorists of the world, believers in the hidden hands of the Rothschilds and the Masons and the Illuminati, we skeptics owe you an apology. You were right. The players may be a little different, but your basic premise is correct: The world is a rigged game. We found this out in recent months, when a series of related corruption stories spilled out of the financial sector, suggesting the world’s largest banks may be fixing the prices of, well, just about everything. Read more here-http://rol.st/10049Gi

-Regulators Blame Libor Fixing On The Sex, Drugs, And Lavish Perks Of London Banking. Read more here-http://read.bi/106k01w

-Roubini: Fed Risking Sequel to 2008 Financial Crisis. The Federal Reserve’s commitment to loose monetary policy is likely to lead to asset and equity bubbles in the next two years which could be worse than the previous crisis, renowned economist Nouriel Roubini said in an opinion piece for Project Syndicate. Read more here-http://bit.ly/105hyax

-Paul Craig Roberts: Recovery for the 7 Percent. Another source of the stock market’s rise is the Federal Reserve’s policy of quantitative easing, that is, the printing of $1,000 billion dollars annually with which to support the too-big-to-fail banks’ balance sheets and to finance the federal budget deficit. The cash that the Fed is pouring into the banks is not finding its way into business and consumer loans, but the money is available for the banks to speculate in derivatives and stock market futures.

Thus, the Fed’s policy, which is directed at keeping afloat a few oversized banks, also benefits the 7 percent by driving up the value of their stock portfolios. The reason bond prices are so high that real interest rates are negative is that the Fed is purchasing $1,000 billion of mortgage-backed “securities” and US Treasury debt annually. The lower the Fed forces interest rates, the higher go bond prices. If you are among the 7 percent, the Fed has produced capital gains for your bond portfolio.

But if you are a saver among the 93 percent, you are losing purchasing power because the interest you receive is less than the rate of inflation. The Pew report puts it this way: Since the “recovery” that began in June 2009, wealthy households experienced a 28 percent rise in their net worth, while everyone else lost 4 percent of their assets. Is this the profile of a democracy in which government serves the public interest, or is it the profile of a financial aristocracy that uses government to grind the population under foot? Read more here-http://bit.ly/18vwFPg

-’Real’ Jobless Rate Still Above 10% In Most States. Though employment has risen by 1.3 million over the past year, unemployment that counts the discouraged and underemployed, as well as the jobless (often called the “real” unemployment rate) has remained stubbornly high, at 13.8 percent of the workforce, according to the most recent count. In fact, a state-by-state look at the numbers, released a few days ago and current through the first quarter, shows that just six states have real rates below 10 percent. The best of the lot is North Dakota, at 6.2 percent, while the worst is in beaten-up Nevada, with a real rate of 19.6 percent. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZzUaXd

-China Cyberspies Outwit U.S. Stealing Military Secrets. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/132vdEG and http://bloom.bg/1069PKk

-China reports 25th death from new bird flu. The death toll from the H7N9 bird flu virus has risen to 25, state media says, after a man died in central China’s Hunan Province. Read more here-http://bit.ly/132zSGA

-Saudi Arabia says five dead from new SARS-like virus. Saudi Arabia said five more people have died of a deadly new virus from the same family as SARS, and two other people were in intensive care. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YheGL6

-This Powerful Spy Software Is Being Abused By Governments Around The World. Read more here-http://read.bi/Yi2MRl

-CEO Pay 1,795-to-1 Multiple of Wages Skirts U.S. Law. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/YnBxXA

-A nickel that’s worth $3.2 million. Read more here-http://nbcnews.to/11YCl2g and http://read.bi/105N5Jy

Back to Top

-Rarecoloreddiamonds.com Featured Diamond of the Week. This week’s Diamond is a 0.51 Carat Round Brilliant Cut Fancy Intense Pink Argyle. Harold Seigel-Watch video here-http://bit.ly/LIsp98

-BNN: Want a 20% return? Buy diamonds. Watch more here-http://bit.ly/11FjIQE

-Bloomberg: Bling Out Your Portfolio: How to Invest in Diamonds. Watch more here-http://bloom.bg/110qJQY

-China Affair With Diamonds Heats Mass Market. China’s burgeoning middle class is buying diamonds so quickly that the price of mass-market stones is rising faster around the world than for top-quality jewels affordable only to the super-rich. Prices for a 1-carat internally flawless “top white” diamond have gained about 7 percent in two years, while a stone of similar size and color with slight imperfections jumped 24 percent, according to consultant PolishedPrices.com data. “The Chinese consumer’s fascination with luxury goods has grown dramatically, along with their pockets,” said Angelito Tan, founding partner of Robert, Tan & Gao, a consulting firm on luxury market strategy with offices in Shanghai and Beijing.

Even as shoppers go down market in China, the world’s second-largest diamond buyer since 2011, the gap to top-flight stones is still large: A flawless 1 carat “top white” round diamond would cost about $28,800, according to online retailer Blue Nile, while a benchmark middle-market SI1-category diamond of the same size and color would cost about $7,200. China’s market was initially fueled by a rich elite pursuing the best diamonds available. As the economy grew, a new wave of buyers emerged, opening the market to lower-quality stones that form the bedrock of U.S. and European demand. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZWZinK

-Rio Tinto Opens Argyle Underground Mine. Rio Tinto officially opened its Argyle underground diamond mine after a major capital improvement project that the company expects will extend the life of mine beyond 2020. “‎The new Argyle underground mine has allowed us to extend the life of this iconic asset ‎for Rio Tinto and Western Australia,” said Alan Davies, the CEO of Rio Tinto’s ‎diamonds and minerals division.‎ Read more here-http://bit.ly/16uxZ8p

-Sotheby’s Geneva Sale Features Rare, Nobel Jewels. Sotheby’s Geneva will offer more than 650 lots of aristocratic jewels, diamonds and gemstones at its Magnificent Jewels and Noble Jewels auction on May 14, 2013. The centerpiece of this sale includes a group of 23 pieces from the collection of actress, photojournalist and sculptor Gina Lollobrigida. Much of this collection was designed by Bulgari in the 1950s and 1960s and the jewelry was worn by the actress at key events earlier in her career.

Highlights include a pair of natural pearl and diamond pendant earrings, circa 1964, which is estimated to fetch up to $1 million; a 19.03-carat diamond ring, circa 1962, with a presale estimate of up to $800,000 and a diamond necklace-bracelet combination from 1954 that is projected to sell for as much as $500,000.

Noble and historic jewels play a prominent role in this auction, such as a 74.53-carat fancy yellow cushion-shaped diamond that once belonged to the late Imperial Majesty Sultan Ahmed Shah Qajar, the seventh and last ruler of the Qajar dynasty of Persia. This piece has a high presale estimate of $1.8 million. An important light pink diamond and diamond necklace formerly belonging to a lady of title, is estimated to fetch up to $2.5 million. The necklace (pictured) features a detachable pendant set with two marquise diamonds, a 6.93-carat brilliant-cut light pink diamond and two circular-cut diamonds of 34.78 carats and a 11.38 carats.

Sotheby’s will auction a 27.90-carat, D, internally flawless cushion modified brilliant-cut diamond ring with a high presale estimate at $6 million. The diamond received the highest color and clarity grade from the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and is in the type IIa subgroup, which comprise of less than 2 percent of all gem diamonds and often have extraordinary optical transparency. Read more here-http://bit.ly/18wFlVQ

-Blue diamond’s £6million sparkle: Rare gem breaks world record as it is sold at auction. One of the rarest diamonds on the planet has been snapped up for a dazzling £6.2million – smashing the previous world record by half a million. The one-of-a-kind blue stone, weighing 5.30 carats, fetched £1.18million ($1.8million) per carat after going under the hammer at luxury London auction house Bonhams on Thursday. Excitement for the item spilled over as international traders battled to take home the gem set in a ‘Trombino’ ring, eventually selling for six times its original estimation of £1million. Read more here-http://bit.ly/161aDaJ

Back to Top

CYPRUS BAIL-IN

-Cyprus bailout scrapes through island’s parliament. Cyprus’s parliament approved an EU bailout on Tuesday which will force it to wind down its second-largest bank and impose heavy losses on uninsured depositors at another, conditions that have intensified calls from islanders to exit the euro. Read more here-http://reut.rs/15aykhe

-Bank of Cyprus executes depositor bail-in. Savers in the Bank of Cyprus took a hit on Sunday as 37.5pc of their uninsured deposits were converted to equity as part of the island’s €10bn (£8.4bn) rescue deal. The so-called ‘bail-in’ forces savers to foot the bill for the recapitalisation of Cyprus’ biggest bank, after it was hit by massive losses from its exposure to debt-crippled Greece. Bank of Cyprus said it had converted 37.5pc of deposits exceeding €100,000 into “class A” shares, with an additional 22.5pc held as a buffer for possible conversion in the future. Another 30pc would be temporarily frozen and held as deposits, the bank said. The bail-in is part of attempts by Cyprus to find €13bn a figure nearly double the island’s original bill – to shore up its economy. Other measures include a possible sell-off of the nation’s gold reserves. The European Union and the International Monetary Fund are providing a further €10bn to the island, one of the eurozone’s smallest economies. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZWQZbr and http://bit.ly/14XJZ2C

-Charities, Insurers to Be Included in Cyprus Bail-In. Cypriot insurance companies and charity organisations will be affected by a bail-in on deposits in an attempt to minimize the broader impact on savers, the island’s central bank has said. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Zo0QEj

-Cypriots Want To Know Why Their Money Was Spent Buying Greek Bonds. Read more here-http://read.bi/16qoCH3

-Cyprus experiment offers no guarantees. The conditions being imposed upon Cyprus by the Troika have not been faced yet by any of the EU’s struggling nations. It is a cruel experiment on the people of Cyprus, and it could all backfire. Read more here-http://bit.ly/18rOWgz

-Cyprus One Month Later: Uncertainty Has Broken The Morale Of The People. Read more here-http://read.bi/10WOZn2

Back to Top

QE-FED

-Fed Maintains QE Pace, Prepared to Alter as Economy Evolves. The Federal Reserve said it will keep buying bonds at a monthly pace of $85 billion while standing ready to raise or lower purchases as economic conditions evolve. “The committee is prepared to increase or reduce the pace of its purchases to maintain appropriate policy accommodation as the outlook for the labor market or inflation changes,” the Federal Open Market Committee said today at the conclusion of a two-day meeting in Washington.

Chairman Ben S. Bernanke is pressing on with his effort to boost employment as 11.7 million Americans remain jobless almost four years into the expansion. Wednesday statement highlights the option to boost purchases in response to data showing economic growth is slowing, in contrast with discussion of the timing of a reduction in the pace of buying at the Fed’s March meeting. “The statement gives them flexibility on the upside and the downside,” said John Silvia, chief economist at Wells Fargo Securities LLC in Charlotte, North Carolina.

“The whole debate had centered on when to taper off. Given some of the latest data, the Fed could be more aggressive in its policy.” The Fed repeated that bond buying will continue “until the outlook for the labor market has improved substantially.” It also left unchanged its statement that it plans to hold its target interest rate near zero as long as unemployment remains above 6.5 percent and the outlook for inflation doesn’t exceed 2.5 percent. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZXXSLk

-Fed Open to Expanding QE as It Counters Talk of Tapering. Facing the risk of a fourth straight summertime slowdown, Federal Reserve officials raised the prospect of increasing the monthly pace of bond buying above $85 billion to guard against any slump in growth or employment. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/151moxU

Back to Top

REAL ESTATE

-CHART OF THE WEEK: The Second US Housing Bubble Continues To Inflate. Read more here-http://read.bi/132ws5N

-CHART OF THE WEEK: House Prices Are Back To Late 2003 Levels. Today’s Case-Shiller housing report came in stronger than expected, with average home prices across 20 metropolitan areas rising 9.3% from last year. That’s better than the 9% gain that had been expected. But of course housing has a Long way to go before it really recovers. With the current reading, house prices are now just back to Autumn 2003 levels. Read more here-http://read.bi/13NwwpL

chartoftheday.com

-Home Prices in 20 U.S. Cities Climb by Most Since May 2006. Residential real-estate prices increased in February by the most since May 2006, showing the U.S. housing market is strengthening. The S&P/Case-Shiller index of property values in 20 cities rose 9.3 percent from February 2012, more than forecast, after advancing 8.1 percent in the year ended in January. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/18vhcia

-Robert Shiller: Enough With The Happy Housing Talk House Prices Will Be Flat For 10 Years. Robert Shiller, co-creator of the index, is cautious. “There’s a lot of excitement in the housing market now but it might be just short term,” he tells The Daily Ticker. Shiller says the housing market is operating in an “abnormal economy” where the Federal Reserve is buying $40 billion worth of mortgage securities and $45 billion worth of Treasury notes each month. This has driven mortgage rates to record lows.

The Fed will eventually stop buying these securities, says Shiller, and mortgage rates will rise. Shiller, also an economics professor at Yale University, says the biggest home price increases now are seen in multifamily rather than single family homes which reflects a shift from home ownership to renting. The buyers are investors who rent their properties. “Most of the increase in households in this country has been met by an increase in renting,” says Shiller. “My own survey data with Chip Case confirms that people feel more positive about renting.” He suggests that those investing in real estate buy homes that are most suitable to convert to rentals. Read more here-http://read.bi/162TQ6Y

-U.S. Homeownership Rate Falls to Lowest Since 1995. The U.S. homeownership rate fell to the lowest in almost 18 years, reflecting rising demand for rentals and investor purchases in the housing market. The share of Americans who own their homes was 65 percent in the first quarter, down from 65.4 percent a year earlier and the lowest level since the third quarter of 1995, the Census Bureau reported. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/11FkGwe

Back to Top

WORLD FINANCIAL REPORT ON RADIO APRIL 30 2013

WWPMC.COM  PRECIOUS METALS TELEPHONE # 1-866-623-2002

RARECOLOREDDIAMONDS.COM  DIAMONDS TELEPHONE # 1-800-432-1022

HSFINEAUCTIONS.COM NEXT AUCTION TBA

GOLD

-CHART OF THE WEEK: US Mint Gold Sales Surge To Highest Since 2009. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11G65lL

-Lawrence Williams: Shortages of physical gold now a global phenomenon. Momentum is continuing to build in gold bullion purchases as supply shortages and high premiums on physical metal are being reported all around the world. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12LBmoo

-U.S. Mint Runs Out of Smallest American Eagle Gold Coin. The U.S. Mint ran out of its smallest American Eagle gold coin after demand surged following the biggest drop in futures in three decades. Sales of the coins weighing a 10th of an ounce were suspended after demand more than doubled in 2013 from a year earlier, the Mint said in a statement. Total sales of American Eagles in April have almost tripled from a month earlier, according to its website. Shoppers from India to China and Japan joined consumers in the U.S. and Australia in the rush to buy jewelry and coins after futures slumped 13 percent in two days through April 15. Indian buyers flocked to stores and banks for ornaments, coins and bars as purchases from the Perth Mint in Australia doubled and retail sales across China tripled. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/12KGIAp and http://bit.ly/14TQHae

-U.S. Mint’s Sales of Gold Coins Soar After Futures Slump. The U.S. Mint in April has sold 153,000 ounces of American Eagle gold coins, the highest in almost three years, after futures prices started the week by plunging the most since 1980. Sales have more than doubled from March and surged sevenfold from a year earlier, data on the Mint’s website showed. The amount for all of May 2010 was 190,000 ounce. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/1034Sk6

-U.K. Royal Mint Gold Coin Sales More Than Tripled in April. Britain’s Royal Mint, established in the 13th century, sold more than three times more gold coins this month than a year earlier as prices declined. Sales are more than 150 percent higher than last month, according to Shane Bissett, director of bullion and commemorative coin at the Royal Mint. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10DydZO

-Gold Rout for Central Banks Buying Most Since 1964. Central banks bought the most gold since 1964 last year just before the collapse in prices into a bear market underscored investors’ weakening faith in the world’s traditional store of value. Nations from Colombia to Greece to South Africa bought gold as prices rose for an 11th year in 2011, highlighting the reversal of a three-decade-long bout of selling that diminished the world’s biggest bullion hoard by 19 percent. The World Gold Council says they added 534.6 metric tons to reserves in 2012, the most in almost a half century, and expects purchases of 450 to 550 tons this year, valued now at as much as $25.3 billion. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/12KKrxM

-There Was So Much Demand For Physical Gold In India This Past Week, Retailers Struggled To Keep Up. Read more here-http://read.bi/15R5EZE

-Gold sales rings across counters in China & India. Entering the market at an appropriate time is making jewellers in India jittery, but gold consumers across China and India, can’t get enough of the yellow metal. Read more here-http://bit.ly/14e1Th5

-Feverish buying demolishes gold inventories in Asia. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10fGH27 and http://read.bi/Y7eVKU

-Gold bars in Dubai disappear, some at 750% premiums. Indians living in Dubai and hailing from South India, appear to be clearing up most of the gold bars and coins in jewellery outlets across Dubai. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZPIvQh and http://bit.ly/YWS0NA

-Frank Giustra: Gold’s 12-year bull run is not over, according to Vancouver mining mogul and philanthropist Frank Giustra, despite the severe price correction the precious metal suffered this week. In spite of that selloff, Mr. Giustra is confident the yellow metal will rebound because central banks in North America, Europe and Japan are continuing to “print money” through asset purchase programs known as quantitative easing. Despite years of tepid increases in consumer prices, Mr. Giustra insists that inflation is poised to kick in as a result of global monetary policy decisions that have pushed interest rates to historic lows. “Nothing has changed on the fundamental side the behaviour that caused this gold market in the first place is just intensifying with all this money printing that’s going on around the world now,” Mr. Giustra said in a phone interview from the Vancouver airport. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZPz1EP

-Jim Sinclair: Swiss Bank Just Refused To Give My Friend His Gold. A person that I know with significant deposits in one of the primary Swiss banks, in allocated gold, wanted to take out his gold and was just refused on the basis of directives from the central bank. They told him the amount was in excess of 200,000 Swiss francs and the central bank had instructed them not to do it because it has to do with anti-terrorism and anti-money laundering precautions. I really wonder whether those are precautions or whether the gold simply isn’t there.

Now you tell me that a London delivery has basically failed. It has to raise our suspicions that the lack of physical gold behind the paper gold is literally so severe that we are coming to understand that it is in fact not there. The gold that people think is stored is not stored, and the inventory of the warehouses for exchanges may not be holding deliverable gold. There has always been speculation about whether or not the physical gold the US claims to store is in fact in those vaults.

The greatest train robbery in history might be all of the gold, and it would only be something like we have described above that would happen right before gold makes historic highs. There simply is no gold behind the paper. One example is AMRO, a second is your example with Maguire, and a third is my dear friend who was refused his gold on the basis that its value was too high. Remember this friend of mine had his gold in an allocated account in storage at a major Swiss bank. I repeat, there is no gold. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11lbFIv

-Jim Sinclair: The US Will Be Cyprused & We Will See $50,000 Gold. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11QFxvc

-Jim Sinclair: Physical Gold Buyers Will Now Crush Central Planners. Every time you buy one ounce of physical gold you cast your vote against the system and its masters, the banksters. These sociopaths rule by being bullies and committing fraud. Their days are numbered and gold is the ‘White Knight’ that is going to slay the evil dragon. Read more here-http://bit.ly/15HIXYi

-Jim Sinclair: Full-Blown Panic As People Ask “Where Is The Gold?” People have to understand what the motivation was for the recent takedown in the gold price. It was so well organized, strategized, and executed by the gold banks, in unison, even though it has had the unintended consequence of creating a massive and worldwide buying frenzy in the physical gold market. Read more here-http://bit.ly/17TWLLK

-Robert Fitzwilson: What You Must Know About Where Markets Are Headed & Why. Our world and the dynamics of the global economy are very different from the 1970s. A sea change cannot be far away. Manipulated markets and data can only work for so long. The important thing about last week’s unprecedented targeting of the oil, gold and silver markets is that those represent real assets that cannot be created in the virtual world of electrons. The truth can be hidden for only so long. Smart investors and those wanting to preserve the value of their money did the right thing last week in buying every ounce they could afford. The depletion of supplies in the silver market is a critical piece of information. Silver is affordable. If more people are entering the market for precious metals, a further smash will truly be counterproductive to the objectives of those perpetrating the declines. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11lnE8M

-Andrew Maguire: Elaborates On The LBMA Default & Ensuing Panic. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Y5tWNl and http://bit.ly/13vNXuQ

-Jim Rickards: One Of The World’s Biggest Gold Bulls Explains What It Would Take For Him To Turn Bearish. Read more here-http://read.bi/15KnRZd

-Jim Rickards: Here’s The Difference Between ‘Paper’ Gold And ‘Physical’ Gold. Read more here-http://read.bi/11HMKPU

-David Baker: Gold Bear Market or Physical Gold Discount Sale? Read more here-http://bit.ly/11HZO7Z

-Alasdair Macleod: Physical vs. paper gold waiting for the dam to break. Read more here-http://bit.ly/180hHU1

-Clive Maund: Gold Market Update. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11HN80A

-Art Cashin: Here’s An Alternative Theory For Last Week’s Gold Market Crash. Read more here-http://read.bi/Y5F50C

-Casey Research’s Bud Conrad: Gold crash likely deliberately engineered. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12JpVh9

-World Gold Council notices attack on gold, blames ’speculative traders.’ Read more here-http://bit.ly/14dKC7L

-Grant Williams says ‘Hmmm’ about gold crash. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Zw7fSj

-Lawrence Williams: How the bankers crashed the gold market again! Last week’s take-down of the gold price has huge parallels with December 2011 even down to the freezing of computer gold trading systems at a critical time in the process. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Y0db3Q

-Gold plunge was ’state-engineered,’ Hinde Capital’s Davies writes. Read more here-http://bit.ly/XZMAEc

-Economist Polleit acknowledges gold market rigging. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11WP5Vx

-When Roosevelt Ditched the Gold Standard. As the U.S. banking crisis ebbed in early 1933, central-bank gold reserves were rising, and gold-based currency notes were steadily flowing back into accounts. The country was experiencing a positive balance of trade. “Not one of the conditions usually attendant to a suspension of gold payments was present at the time,” the Economist magazine would write in May. Yet on April 20, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed an executive order banning the export of gold to settle international accounts. This followed an April 5 executive order that removed gold from commercial circulation and an April 17 decision to sever the dollar’s value from gold’s price, “letting it float.” Given that the U.S. possessed more than one-third of the world’s supply of the metal, what was going on? Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Y73V0e

-Video of CBC’s ‘The Secret World of Gold.’ See more here-http://bit.ly/Zw5l3W

Back to Top

SILVER

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $33.33

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $40.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $66.67

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $100.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $133.33

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $41.67

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $62.50

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $83.33

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $125.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $166.67

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Citi analyst Tom Fitzpatrick, Buyers Of Physical Silver Here Is A Key Chart For You. In 2008 the fall in silver (high to low) was 60%, and it traded about 29% below the 200-week moving average. A repeat move of that magnitude would suggest levels between $19 and $20 again. Strong interim support is met at $21.34 (March 2008 peak). If we were to see a move towards $19.50 on silver and $1,260 on gold, then the suggestion is that gold would outperform silver and send the present gold/silver ratio from 59 to about 65.

KWN note the key take away from this piece for people around the world that have been buying physical silver is that there is support on silver at the $21.34 area. For people buying physical silver in the $22 to $23 zone, there is a bit of a floor of support right beneath where you have been buying, so the low $20s may in fact prove to be a good area for accumulation. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10AEWns

-”At some point the actual inflation numbers will start to rise and you will really see gold’s 12-year bull market will really start to accelerate, and there will be nothing the Fed can do to stop it. For the silver bulls, silver will act like gold on steroids as the metals surge higher.” Stephen Leeb

-”There may be a paper market that trades virtually every second, but if you want real physical gold it is becoming harder and harder to come by. This will just translate into people paying higher premiums for the physical metal. I would also add that right now if you want brand new Silver American Eagles you are going to have to wait two months for them to be delivered. So the retail physical market for the metals is on fire right now, and the same thing is true for the big money buying the 400 ounce fine gold bars as well.” Keith Barron

-Obviously the U.S. Mint can’t keep up with demand for Silver Eagles placing it in violation of the law which mandates enough bullion Silver and Gold Eagles must be produced to satisfy demand. But man-made laws can’t trump the law of supply and demand indefinitely. Many are still quick to point out that any silver shortage is confined to a number of retail forms of silver and not in the wholesale industry standard form of 1,000 oz bars. That seems to be true, but the silver retail shortage is burning intensely and the winds are strong and the firebreak separating retail and wholesale are more likely than ever to be breached. The simple fact is that these retail silver shortages have been flaring up on a recurring basis over the past few years and the current one is the strongest one yet. From everything I’ve observed, the retail shortage is bound to intensify and I won’t keep it a secret as to what is the underlying cause the price of silver is too low. Silver analyst Ted Butler April 20 2013 via Ed Steer Casey Research-Read more here-http://bit.ly/13y4gr0

-10 Signs The Paper Gold and Silver Crash Unleashed An Unprecedented Demand For Physical Gold And Silver. Read more here-http://bit.ly/17YzyYG

-Gold And Silver Physical Market And Inventory Update From The Source: “In A Word, Ugly.” Read more here-http://bit.ly/YWfhPJ

-Jeff Nielson: Silver plunge was an operation, not a liquidation. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11Gwlwk

-Tekoa da Silva: Comex physical gold drain accelerates. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11orhLm

-Clive Maund: Silver Market Update. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11VHpTI

-Don’t expect gold-silver ratio to fall to 16, but silver could still be good investment. The out and out silver bulls almost unanimously talk of the gold-silver ratio falling to 16 but its monetary driving force has largely disappeared over the past century. Read more here-http://bit.ly/17YpHC6

-Silver American Eagle planchet suppliers elusive. The United States Mint has the production capacity to strike between 50 million and 60 million American Eagle silver bullion coins annually to meet demand, but ongoing inability to secure sufficient planchets stifles full use of that capacity. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10DAILI

-Dorothy Kosich: Silver price doldrums may be overcome in the short term Thomson Reuters GFMS. Averaging $31.15/oz, 2012’s silver price level was the second highest on record, despite an 11% drop in the silver price, says a survey sponsored by The Silver Institute. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Zoj8bY

-David Morgan: Forget Gold, Use Silver as Currency. Read more here-http://yhoo.it/ZPYoX2

-Continued Strong Silver Investment Demand Drove Annual Average Price to Second Highest on Record. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10DucVf

Back to Top

CHARTS OF THE WEEK-QUOTES-QUICK HITS

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Wall Street Jobs Plunge as Profits Soar. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10zztx2

-CHART OF THE WEEK: John Hussman, The Cover Of The Latest Barron’s Is A Screaming Sign Of A Stock Market Top. Read more here-http://read.bi/10DrG1f

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Chinese Politicians Are Ridiculously Wealthy. Read more here-http://read.bi/Y7BWxm

-”The bottom line here is the paper market for gold may have just lit itself on fire, and served to burn the manipulators’ houses to the ground. You’ve heard of the phrase, ‘The emperor has no clothes.’ Well, this is infinitely worse because it is finally being revealed that the paper market for gold, in fact, has no gold.” Jim Sinclair

-”It will release the tools of manipulation and allow the physical price of gold to find its own level. It will also lead to a tidal wave of demand for physical gold. The failure of the paper market will be as if you pulled back the curtain from the real condition of gold, which is currently in very short supply. The bottom line here is the failure of the paper market in gold is going to result in extraordinarily increased demand for the physical metal, and a new record high price as the physical market for gold begins to take its rightful place as the lead price setting mechanism. This will also be the beginning of the end for the gold shorts.” Jim Sinclair

-”At a certain point, when the Japanese, US and eurozone stimulus pumps have so debased their currencies that further pumping would prove futile, gold, silver, platinum and diamonds will again be regarded as safe haven assets. Attempts by central banks and high-stakes speculators to manipulate markets may produce temporary violent price fluctuations, but in the long term they will fail to drive down prices or tarnish their safe haven luster.” Dr. Paul Craig Roberts

-”When it becomes widely known that all of the people who think they own gold in fact don’t own gold, that it’s been hypothecated and re-hypothecated so many times that there are 100 claims for every single ounce of physical gold, that is when the prices of gold and silver will really go berserk to the upside, and at that point the shorts will have serious problems.” John Embry

-”The true gold market is only physical, and it’s been that way for 5,000 years. Paper gold will eventually reach its intrinsic value, which is zero, that is guaranteed. In the next few years the spread between physical gold will continue expanding until the market realizes that the issuers of paper gold cannot deliver. At that point paper gold will go to zero, and physical gold will go to unimaginable levels.” Egon von Greyerz

-”Lose control of their ability to engage in price suppression and therefore send false market signals that distort reality to their benefit. By that I mean they (Western central planners) want the financial community, and they want the public and the world to believe the global system of fiat currencies is sound, it’s stable. That there is no reason to worry about currency debasement. There is no need to worry about competitive currency devaluation. There is no need to worry about the prospects of future inflation. They need people to believe that because if people cease to believe that, then all hell breaks loose.” William Kaye

-”It is my opinion that within the next year or possibly two years, the dollar will lose its reserve currency status, and the US bond market will crash, taking the stock market with it.” Richard Russell

-Albert Edwards: Stocks Will Crash, Hyperinflation Will Come, And Gold Will Go Above $10,000. Read more here-http://read.bi/11oexnU

-Greg Hunter: Jim Rogers Interview, These are Perilous Times. Legendary investor Jim Rogers is worried about unprecedented money printing around the globe. Rogers says, “We have never had every government debasing their currency at the same time. This is the first time in recorded history where you have most of them doing it all together. These are perilous times one way or another, this is going to end badly.” Rogers owns gold and thinks last week’s gold sell-off was a good thing. Rogers says, “This is normal. This is not unusual. I welcome it. I expect gold to go much, much, much higher over the next decade, but it will not and cannot until it starts having normal corrections.” How high will gold go? Rogers says, “If the U.S dollar becomes confetti, any number you want to make up. They’re printing U.S. dollars fast enough to turn them into confetti. Who knows how high gold will go as long as we have a mad man running the central bank.” Watch more here-http://bit.ly/ZRWG6p

-Sobering Presentation Reveals The Two Economies In America. The U.S. economy and the stock market are not the same thing. The stock market is currently sitting near all-time highs. Meanwhile, the U.S. economy remains anemic with the unemployment rate painfully high. Generally speaking, the stock market represents large corporations who can borrow cheaply from the bond markets and take advantage of low overseas tax rates. Yet small business can do neither of those things. They are also America’s most important job creators. Read more here-http://read.bi/13xxENY

-Record Number of Households on Food Stamps 1 out of Every 5. The latest available data from the United States Department of Agriculture shows that a record number 23 million households in the United States are now on food stamps. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZRFeiH

-David Rosenberg: 12 Signs The Economy Is Weaker Than You Think. Read more here-http://read.bi/YWzULr

-Spain Jobless Rate Breaches 27% on Recession Woes. Spanish unemployment rose more than economists forecast in the first quarter to the highest in at least 37 years as efforts to tackle the European Union’s biggest budget deficit crimped economic growth. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Zn1vt9

-CITI: We Think Both Greece And Cyprus Will Exit The Euro. Major debt restructuring for both Cyprus and Greece will probably force the struggling euro zone countries to leave the single currency, according to Citigroup’s latest economic outlook, which warned markets could again be hit by escalating fears. Read more here-http://read.bi/Zvzm3T

-Fitch downgrades UK credit rating to AA+. The Fitch credit ratings agency has downgraded the UK to AA+ owing to a weakened economic outlook. The move, after Moody’s downgrade in February, came as Chancellor George Osborne defended the government’s austerity plan. Fitch said its downgrade primarily reflected a weaker economic and fiscal outlook. Read more here-http://bbc.in/14QXDom

-Dealers Say No End to QE in ’13; 2016 Rate Rise. Wall Street’s biggest bond dealers see little chance the Federal Reserve will slow the pace of debt purchases designed to boost economic growth before the fourth quarter, even as policy makers face calls to curb the buying. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZlXHYQ

-Apple’s Market Value Is Down By More Than The Entire Value Of Google. Apple is down a whopping 44% from its all-time closing high, which was $702.10 on September 19, 2012. That’s an enormous $291.42 billion worth of paper losses for Apple shareholders. Read more here-http://read.bi/14R1oKF

-Fake Post Erasing $136 Billion Shows Markets Need Humans. A false report of explosions at the White House that wiped out $136 billion from the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index in about two minutes highlighted the risks of the computerized trading that dominates the $18 trillion market. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Y5BPT5 and http://bloom.bg/14cEYmh

-Corzine Sued by Trustee Freeh Over MF Global Failure. Jon Corzine, the former head of MF Global Holdings Ltd., failed to oversee the futures broker, leading to the eighth-biggest bankruptcy in U.S. history, according to a lawsuit filed by Louis J. Freeh. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10B8D7N

-Waitresses Stuck at $2.13 Hourly Minimum for 22 Years. Gina Deluca says she was shocked when she moved to New Mexico from California and discovered that her hourly wage as a waitress fell to a federal minimum of $2.13. Her old state required at least $6.75 for all workers at the time. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/12nBQjn

-H7N9 Cases May Be Double Known Figure, Hong Kong Researchers Say. H7N9 bird flu may have infected twice as many people as the 103 cases reported, an analysis by researchers at the University of Hong Kong showed. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZtktPK and http://bloom.bg/12ka4Ep

-Mutant Bird Flu Virus Evolves to Show Pandemic Characteristics. A mutant version of a bird flu virus created by scientists last year to show its ability to spread between humans evolved to show characteristics of previous pandemic viruses, a study found. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/13vUwh2

-Canada Police Make Two Arrests in Train Terrorist Plot. Canadian police arrested two foreign nationals in connection with a plan to derail a passenger train in the nation’s first suspected terror plot involving al-Qaeda. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/11lSmi7

-Boston Bombers Said to Plan New York City Explosives Attack. The suspected bombers of the Boston Marathon considered traveling to New York City for a second attack, according to a federal law enforcement official. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/15Kpxlp

-U.K. Terrorist Lost Thousands on Currency Trades for Foiled Plot. From a suburban house in the central English city of Birmingham, Rahin Ahmed traded dollars and euros to raise money for what prosecutors said could have been the biggest terrorist attack on U.K. soil. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/12KB40Y

-Risk of Miscalculation Over North Korea Has Grown, Dempsey Says. The risk of a miscalculation in the dispute over North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs has increased, and China takes the tensions “very seriously,” the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff said. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/14QPb8z

-Former Israeli Intelligence Chief: Iran Has Already Crossed Israel’s Red Line. Read more here-http://read.bi/17Z1V9a

-Hagel Says Syria Chemical Use Found as Confidence Varies. The Obama administration has seen some evidence that Syrian government forces have used the deadly chemical sarin in the Syrian civil war, though that assessment is “not sufficient” to take action, the White House said in a letter to lawmakers. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Zw0UpQ

-Poll Finds More U.S. Support for Keystone Than Canadian. Americans are more supportive of the proposed Keystone XL pipeline than Canadians are, according to a poll by an analyst at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. Seventy-four percent of Americans surveyed said they support U.S. government approval of the TransCanada Corp. project that would carry oil from Canada through the U.S., compared with 68 percent of Canadians, according to polling by Nik Nanos, a scholar at the Washington-based institute. Americans also are more likely to say achieving North American energy independence is more important than reducing greenhouse-gas emissions, according to the poll. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/17Y6fsa

-A Historic London Mansion Just Hit The Market For An Insane $380 Million. A London home has gone on sale for £250 million, or $380 million, according to The Times. If it sells at the current price, it will earn the title of the most expensive home ever sold in the UK. The 19th century mansion is located on 18 Carlton House Terrace in the heart of London, close to Buckingham Palace, Piccadilly Circus, and Trafalgar Square. Read more here-http://read.bi/10ee8lH

Back to Top

-Rarecoloreddiamonds.com Featured Diamond of the Week. This week’s Diamond is a 0.57 Carat Heart Cut Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink Argyle. Harold Seigel-Watch video here-http://bit.ly/LIsp98

-Blue Diamond Fetches Almost $2M Per Carat at Bonhams. Bonhams London sold an extremely rare 5.30-carat, fancy deep-blue diamond for $9.5 million (GPB 6.2 million), or $1.8 million per carat, to Graff. The auction house stated that bidding on this gemstone came from around the world through 25 telephone lines as well as from those in the packed sales room. The cushion-shape blue diamond is set horizontally with a mount pave-set with brilliant-cut diamonds and course of baguette-cut diamonds in a Trombino ring made by Bulgari, circa 1965. The ring went to bid with a high presale estimate of $2.3 million. Jean Ghika, the director of Bonhams jewelry department for Europe, said, “We are delighted with the price it has made. It was a sensational stone which charmed everyone who viewed it prior to the sale. Blue diamonds, especially those over 5.00 carats, are extremely rare to see on the market and continue to be highly sought-after. We are honored to have handled the sale of such a unique gem.” Read more here-http://bit.ly/10ecKQ3 and http://yhoo.it/14TH4Z1

-100-Carat Flawless Diamond to Star at Christie’s Auction. A pear-shaped, D color, flawless diamond weighing 101.73 carats is likely to be the highlight of Christie’s Magnificent Jewels sale in Geneva on May 15. The sale will feature more than 300 lots which are estimated to sell for a total of around $65 million. Among the other exceptional diamonds on offer will be a cushion-shaped stone weighing 76.91 carats with a pre-sale estimate of $6.5 million-$8.5 million, and an extremely rare fancy red diamond ring estimated to sell for $2 million-$3 million. Read more here-http://bit.ly/17jhSZn

Back to Top

REAL ESTATE

-Five Jaw-Dropping Stats That Show How Wall Street Is Scooping Up Tons Of Single Family Homes In America. Read more here-http://read.bi/YV6KMI

• Institutional Investors account for as much as 70% of single-family home purchases in some Florida markets.
• A recent JP Morgan report says Wall Street has raised $10 billion for this trade. That’s enough to buy 15% of all bank owned homes in the U.S.
• Cash buyers (who are mostly investment firms) currently buy up 32% of home sales nationally according to the National Association of Realtors.
• Blackstone has put together a portfolio of 20,000 rental properties worth $3 billion in the last year alone. The firm has 150 homes in Palm Beach Florida and 500 in the Miami/Broward area reports the Palm Beach Post.
• As a result of all this, renters occupy 35% of single-family homes, up 30% since 2005, according to Bloomberg.

-Blacktone Buys Atlanta Homes in Largest Bulk Rental Trade. Blackstone Group LP bought 1,400 properties in Atlanta, some eligible for federal low-income housing subsidies, in the biggest bulk purchase for the fledgling homes-for-lease industry. The private-equity firm, which has spent more than $4 billion on 24,000 rental properties in the last year making it the largest buyer in the U.S., purchased the residences from Building and Land Technology, said Marcus Ridgway, chief operating officer of Invitation Homes, Blackstone’s single-family rental division. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10fqtWF

-Existing Home Sales Unexpectedly Fall 0.6% In March. March existing home sales data are out. Sales unexpectedly fell 0.6% last month to 4.92 million units at a seasonally adjusted annualized rate. February sales data were revised to 4.95 million units from 4.98 million units. Economists predicted sales would rise 0.4% to 5.00 million. Read more here-http://read.bi/14dx6Rx

-Sales of New Homes in U.S. Climb 1.5% to 417,000 Rate. Sales of new U.S. homes advanced in March as near record-low mortgage rates helped the industry complete the strongest quarter since 2008, putting the economy on firmer footing. Purchases of single-family properties climbed 1.5 percent last month to a 417,000 annual pace, Commerce Department figures showed in Washington. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/12nFKsN

-Home Prices Rose 7.1% in Year Through February, FHFA Says. U.S. house prices rose 7.1 percent in the year through February, the biggest gain since 2006, indicating a solidifying recovery as buyers compete for properties amid tight inventory. Prices climbed 0.7 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from January, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said in a report from Washington. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/17XCTY7

-Housing Rebound in U.S. Hampered by Success as Costs Soar. Even as U.S. housing rebounds from its worst downturn since the 1930s, production bottlenecks are pushing up building-materials costs, land prices are rising and skilled labor ready to begin work is hard to find. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/14SD7nx

-Australia Turns to Auctions as Housing Revives. Australians selling properties are increasingly turning to auctions as interest rates matching the lowest in 50 years fuel demand for homes in the country’s largest cities. In Sydney, the most-populous city, almost two-thirds of homes offered at a public sale found buyers in February and March, the highest level since April 2010, according to data from researcher Australian Property Monitors. In Melbourne, the second-biggest city and largest market for auctions, the proportion rose to 68 percent in February, the highest since May 2010, the figures show. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/17X66Cl

-Paris Hit by Property Freeze as Taxes Deter Buyers. At least one in four Paris apartments listed by realtor Agence Etoile can’t be sold, even with mortgage rates at record lows, as buyers and sellers fail to agree on price, the company’s director said. “I have some inventory that’s too expensive and sellers don’t want to lower prices,” Christine Perrissel said in an interview. “Buyers are just much more selective.” Read more here-http://bloom.bg/14SCJFm

Back to Top

WORLD FINANCIAL REPORT ON RADIO APRIL 23 2013

WWPMC.COM  PRECIOUS METALS TELEPHONE # 1-866-623-2002

RARECOLOREDDIAMONDS.COM  DIAMONDS TELEPHONE # 1-800-432-1022

HSFINEAUCTIONS.COM NEXT AUCTION TBA

GOLD

-”While the past week has been rough for gold and silver, smart investors will consider the pullback as a gift. Investors need to overcome fear and focus on value. We know that savvy countries such as China, Russia and India are “backing up the truck” so to speak. Individuals need to mirror their accumulation where appropriate.” Robert Fitzwilson

-”As far as the long-term outlook for gold and silver, as people around the world lose confidence in the currencies, the primary beneficiaries will be physical gold and silver. We saw a preview of this last year in Europe, and it will only worsen in the future. The bottom line is this is a monster that the Fed and other central planners have unleashed on us all.” Dan Norcini

-”Clearly the authorities do not want gold to be fashionable in any way at all. They loathe the fact that the price of gold has risen the way that it has (over 12 years) because it’s an indicator of how little trust we have in fiat currencies, quantitative easing, money printing and all the rest of it. So any opportunity to see the gold price lower is a good thing from their perspective. The (gold) market is going to find a base somewhere. I don’t know where it is. Once those moving averages break down, markets tend to have a bit of a life of their own. But I was saying to a friend of mine, if we do get forced liquidation (of physical gold) from European central banks (such as Cyprus and Italy), it will represent one of the greatest historic buying opportunities of anything you will ever see in your lifetime because the fundamentals have not changed.” Nigel Farage

-”The bottom line is the selloff in gold bullion is almost over and the vicious bear market in mining shares is soon coming to an end. Those countries that have adopted inflation targets will keep printing until they are achieved, and those that have yet to state they are officially pursuing inflation goals should soon (but foolishly) join in the fight. Once all major economies are again in sync with inflation as their goal, the investment climate will become much clearer. Investors need to buckle their seat belts because as I have warned many times in the past major global economies will be whipsawed between inflation and deflation until they finally crash due to currency and bond market meltdowns.” Michael Pento

-“I’ve been taking this opportunity to stock up on some yellow metal. Went to Hang Seng bullion counter yesterday. The line was out the door. It took an hour wait to see a teller. When I asked if people were buying in the dip or selling in panic, she told me that they haven’t had once ounce of gold sold back to them all day. She told me they have sold more gold in 24 hrs than they normally do in 3 months. Yes, there was a lot of extra security. The guy in front of me bought over $1 million in gold. He paid in cash and walked out of the door with the (gold) bullion in a nike bag. Amazing.” Rick Rule As told to him by a friend

-”My very humble take is Jim Sinclair is correct and insiders are engineering a normal 33-38% correction without realizing it. The Chinese and other wise buyers will add aggressively at 1350-1370, which would be approximately one third correction from 2002 bottom to 1900 top. Many central bankers in China etc will try to make insiders pay by getting rid of some dollars in exchange for gold. The Chinese bankers all went to top schools for PhDs then worked at JP Morgan or Goldman on the international trading desk before joining the People’s Bank. They know how rigging works and how to twist the rigging to their advantage. Speculators seeing other profit areas are temporarily distracted from gold. I look for them to return to long side about 1350.” Monty Guild

-Bill Gross: I Would Buy Gold Here. Read more here-http://read.bi/ZsDBvt

-GATA: Bloomberg News inadvertently explains the gold smash. Without trying to, the Bloomberg News story from Tuesday appended here explains exactly what has happened with gold this month: Western central banks needed to create the impression that there’s no inflation so they could continue monetizing debt and buying junk assets. Gold is an indicator of inflation and so had to be smashed to clear the way for more money creation. Read more here-http://bit.ly/17tjU7p

-6 reasons for gold’s massive selloff: HSBC. Read more here-http://on.mktw.net/YXuuEs

1. FOMC minutes the minutes from the Fed’s March meeting showed some members favored an early end to the central bank’s asset-purchase program, and the minutes were “ostensibly gold-bearish”. However, most data have recently missed expectations pointing to a slowdown in the economic recovery, which should have mitigated the damage to gold. “Even if the economy cannot be described as performing well, it appears to be past the crisis period of recent years. The reduction in the possibility of a ‘tail risk event’ may be undercutting safe haven demand for gold,” Steel said.

2. A shift out of commodities and into equities and bonds there has been overall weakness in commodities this year, and the reflationary policies from central banks, including record low interest rates and massive balance sheet expansion, appear to have boosted other financial assets such as bonds and equities. This could also explain the switch away from gold. Read: How long can gold and silver go?

3. Ongoing ETF liquidation a solid appetite for gold ETFs has been one of key drivers for gold’s rally since 2004, but now hedge fund liquidation has noticeably reduced ETF holdings.

4. The Cyprus impact and fears other countries may start selling gold Cyprus is looking to sell 10 tonnes of gold to find cash for its bailout, which raised the likelihood of wider central-bank selling. Cyprus may only have small gold reserves, but the combined gold reserves of the euro zone are substantial. “We do not believe that even if Cyprus acts other central banks will follow. In any case these countries are party to the Central Bank Gold Agreement which limits central bank gold sales,” Steel said.

5. Massive easing measures from the Bank of Japan the aggressive easing measures in Japan are not necessarily gold bearish, but “one possible explanation for gold’s decline is that these policies will export Japanese deflation. While this may not be a valid explanation it is entirely possible that the lack of global inflationary pressure is working against gold,” Steel explained.

6. Breaking key trading levels gold prices broke below $1,525 an ounce last week and quickly dropped to the $1,500 mark. These were important technical support and psychological levels respectively.

-Citi analyst Tom Fitzpatrick: Recent Stunning Gold Plunge vs. 1970s & What To Expect Next. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZAj2Jv

-Andrew Maguire: Over 500 Tons Of Paper Gold Sold In Takedown. Read more here-http://bit.ly/15g3se5

-Andrew Maguire: 155 Tons Of Paper Gold Sold In Just One Hour! Read more here-http://bit.ly/13jmvEf

-Andrew Maguire: There Is Absolutely No Physical Gold For Sale. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10hCdzh

-Andrew Maguire: LBMA Default Triggered Gold & Silver Takedown. Read more here-http://bit.ly/15mRu2G

-John Hathaway: Massive Paper Gold Selling Eclipses Annual Mine Production. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11wKLi6

-John Embry: Gold & Silver Takedown & The Impact On Investors. My greatest concern right now is that people who are positioned correctly for what is coming, this financial and economic tsunami, they are being driven from the market by fear. It’s going to be a tragic mistake. I wrote a note for our staff on Friday and said, “Do not sell your positions. This is an orchestrated takedown to encourage you to do just that (sell out).” I guess what we went through was just about as violent and unpleasant an experience as we’ve had in the whole bull market, which is now over 12 years in duration, but when we look back on this period two or three years from now, I think it will look like a small blip on the chart. However, I will say that I think it does absolutely nothing to the long-term outlook for gold, which is extraordinarily positive. More importantly, this will be the last opportunity to buy gold and silver at bargain basement prices. I also think the next move higher is going to take them in to new territory and we will never see these prices ever again in this current monetary system. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10i2n4R

-John Embry: Physical Buying Intensifying On Lower Gold Prices. The fact is the West has put itself in an untenable financial position, and the East doesn’t really like us because they have been the underdog for a long time. Basically the East is just biding their time and buying all of the gold they can very carefully off of the West. So gold is just constantly shifting from the West to the East. There is an old adage that gold goes where the wealth is being created. I think this is another example of that. Unfortunately this doesn’t portend well for the West’s future. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10io7xp

-Keith Barron: Massive Run On Physical Gold & Silver At UBS & Scotiabank. There is absolutely no question that this was an orchestrated takedown in gold and silver the last few days. We already know that ABN AMRO had gold missing, I believe it was out of allocated accounts, and they wanted to give people cash instead of returning gold bars to them. At the Bank of Nova Scotia in Toronto the gold window has been absolutely swamped. I have confirmed there were people lined up in droves recently for multiple-hours at a time to buy gold and silver bars and coins. I then confirmed with UBS today in Zurich, Switzerland, that they are experiencing exactly the same thing.

They told me people are waiting in long lines for bullion related bars and coins. The physical market is incredibly tight, and there is a huge buying opportunity right here. The damage in gold will not be long-term because physical supply is already drying up. Asian countries have been aggressively buying gold. This really is an unprecedented opportunity for investors. This takedown in the metals has created incredible demand for both gold and silver, and anyone who wants to unload dollars or euros and put them into gold because they don’t trust the currency, now is the time to do it. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13sjQIs and http://bit.ly/11ov2iG

-Dr. Paul Craig Roberts: Former US Treasury Official Fed Orchestrated Smash In Gold. This is an orchestration (the smash in gold). It’s been going on now from the beginning of April. Brokerage houses told their individual clients the word was out that hedge funds and institutional investors were going to be dumping gold and that they should get out in advance. Then, a couple of days ago, Goldman Sachs announced there would be further departures from gold. So what they are trying to do is scare the individual investor out of bullion.

Clearly there is something desperate going on. I have assumed from the beginning that it is the Fed’s concern with the dollar because the dollar is being printed in huge quantities at the same time that other countries are abandoning the use of the dollar as international payment. The exchange value of the dollar is (being) threatened, and if that collapses the Fed loses control over interest rates. Then the bond market blows up, the stock market blows up, and the banks that are too big to fail, fail.

So it’s an act of desperation because they’ve got to establish in people’s minds that the dollar is the only safe place, it is the only safe haven, not gold, not silver, and not other currencies. And to help protect this policy they have convinced or pressured the Japanese to inflate their own currency. The Japanese are now going to print money like the Fed. They are lobbying the ECB to print more. So I see this as a dollar protection policy. I know where the gold is coming from in the market, it’s just paper. It’s naked shorts, there is no gold there.

If somebody wanted to take delivery on those contracts nobody would be able to provide it. I don’t know what the source of the (physical) gold is. Some people are saying that the actual stocks available for possession are rapidly declining. They are trying to destroy gold as a (safe) haven from the dollar in order to carry on the Fed’s policy of negative real interest rates. That is what is driving the illegal policy of selling naked shorts in order to manipulate a market. If you and I were to do something like this without the government’s instruction or protection, we would be arrested. So the fact that it’s illegal, being done by the authorities, tells me that they are seriously worried about the dollar. Read more here-http://bit.ly/17HBYxt

-Paul Craig Roberts: Attack on gold is just part of pervasive corruption. Read more here-http://bit.ly/14AbcZb

-James Turk: Gold & Silver Smash, Monetary Train Wreck & Apple. My sense of it is that there is a financial and monetary train wreck coming, and it is not those who hold physical gold and silver who are going to be hurt. When asset price collapses like this occur you must eliminate your emotions. Just remember that this time will pass and the metals be trading significantly higher in the years to come. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YWnuI7

-Richard Russell: Gold Plunge, Billionaires & A Market Crash. As for gold, one thing bothers me. It looks as though gold, after 12 year-ends of closing at new highs, is not going to record a new high in the series as of the coming December 31 (a new high would entail closing above 1686). Does this mean that the great gold bull market is over? My intuition says no I believe we have not seen the end of the gold bull market. However, I do think that this is the “wipe-out, clear-out” correction that will leave gold free of late-comers and non-believers. As to what to do about it, I’m going to ride it out. Interestingly, I should add that I’ve been receiving calls and e-mails from all over from terrified gold owners asking what to do. I wish I had the perfect, ultimate answer. I don’t, so as for me, I’m going to do nothing and just sit it out. Read more here-http://bit.ly/113qtvg

-Egon von Greyerz: Tragedy, Panic & The Greatest Short Squeeze In History. The paper market in gold is not a real market, and at some point in the near future paper gold holders will wake up and realize they are holding are worthless pieces of paper. This is when the world will witness one of the greatest short squeezes in history as investors panic in to physical and the price of gold explodes to the upside. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZAbB5l

-Pierre Lassonde: Weighs In On Gold Takedown. I ask you has anything changed today from a month ago? Has the Fed stopped printing $85 billion a month? Have the Japanese not started printing $120 billion each month? Hasn’t the Bank of England hired a new central banker that’s as keen to print money as Bernanke? Isn’t Europe still in trouble? So at the end of the day what’s happening is the Japanese are trying to devalue their currency. The Europeans are also trying desperately to devalue their currency.

Do you think the US will stand by and let the dollar keep going up? No. The US will keep depreciating its own currency. What is the US depreciating against at the end of the day? There is only one currency you can’t depreciate, it’s gold. We have seen this type of market volatility in the past. Yes there are very scary moments, and yes for the average investor they can be gut-wrenching, but as I said earlier, for people who have put some cash aside you are looking at opportunities being served to you on a golden platter. Read more here-http://bit.ly/113uQ9B

-Gerald Celente: Speaks Out About Largest Gold Smash In 30 Years. I’m buying gold because of fears of devaluation of the paper currencies, and that has not stopped. I’m holding on to gold because of what’s going on around the world. The Americans, Europeans, Japanese, and even the Chinese, are all debasing their currencies by printing more of them to keep their economies going. I believe the market is being manipulated because high gold prices are not in the interest of the central banksters. High gold prices show people, even the average person, that the money they have isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on. So it’s only in the interest of the central banks to keep driving down the price of gold as they keep printing more digital money. Read more here-http://bit.ly/XRSLMJ

-Clive Maund: Gold smash aims to rebuild JPM’s Comex inventory. Read more here-http://bit.ly/14xq8Hz

-Did single entity trigger gold plunge? Read more here-http://bit.ly/XScawO

-Marc Faber: Sure Gold Is Down, But Apple Is Down By Twice As Much. Read more here-http://read.bi/101633x

-Investor Jim Rogers Says Gold Needs Correction. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/12oprwB and http://read.bi/ZAXU64

-Gold Drop Spurs Demand From Indian Bazaar to Chinese Mall. Shoppers in China lined up for gold this week, while in Hong Kong they rushed to buy bracelets and in India sought jewelry for weddings not set until December. The metal’s biggest price drop in three decades provoked the clamor. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/176gskO

-Japan Gold Retailer Sees Purchases Double Today as Price Tumbles. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZyVfuv

-U.S. Mint’s Sales of Gold Coins Soar After Futures Slump. The U.S. Mint in April has sold 153,000 ounces of American Eagle gold coins, the highest in almost three years, after futures prices started the week by plunging the most since 1980. Sales have more than doubled from March and surged sevenfold from a year earlier, data on the Mint’s website showed. The amount for all of May 2010 was 190,000 ounce. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/1034Sk6

-Louis James Senior Metals Investment Strategist Casey Research: Gold: Fear vs. Greed. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13jQ0Cb

-Grim realism, little panic at European Gold Forum. Under the pall of gold’s drop on Monday, the view at this year’s European Gold Forum, seems to be of determined resignation. The forum began on Tuesday, and if the first few presentations are to be believed, more pain in the gold market is likely in the short term but, there is no reason to panic. If anything, Monday’s performance by gold, its worst since 1983, is being seen as an overdue correction, albeit a rather sharp, painful one, in a similar vein to that seen in the mid-1970s where gold fell by 47%.

In his keynote address, DundeeWealth’s chief economist Martin Murenbeeld, was at pains as he has been since the beginning of the year to point out that this poor performance should be viewed as a “mid-cycle correction.” As Murenbeeld explained, the gold market saw a 30% correction in 2008/2009, and, while he does not suggest that at a global level, the current situation is as severe as 2008/2009, for Europe it is very severe. But if one extrapolates a 30% correction from the last peak, you get a price of around $1,395. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13ldV7U

-David Franklin: Gold Panic? For all the short term pain it has caused, we view this selloff as an opportunity. All the pre-conditions that brought gold to this point are still intact. The bond market is still showing negative interest rates, Japan and the United States plan to flood the world with a liquidity injection of almost $2 trillion dollars over the next 12 months, and not one G20 country has a balanced budget. While market commentators are predicting gold’s demise as an asset class, astute investors will recognize that we have seen these conditions before over the last 12 years.

Each time the ‘paper market’ for gold has capitulated it has represented a buying opportunity for gold rarely seen again. Despite this panic selling on Comex and other ‘paper’ markets, investors in the physical market for gold, have been taking advantage of this price action. Anecdotal data from precious metals dealers suggests that buying interest has been strong, with delays being reported for delivery of coins and bars. The macroeconomic case for gold is as strong as it has ever been and now investor sentiment has reached a negative extreme. Patience will be rewarded; we’ve seen this all before. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12omOuS

-Gold Miners Approaching $1,300 Pain Threshold. Gold miners led by Barrick Gold Corp. the world’s largest, will likely accelerate spending cuts and trim high-cost output as the metal’s biggest plunge since 1980 threatens to make about 30 percent of production unprofitable. “Below $1,300 gold, about 30 to 40 percent of mine production is probably not cash-flow positive,” Joseph Wickwire, the Boston-based manager of Fidelity Investments’ Select Gold Portfolio fund which has about $2.14 billion under management, said. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/114mLS7

-Jeff Nielson: Paper gold holders flee to real metal. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13ljRdk

-Glenn Beck: Something Does Not Smell Right About The Gold Crash. Read more here-http://read.bi/YXJuCm

-Chris Martenson: The unintended consequences of the gold and silver smash. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11FVZ3R

-Lawrence Williams: Counter-intuitive gold price moves winning the argument for GATA. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Z4Mjk4

-Telegraph’s Thomas Pascoe: Gold crash is more evidence of market rigging. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YwtUZI

-Gold plunge was ‘orchestrated,’ likely by Fed, Brimelow says. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12qSnE8

-Yahoo’s ‘Daily Ticker’ interviews GATA secretary on gold crash. Watch more here-http://bit.ly/13lkDqF

-German Man Got Caught Allegedly Trying To Sneak A Half-Ton Of Gold And Silver Out Of Greece. Read more here-http://read.bi/13l9JVQ

-’Secret World of Gold‘ celebrates metals market rig whistleblower Maguire. Read more here-http://bit.ly/14A9xmr and http://bit.ly/XU8DhI

-Arizona Becomes Second State to Approve Gold and Silver as Legal Tender. Read more here-http://yhoo.it/ZsD78F

Back to Top

SILVER

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $33.33

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $40.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $66.67

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $100.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $133.33

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $41.67

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $62.50

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $83.33

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $125.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $166.67

-So, if it wasn’t [an] abrupt change in the fundamental story in the various separate markets that were hit to the downside on Friday, then what the heck accounted for the steep declines in price? Stated differently, what was the common denominator present in the markets that plunged? The most visible common denominator was that the various big price declines occurred on the NYMEX/COMEX markets owned and run by the CME Group. But the most important common denominator was the nature of the buyers and sellers across all the markets that got smashed. Without exception, in any market that declined significantly on Friday, the big net buyers were the traders classified as commercials and the big net sellers were those traders classified as non-commercials, largely technical trading funds. Not only was this true on Friday, it has been true on every single big price decline throughout history, according to US Government data (COT reports). Silver analyst Ted Butler April 13 2013 via Ed Steer Casey Research-Read more here-http://bit.ly/13pOjH9

-I have read reports suggesting big volume in London, although as is usually the case, no verification is offered or even possible. The same goes for Asian buying in that it sounds reasonable but can’t be verified. That’s the beauty of COMEX data; it may be a crooked exchange, but at least you can verify the data. I don’t doubt that the crooked commercials which operate in London are one and the same commercials as on the COMEX and in the ETFs. What I object to is the use of unverified data to make a case in any market. Besides, there’s no need to resorting to story-telling. Friday’s COMEX net volume (subtracting spreads) in gold came to more than 30 million troy ounces (1,000 tonnes) and more than 400 million troy ounce in silver, or more than six months of world mine production, dwarfing the amounts in the stories based upon unverifiable data. Why make stuff up when the facts are available and are even better than the stories? Silver analyst Ted Butler April 13 2013 via Ed Steer Casey Research-Read more here-http://bit.ly/12q5MMJ

-With the record-setting trading volume on Monday and [also] on Friday, I would not be surprised if JPMorgan had eliminated its concentrated silver short position. I think it obscene that the CFTC and the CME have stood by and allowed JPMorgan and the other crooked commercials to disrupt the orderly functioning of the markets, but this is nothing new. The reality is that JPMorgan and their collusive partners are better positioned for a price rally in silver and other markets like never before. Silver analyst Ted Butler April 15 2013 via Ed Steer Casey Research-Read more here-http://bit.ly/12q5MMJ

-Ted Butler: The Price Smash Who, What, How and Why? As painful as the severe price declines have been, at least holders of fully-paid for silver retain the option of holding without having to deposit large sums of capital or lose their position. I know that I’m holding, in addition to holding call options. This is, unfortunately, not an option for holders of leveraged metal in the form of futures contracts. While it is true that a good number of leveraged longs have been forced from the market and are unlikely to buy anytime soon, that is not a factor necessary for silver prices to climb in the future.

The ultimate resolution for silver prices has always depended upon the physical market. In terms of the physical market, the severe price declines would suggest the physical resolution should be accelerated. Every free market economic principle holds that lower commodity prices increase demand and curtail supply. Clearly, the sudden price decline in silver is not causing miners to rush into increasing production. And as soon as prices stabilize (which I think is very soon), buying pressure will increase to take advantage of the sudden bargain prices. Read more here-http://bit.ly/15p7NMk

-10 Signs The Takedown Of Paper Gold Has Unleashed An Unprecedented Global Run On Physical Gold And Silver. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12r2QiZ

-Bill Haynes: Bullion Shortages Develop As Retail Demand Skyrockets. We are already seeing shortages in junk silver coins, silver rounds, silver maple leafs, and American Silver Eagles. But when it comes to junk silver coins, there simply isn’t any available. The bottom line here is that gold and silver are better buys today than they were in 2000 because the magnitude of the problems are much greater today than they were back in 2000. The big money knows this and that is why we are seeing buyers outpacing sellers 50 to 1. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12nz3HY

-Silver Slump Splits Hedge Funds From Ingot Hoarders. Hedge funds are betting on cheaper silver for the first time since at least 2006, splitting from investors accumulating close to the biggest hoard ever and the analyst consensus for prices to rebound from a bear market. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/11lM00Z

-Retail Investors Continue To Want Silver Even As Prices Drop. Read more here-http://bit.ly/17rIUvR

Back to Top

CHARTS OF THE WEEK-QUOTES-QUICK HITS

-CHART OF THE WEEK: A Quarter Of America Is Convinced Gold Is The Best Investment. Americans’ sentiment toward gold as an investment has been on the decline. But according to a new Gallup poll, gold was nevertheless perceived as the best investment by 24% of Americans. That’s more than those who prefer stocks or bonds. Read more here-http://read.bi/11mghyt

-”I expect inflation to accelerate from here on. High inflation will get the consumer’s dander up. Eventually, I believe political objections will put pressure on the Fed, causing it to pull back on its production of dollars. When that happens, we’ll have the makings of a stock market crash.” Richard Russell

-Greg Hunter: Rick Rule Interview, Extreme Nervousness in Regards to Collapse, Gold Silver a Must. Precious metal expert Rick Rule is not worried about the recent smack down in gold and silver prices. Rule is motivated by wealth protection. So, the price decline is a “non-event.” Rule asks, “What are the alternatives? Perhaps you’d like to buy a 30-year U.S. Treasury, something Jim Grant famously described as a return-free risk.” Rule thinks the financial world is far from healthy and says, “I have extreme nervousness in regards to a collapse.

The only way we could avoid collapse is if we inflate away the net present value of our obligations. In both sets of circumstances, I am personally more comfortable owning precious metals than not.” Cyprus is a stunning example of why people should store some wealth in precious metals. Rule contends, “If you were a Cypriot citizen and you had stored your wealth in gold and silver as opposed to having your money on deposit in a Cypriot bank, the Cypriot banking crisis, for you, would be interesting but not relevant.” If there is war in Korea, Rule predicts, “If a nuke goes off on the Korean Peninsula, the first move in precious metals would be down. The second move would be higher. I also believe precious metals would hold their value over time unlike most other asset classes.” Watch more here-http://bit.ly/17tB4ll

-Greg Hunter: William Black Interview, Felons in Charge of Our Largest Financial Institutions. Former bank regulator and Professor William Black says, “Apparently, regulators are much more sophisticated than we were because we had never thought of leaving felons in charge of our largest financial institutions.” Dr. Black contends, “This started with the first lie of the virgin crisis that the banks are pure and had stopped violating the law. The second lie is that we can’t prosecute because if we did, we would cause the financial system to collapse. This is ludicrous.” Dr. Black predicts, “The U.S. banking system is absolutely primed for the next meltdown. Dr. Black and others think, “There is pervasive fraud at the most reputable banks. The U.S. financial system is sick, and we still have the fundamental dynamic of a regulatory race to the bottom.” Watch more here-http://bit.ly/XUeIuw

-Boston Bombings Bring Americans Closer to Living on Edge. Paranoia and fear can ride hard on the ill winds of evil. And yet, with the passing of each tragic event, Americans say they are more angry than afraid, vowing to defy the randomness of violence. Just as the country was beginning to process the bombings at the Boston Marathon came reports from the Federal Bureau of Investigation that letters laced with the poison ricin had been sent to President Barack Obama and a senator, as congressional offices were temporarily evacuated because of suspicious packages.

Beyond Washington, police were searching an abandoned U-Haul van near city hall in Oklahoma City, the federal courthouse was emptied because of a bomb threat in Boston and officials in Atlanta were investigating a report of a suspicious package north of downtown. Those incidents yesterday were the latest illustration of life in a post-Sept. 11, 2001 age, when facts compete with rumors, fanned by cable news and social media, peeling away another layer of a sense of personal security.

Everybody is very edgy hyper-vigilant,” said Stacey Hader Epstein, 52, a freelance public relations consultant in Atlanta. “It reminds me of what happened after 9/11. It’s good and bad good in that it brings everybody’s focus back to looking after one another. The negative is it makes everybody paranoid and suspicious.” Read more here-http://bloom.bg/11hXJjV

-Large depositors who kept their money in the two biggest Cypriot banks stand to lose up to 8.3 billion Euros through the restructuring of the two institutions, a European Commission document showed. Read more here-http://reut.rs/YXxK2y

-IMF Cuts Global Growth Outlook as Europe Demand Urged. The International Monetary Fund trimmed its global growth forecast and urged European policy makers to use “aggressive” monetary policy as a second year of contraction leaves the euro area’s recovery lagging behind the rest of the world. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10172kf

-Jim Rickards: Here’s How To Trade In A World Of Currency Wars And Potential Collapse. Read more here-http://read.bi/1161ZBs

-Kim Won’t Talk on N Korea’s Nuclear Arms, DIA Chief Says. Dictator Kim Jong Un, “firmly in control” of the North Korean regime, isn’t prepared to negotiate about ending his nuclear and missile programs, according to the Pentagon’s top intelligence official. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/12pGeiS

-Symptom-Free Bird Flu Case Suggests Wider H7N9 Spread. Bird flu was found in a 4-year-old Beijing boy who has no symptoms of the infection, health authorities said, suggesting more people may be catching the H7N9 influenza virus than reported. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/13jVb58

-Bird Flu Fears Mount in China as Herbal Remedies Run Out. A popular herb called ban lan gen, or blue root, has been flying off pharmacy shelves across China as local governments encourage people to consider traditional remedies to ward off the latest bird flu virus. With scientists so far unable to pinpoint the H7N9 influenza virus’ animal host, locals are preparing for a possible pandemic by stocking up on popular plant remedies as well as face masks and hand sanitizers and other over-the- counter medicines. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/XSePXs

Back to Top

-Rarecoloreddiamonds.com Featured Diamond of the Week. This week’s Diamond is a 0.60 Round Brilliant Cut Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink Argyle. Harold Seigel-Watch video of the Featured Diamond here-http://bit.ly/LIsp98

-Princie Diamond: Rare Indian gem sells for $39m. One of the largest pink diamonds in the world has been sold at auction for more than $39.3m. The Princie Diamond was purchased by an anonymous collector bidding by phone, Christie’s in New York said. The 34.65 carat diamond’s origin can be traced back to the ancient diamond mines of Golconda in southern India. It once belonged to the royal family of Hyderabad, rulers of one of the wealthiest provinces of Mughal India.

“The Princie Diamond carries a fabulous provenance, which brings together the legendary names of Golconda, [the] Nizam of Hyderabad, and the Maharani Sita Devi of Baroda,” said Christie’s jewellery department head Rahul Kadakia before the sale. “The most beautiful stones discovered in Golconda were always reserved for kings and rulers as they represented the highest power, which was then magically transferred to the owner. “It was a widely regarded belief that God’s gift to India became India’s gift to mankind and the Princie is undoubtedly one of the greatest gifts of Golconda.”

The diamond was once owned by the Nizam of Hyderabad, who was proclaimed the richest man in the world by Time magazine in 1937. It had not seen in public since 1960 when Sotheby’s sold it as the “property of a gentleman”. All four of the world’s top pink diamonds have been found at Golconda, Christie’s says. The area has the earliest known diamond mines in the world, producing the stones as early as 800BC. In 2010 a diamond known as the Graff pink was sold in Geneva by Sotheby’s for $44m.

At the time it was believed to be the most expensive gemstone bought at auction in history. The two largest pink diamonds the Darya-I Nur, weighing 175 to 195 carats, and the Nur ul-Ain, weighing about 60 carats originally formed part of the Iranian Crown Jewels. Experts say it has since been determined that they were cut from a single pink diamond weighing 242 carats. Christie’s say that the Princie Diamond is believed to be the third largest pink diamond in the world and was found 300 years ago in the Golconda mines. Read more here-http://bbc.in/ZqZ3B1

-Pink 34-Carat Diamond Sells for $39 Million at Christie’s. A 34.65-carat pink diamond, known as “Princie,” sold for $39.3 million at Christie’s in New York Tuesday. Estimated at $30 million, the stone failed to break the record for any jewel at auction of $46.2 million, paid in 2010 at Sotheby’s in Geneva for a pink diamond of 24.8 carats. “Princie” drew just two bidders, with action starting at $20 million and continuing for only two minutes.

The winning offer came from Francois Curiel, international head of jewelry at Christies and president of Christies Asia, bidding in the room on behalf of an anonymous client. The gem is considered one of the four most celebrated pink diamonds in the world. It was first recorded in the holdings of the Nizam, or monarch, of Hyderabad, India, according to Christie’s. In 1960, “Princie” sold for 46,000 pounds ($70,725) at Sotheby’s in London. The buyer was Van Cleef & Arpels, which threw a party attended by Maharani Sita Devi of Boroda and her 14-year-old son, Sayajirao Gaekwad, who was nicknamed “Princie,” according to Christie’s catalog. The diamond was named after the youth. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/13j1K7X

-Auction Results: New York Magnificent Jewels and The Princie Diamond Sale, April 16 2013, New York, Rockefeller Plaza. Full results here-http://bit.ly/13hrG7B

-Lot 295: THE PRINCIE DIAMOND. An historic cushion-cut fancy intense pink diamond, weighing approximately 34.65 carats. With report 5111433470 dated 25 November 2009 from the Gemological Institute of America stating that the diamond is fancy intense pink, natural color, VS2 clarity. Accompanied by a supplemental letter from the GIA stating that the diamond has been determined to be a Type IIa diamond. Estimate on request. Price Realized $39,323,750. See more here-http://bit.ly/ZzLH1s

-Lot 283: A DIAMOND RING. Set with a rectangular-cut diamond, weighing approximately 30.32 carats, flanked on either side by a tapered baguette-cut diamond, mounted in platinum. With report 15208267 dated 21 March 2012 from the Gemological Institute of America stating that the diamond is D color, VVS1 clarity. Accompanied by a supplemental letter stating that the diamond has been determined to be a Type IIa diamond. Estimate $3,000,000-$4,000,000. Price Realized $4,435,750. See more here-http://bit.ly/XRhcK0

-Lot 294: A DIAMOND RING, BY HARRY WINSTON. Set with a marquise-cut diamond, weighing approximately 23.30 carats, flanked on either side by a tapered baguette-cut diamond, mounted in platinum. Signed Winston for Harry Winston. With report 5151226194 dated 24 January 2013 from the Gemological Institute of America stating that the diamond is D color, VVS2 clarity; accompanied by a working diagram indicating that the clarity may be potentially internally flawless. Accompanied by a supplemental letter stating that the diamond has been determined to be a Type IIa diamond. Estimate $2,500,000-$3,500,000. Price Realized $3,259,750. See more here-http://bit.ly/13hvDcu

-Lot 131: A COLORED DIAMOND RING. Set with a cut-cornered modified rectangular-cut fancy pink-brown diamond, weighing approximately 35.60 carats, flanked on either side by a tapered baguette-cut diamond, mounted in platinum and 18k pink gold. With report 2145604230 dated 8 May 2012 from the Gemological Institute of America stating that the diamond is fancy pink-brown, natural color, VS1 clarity. Estimate $1,400,000-$1,800,000. Price Realized $1,683,750. See more here-http://bit.ly/Z39Qlw

-Lot 139: A DIAMOND RING, BY HARRY WINSTON. Set with a rectangular-cut diamond, weighing approximately 19.31 carats, flanked on either side by a tapered baguette-cut diamond, mounted in platinum, in a Harry Winston navy leather box. Signed Winston for Harry Winston. With report 10625687 dated 8 March 2013 from the Gemological Institute of America stating that the diamond is E color, SI1 clarity. Accompanied by a supplemental letter stating that the diamond has been determined to be a Type IIa diamond. Estimate $500,000-$700,000. Price Realized $987,750. See more here-http://bit.ly/15fsyd3

-Lot 151: A COLORED DIAMOND, EMERALD AND DIAMOND RING. Set with a cushion-cut fancy intense yellow diamond, weighing approximately 9.72 carats, within a pear-shaped emerald and diamond surround, mounted in gold and platinum. With report 10155580 dated 1 March 2013 from the Gemological Institute of America stating that the diamond is fancy intense yellow, natural color, VS1 clarity; accompanied by a working diagram indicating that the clarity may be improvable. Estimate $180,000-$220,000. Price Realized $699,750. See more here-http://bit.ly/173gji5

-Lot 36: AN UNMOUNTED RECTANGULAR-CUT COLORED DIAMOND. The fancy yellow diamond weighing approximately 21.28 carats. With report 2151160252 dated 17 December 2012 from the Gemological Institute of America stating that the diamond is fancy yellow, natural color, VS2 clarity. Estimate $450,000-$650,000. Price Realized $663,750. See more here-http://bit.ly/112TFCB

-Lot 89: A COLORED DIAMOND RING. Set with a modified pear-shaped fancy intense yellow diamond, weighing approximately 10.19 carats, mounted in gold. With report 2155251194 dated 6 February 2013 from the Gemological Institute of America stating that the diamond is fancy intense yellow, natural color, VVS2 clarity; accompanied by a working diagram indicating that the clarity may be potentially internally flawless. Estimate $275,000-$375,000. Price Realized $447,750. See more here-http://bit.ly/YvaqEI

-Lot 269: A COLORED DIAMOND RING. Set with an oval-cut fancy vivid yellow diamond, weighing approximately 5.69 carats, to the old European-cut diamond surround and shoulders, mounted in gold and platinum. With report 5131019409 dated 29 January 2011 from the Gemological Institute of America stating that the diamond is fancy vivid yellow, natural color, VS2 clarity. Estimate $200,000-$300,000. Price Realized $243,750. See more here-http://bit.ly/Z3bK5I

-Lot 248: A COLORED DIAMOND RING. Set with a cut-cornered modified square-cut fancy intense yellow diamond, weighing approximately 7.52 carats, flanked on either side by a trapeze-cut diamond, mounted in gold and platinum. With report 11174875 dated 30 May 2000 from the Gemological Institute of America stating that the diamond is fancy intense yellow, natural color, SI1 clarity. Estimate $80,000-$120,000. Price Realized $111,750. See more here-http://bit.ly/13j5GFN

-Lot 40: A COLORED DIAMOND RING. Set with a heart-shaped light yellow diamond, weighing approximately 8.86 carats, within a circular-cut diamond surround, to the circular-cut diamond half hoop, mounted in 18k yellow and white gold. Estimate $60,000-$80,000. Price Realized $105,750. See more here-http://bit.ly/12mCuPb

-74-Carat Diamond Sells For A Record $14.1 Million. A 74.79-carat, pear-shaped diamond fetched more than $14.1 million at Sotheby’s New York Magnificent Jewels sale Wednesday, setting an auction record for any white diamond sold in the Americas. The unnamed gem, which was estimated to sell between $9 and $12 million, is one of very few pear-shaped diamonds of D color over 50 carats to be auctioned in recent decades, Sotheby’s said. “The truly exceptional 74.79 carat stone was a thrill to auction, and exemplifies the strength of the market for white diamonds over the last decade,” said Lisa Hubbard, chairman, North & South America, Sotheby’s International Jewelry Division. “It was acquired by the present owner in 2001 for $4.3 million, and today sold for a record $14.2 million.” Read more here-http://onforb.es/XTn5q9

-Auction Results: Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels Sale, April 17 2013, New York City. Full results here: http://bit.ly/1023VIP

Back to Top

WORLD FINANCIAL REPORT ON RADIO APRIL 12 2013

WWPMC.COM  PRECIOUS METALS TELEPHONE # 1-866-623-2002

RARECOLOREDDIAMONDS.COM  DIAMONDS TELEPHONE # 1-800-432-1022

HSFINEAUCTIONS.COM NEXT AUCTION TBA

GOLD

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Kevin Wides, The Stunning Roadmap to $500 Silver & $8,000 Gold. I noted on the gold and silver chart below that the start of the mania phase could begin around May 1st, 2013. This date and the current build in fundamentals are aligning perfectly. If this continues to unfold as I expect, the upside for gold and silver will be, as Dan Norcini says “100’s of percent higher.” Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZPJuPb

-“I have not changed my forecast. In fact I think, where’s the price of gold going to go, it’s going to be in the thousands somewhere the multi-thousands in my mind. As I say we keep printing money, we have no economic growth, we have a banking crisis almost every week somewhere. And sooner or later people will figure out that gold is something they should own.” Eric Sprott

-Trust in Gold Not Bernanke as U.S. States Promote Bullion. Distrust of the Federal Reserve and concern that U.S. dollars may become worthless are fueling a push in more than a dozen states to recognize gold and silver coins as legal tender. Arizona is poised to follow Utah, which authorized bullion for currency in 2011. Similar bills are advancing in Kansas, South Carolina and other states. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/YpNlb7

-Jim Sinclair: The Coordinated Attack On The Gold Market. This raid on gold will fail miserably, and the recovery will be even more ebullient than the decline. We may decline $25, but we will go up many hundreds of dollars from here. Read more here-http://bit.ly/17t3SgH

-Jim Sinclair: Stunning Shift In US Government & Fed Gold Policy. Regardless of whatever opinions may be publicly given from Federal Reserve Governors, the Chairman, or from the US Treasury, there certainly is a very strong understanding of the history of gold and how important it is to any country, especially in times of stress. It is very possible, and in my opinion probable, that the importance of gold is now being recognized at very high levels.

And from this point forward, it is my strong belief that the Federal Reserve will be more friendly, rather than the enemy of gold, and the price in the market will show you that I’m correct. An increase in the price of gold, aided by the Fed and the West, would definitely be to stop the further draining of gold out of Western central bank vaults. China will then compensate by increasing their mining activities around the world as well as inside China itself. The reality is that gold has never been the enemy of the dollar anywhere else but in the minds of the Fed.

Now they will finally come to view gold and the advancing gold price as their friend. This is the major shift which is taking place. What people expected to occur in 1979 has now occurred in orders of magnitude greater than almost anyone believed possible, and in this ongoing and rolling financial crisis the US is not going to allow a total drain of its gold reserves. What people around the world need to understand is that the US government and the Federal Reserve will continue their active manipulation of gold, only this time it will be to the upside. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YpZGMc

-Jim Sinclair: The World Is Now On Fire & There Will Be Hell To Pay. The entire world is on fire and most people don’t even realize it. The world is literally ablaze with the creation of money, and there will be hell to pay for what is taking place right now. The monetary policy of Japan has now spread out from Japan to Europe and will eventually infect the entire globe. Markets now give the appearance of having no rules. This is a world that, for the time being, seems to have repealed the normal law of consequences, but I can assure you this will end in tears. Economic law cannot be held at bay, eventually it will deliver chaos because of the creation of enormous amounts of paper money. The public has remained hypnotized by the constant parade of mainstream media propaganda claiming that everything is fine. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZbXdUv

-Jim Sinclair: This Will Create The Mother Of All Financial Crises. What has been happening in the gold market since the Cyprus disaster is a depreciation of the price of gold that has no fundamental rationale to it whatsoever. The idea that you can take depositors’ money is a complete reversal of the strategy which has been in place since 2008. But right now the government is manipulating so many markets it’s hard to understand how they can keep it all straight. Almost every major market in the world is being controlled in one way or another by one government group or another. It’s like a dam that’s about to fall apart and there are 1,000 fingers in every possible hole.

It will be like magic if in fact this type of strategy can be successfully employed for any significant length of time. You also have to bear in mind that all of these manipulations result in net positions. If there is selling in the paper markets by eight agents acting on behalf of the US government, who are in there to protect the dollar, when they sell something such as gold they create a position. Even though these positions are not properly reported to the public, they do pile up. They do create a crowded corner in a market and interfere with a free market and its activity. So the idea that governments can do anything they please to fails to take into consideration that in suppressing the price of gold, positions are in fact taken.

People also have to keep in mind that a market which would only go to one side would be a market that would cease creating price in any kind of orderly manner. I believe we are now at a point where the tape and physical market in gold are now working directly against the government positions and the market is ready for a turn. My opinion remains unchanged about what the gold market is going to do. I may have been off by a few days, but everything I see here indicates the depreciation in the price of gold has run its course, and will be proven to have run its course this week as the physical market is calling the government’s bluff. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YpXrbX

-David Franklin and David Baker: A Retort to SocGen’s Latest Gold Report. Société Générale (“SocGen”) recently published a special report entitled “The end of the gold era” that garnered far more attention than we think it deserved. The majority of the report focused on SocGen’s “crash scenario” for gold wherein they suggest that gold could fall well below their 2013 target of US$1,375/oz. It also included a classic criticism that we’ve heard so many times before: that the gold price is in “bubble territory”. We have problems with both suggestions.

We believe gold is nowhere close to ‘bubble territory’ today. It is acting exactly as a currency should. Under its current stewardship, we expect the Federal Reserve’s balance sheet to continue to expand along with Japan’s. SocGen’s “crash” scenario would require a complete reversal of this trend, which we do not believe is even remotely possible at this point. Gold is the base currency with which to compare the value of all government-sponsored money. Investors can incorporate it into their portfolios as ‘central bank insurance’ or ignore it entirely.

Either way, we believe gold will continue to track the total aggregate of the central bank balance sheets of the US, UK, Eurozone and Japan. If SocGen believes the aggregate central bank balance sheet will continue to shrink as it did in Q1, then gold should continue its decline. We strongly suspect that shrinkage is over, however. Given Japan’s recent QE decision, we would expect the aggregate to grow a lot bigger, and fast. If there was ever a time for gold to be a relevant currency alternative it’s now. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11UQhwi

-Robert Fitzwilson: Chaos, Cyprus, Manipulation & How To Protect Your Money. The Central Banks have used every tool in their playbook. They printed money. They bought up the toxic debt. They dropped interest rates to zero. They drove up the popular stock indexes. They have vigorously repressed gold and silver prices, perhaps oil, too. It is not working now. The economic statistics are rolling over. Employment, inflation, manufacturing activity and other indicators of the health of global economies are showing signs of instability and outright decline. So what do you do if you are trying to control this mess? First, you put in place the ability to replicate Cyprus on a global scale. Depositor’s funds will be used to protect the favored financial institutions.

Second, you promote the idea that stocks are overpriced to get positions converted back into the various forms of cash and fixed income. Third, you mercilessly smash gold and silver so that you corner the markets for physical metals. It is done with paper forms of the metal that have to be covered, and we are sure that it is being done right now. If not, guarantees have been made to cover any losses. Once you have the wealth back at the financial institutions in the form of deposits and the supply of physical metals has been scooped up, that is the moment when the system reset could occur. The Cyprus solution becomes applied globally. Jim Sinclair alluded to this in his KWN interview.

There will come a time when the Central banks and the people involved in shorting metals with paper will switch from short to long. The institutions involved in the manipulation do not lose money. What will happen is that we will discover that they are massively long the physical metal. That is when we will have a global, coordinated devaluation of currency, the confiscation of a large portion of deposits, and an officially sanctioned reset on the price of gold to a much higher level. The Roosevelt plan in the 30s was to tell everyone that the banks were safe and to return their gold.

He then took the gold and proceeded to devalue the currency. In our era, the confiscation of the gold has been accomplished through price suppression. The suppression scared domestic investors away from metals as well as causing people to give up the one asset class that has a chance of protecting them from the coming devaluation. Will this be the scenario that unfolds? Who knows? However, it does connect the events that we are seeing unfold. Those with financial assets that are planning to convert some or all to physical metals need to act quickly. As Jim Sinclair is saying, time is running short. Read more here-http://bit.ly/14Y4M50

-John Embry: This Is Heading Toward A Catastrophic Ending. You can’t create more and more debt, which is required to get economic activity moving forward at a decent pace. They will try, but ultimately it will reflect itself in inflation. So what we potentially face is the first global move toward hyperinflation in world history. Hyperinflation has happened many times in history, but without exception it has been confined to specific countries or small regions. This one would appear to be heading in a global direction, and because it (hyperinflation) is the most corrosive thing that can happen to a society I cringe at the thought of this coming to fruition.

It could get very bad. I’ve read extensive documentation of what happened in the Weimar experience post-World War I in Germany and it was very ugly. So to say that I am worried is an understatement. This time, because the situation is infinitely worse than at the end of the 1920s, we could be talking about decades before we turn this thing into what we saw in the post-war era. I had the good fortune of growing up in one of the greatest eras in the history of mankind for the middle class. We all had a great opportunity.

I think it’s going to take a while to get back to that situation. It’s going to require a massive clean-out of this debt, and to start over with some sort of a new currency system. In reality, the only money that’s lasted in history has been gold and silver. Right now we are in the terminal stage of the current currency system. So gold and silver are reasserting themselves in their historic role as money. I guess I’m a little ahead of the curve. All of my cash is in gold (and the shares), and I think it’s a wonderful time to be devoting some cash flow to gold and silver shares because this is the best buying opportunity you are ever going to get in your lifetime. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10MaBid

-Dan Norcini: Incredibly Important Developments In Gold & Silver Markets. A wall of money is now moving against the hedge funds, and if the hedge funds buckle on their short positions we will see massive moves in gold, silver, and these other key commodities. This could well be the catalyst that gold and silver investors have been waiting for to turn these markets higher in a violent fashion. Silver had a move that shocked the world from $8 to $50, or a amazing 525% advance in just 30 months off the 2008 lows.

We also saw gold move from $680 to $1,923 in 35 months, or a stunning 183% move in gold. These remarkable advances came on the heels of QE1 and QE2 which totaled $2.5 trillion. Because QE3 and QE4 combined are over $1 trillion each year, and Japan’s stimulus is $1.4 trillion for just this year, we have the same setup which caused gold and silver to skyrocket off the lows in 2008. The potential for another violent advance in both gold and silver is certainly there, especially with the hedge fund short positions which are currently in place. Once again this type of move would definitely shock the world. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11ZrU0k

-Stephen Leeb: Goldman Sachs Call To Short Gold, Triple Digit Silver & Chaos. The mainstream media says gold is dead now. Obviously that’s a great contrarian indicator. But despite all of the anti-gold propaganda recently, including today (Goldman Sachs short call), gold never took out the lows. Gold is not dead, it has simply put in a massive base which will act as the launching pad for this next move. Gold, silver, and other hard assets are the only way to deal with what is coming. I am bullish on gold. I can’t say it won’t dip again, but what you are seeing now are the kind of dynamic that develop which will set the stage for the real bull market in gold. You can expect the same thing for silver. Silver has put in a larger base than gold and it will move quickly to $50. After silver breaks the $50 all-time high the sky is the limit. When we see silver in triple digits then we will all know that bull market is finally stampeding. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11Zyi7L

-Greg Hunter: Jim Willie Interview, Economy Will Implode. Dr. Jim Willie says powerful forces around the globe are working to do away with trading in U.S. dollars because of massive money printing by the Fed. Dr. Willie says, “The world makes a reaction, and what they have done is create, slowly but surely, a U.S. dollar alternative for trade.” Dr. Willie’s sources say precious metals will be used to back a new currency and predicts, “The gold price will be $7,500 to $8,000, and silver will be between $150 and $250 per ounce.”

This will be a disaster for U.S. Treasuries, and Jim Willie says, “All these Treasury Bonds will be sent back to the United States where they can choke U.S. bankers they cannot refuse them.” Dr. Willie predicts “the economy will implode,” and he says, “I don’t believe we’re going to see garden variety powerful inflation. I believe, instead, we’re going to get large widespread cut-off of supply chains” as foreigners simply stop accepting the dollar. As far as dollar assets inside the U.S., expect widespread confiscation. Dr. Willie contends, “When the losses from the debt write-downs come, I see tremendous national wealth lost because private accounts are really just bank assets.” Watch more here-http://bit.ly/Ym7rTA

-Citi analyst Tom Fitzpatrick: Gold Now Set To Have A Massive Surge Along With This Asset. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZkdbJl

-John Hathaway: 4 Stunning & Incredibly Powerful Gold Charts. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12QvSYa

-Michael Pento: Likes Gold But Warns A Stock Market Crash Is Coming. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZkdGmI

-Frank Holmes: Every Gold Coin Has Two Sides. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZnOcnp

-Kyle Bass: I’d Much Rather Own Gold Than Paper. Watch more here-http://bloom.bg/Za8uVu

-Americans pile into silver, gold coins. Sales of silver and gold coins have surged this year. With silver and gold prices near two-year lows, is it time to buy? Read more here-http://bit.ly/Z97YqQ

-Cyprus to sell gold reserves to help fund bailout. Cyprus is to sell off much of its gold reserves to help finance part of its bailout. Read more here-http://bbc.in/12P6GB8

-Cyprus Central Bank Denies Plan to Sell Gold. Read more here-http://yhoo.it/10WgJ4H

-Goldman’s gold short call mocked by GGR’s Arensberg. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10SkQS5

-Goldman Buying Gold, Selling Treasurys To Muppets Whom It Advises To Do Opposite. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZpTJdf

-Roosevelt’s gold confiscation: could it happen again? FDR forcibly purchased American investors’ bullion during the Great Depression. After Cyprus, could confiscations catch on again? Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZLx16i

-From South Africa: How the U.S. herds the ‘sheep’ away from the gold market. Read more here-http://bit.ly/XDZucZ

-BNN lets Embry discuss gold market manipulation. Watch more here-http://bit.ly/10TOcwz

-Gold rig really is as bad as GATA says, Grandich concedes. Read more here-http://bit.ly/1111ERX

-Schiff complains of gold market manipulation on CNBC; network lets it pass unremarked. Watch more here-http://bit.ly/10PbAwz

-CBC to air ‘The Secret World of Gold.’ Read more here-http://bit.ly/151Cff4

-Discovery Of A 17th Century Spanish Shipwreck Yields Awesome Treasure. Read more here-http://read.bi/ZGBx63

Back to Top

SILVER

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $33.33

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $40.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $66.67

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $100.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $133.33

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $41.67

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $62.50

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $83.33

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $125.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $166.67

-John Embry: Why I like both gold and silver. Sprott Asset Management’s John Embry discusses how he sees the current global financial situation ending and why he likes both gold and silver. Geoff Candy: Just quickly on to silver, you mentioned earlier that you do like it. Are you preferring silver to gold at the moment.

John Embry: Oh yeah I do and that’s not to denigrate gold in the least. I like gold very much. I just think that the gold-silver ratio which is currently north of 50 probably as the bull market re-asserts itself in both metals, will fall towards historical lows which is down around 10 to 15-1, so if you thought the gold price was going to double just to take a number, the silver price could go up two or threefold more than that. So yeah I like silver a lot and if you look at its industrial uses which are growing quite rapidly actually, at the same time that it’s going to be poor man’s gold, as gold becomes more expensive, more people will seek silver as their monetary asset. And it’s a small market you can see the fundamentals that will drive that drop in the gold-silver ratio. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10P2lMJ

-Gene Arensberg: Dumb money goes short silver, smart money unloads its shorts, GGR says. Read more here-http://bit.ly/14chgH9

-Premium on old silver coins rises from 8 cents to $1.08 in 3 months, Gene Arensberg reports. Read more here-http://bit.ly/1111Xfr

-Tekoa da Silva: Comex gold inventories collapsing. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16QsoXW

-Jeff Berwick: Silver Premiums, Demand & Shortages. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12OpUuq

-Turkey Silver imports climb 31% to 6.19 tons in March. Turkey imported 6.19 tons of silver in March while gold imports hit an eight month high at 18.26 metric tons. According to Istanbul Gold Exchange, Silver imports rose 31% from a month earlier. The nation imported 142.2 tons last year. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Yg0M96

Back to Top

CHARTS OF THE WEEK-QUOTES-QUICK HITS

-CHART OF THE WEEK: The Scariest Jobs Chart Ever. Read more here-http://read.bi/10R1ixq

chartoftheday.com

-”I’m still concerned about geopolitics. Here in this business I have learned that the story which seems to be buried on page 13 can sometimes almost instantly rocket its way on to page 1, and rocket its way to everyone’s attention. But perhaps the greatest concern I have is that there is a kind of complacency. There seems to be an almost palpable belief around the world that cooler heads will prevail. Someone will step in and stop this from happening.

And while it happened even before I began my 50 year career, I’ve long been a student of history, both financial and geopolitical, and I think back to World War I when everyone on both sides knew that such a war would be unwinnable, would be distasteful, but managed to walk into it believing that logic would prevent the guy on the other side from making a fatal mistake. So whether it is exercises in Korea or economic changes in Europe, the idea that rational men will prevent irrational crises doesn’t live up to world history.” Art Cashin

-”I continue to expect the U.S. economy to join a global recession that is already in progress in much of the developed world (assuming a U.S. recession has not already started, which we can’t rule out, but would require knowledge of eventual data revisions to confirm). Suffice it to say that the realistic case for a sustained economic expansion here remains terribly thin.” John Hussman

-”Dollar holders should find zero solace from owning a currency that is only gaining value against other pieces of confetti called euros, pounds and yen and investors will soon realize the absurdity of believing the dollar is strong simply because other fiat currencies are currently weaker. This is why money flows into precious metals will become massive once again as the intrinsic value of the dollar continues to diminish under the weight of the $17 trillion national debt and $1 trillion yearly deficits that are being monetized by the Fed.” Michael Pento

-”What happened in Cyprus was not an aberration. The Fed is already seizing the savings from your bank accounts as I write this. It is being done through the covert means of inflation, but rest assured that when the covert means become untenable, overt means will be used as well. As I have previously written, through Anti-Money Laundering and other regulations, Washington has already erected a financial Berlin Wall around us. The only escape is to pull our savings from the fiat financial system. While barter and high-tech alternatives compete for the attention of the newly “unbanked,” I believe individuals, institutions, and governments are re-learning that gold and silver are the ultimate monetary assets. With every shock to the fiat system, more investors awaken to this fundamental truth.” Peter Schiff

-”Investing in stocks is supposed to be a way to harness real economic growth, not a way to front run stimulus. Our advice for stock investors is to recognize that and to get as far away from artificially induced highs as possible. More fundamentally sound markets exist. We just have to find them.” Peter Schiff

-”We have this horse race as to which currency is going to be destroyed first: Is it the dollar, euro, pound, or the yen? And right now the yen is leading that horse race. What they (the Japanese) are planning to do is buy more government debt, which is going to be financing more government deficits. Turning government debt into a currency is ultimately what leads to hyperinflation.” James Turk

-”We spoke last week about deposit guarantees which failed in Cyprus, and how this was symptomatic of social promises made to individuals by overreaching governments around the world. People have to understand that those promises, while they may have been well-intentioned, were lies. So we need to watch out for ourselves and that realization is going to come as hard news to people who believe the state can and should do that. The coming market unrest and social unrest that is a consequence of people coming to realize they have to be self-reliant will be very troubling.” Rick Rule

-”If the major theft of bank deposits is repeated at any point in the future it will happen without any warning and it will happen over a weekend. Meaning, on Monday morning US and Canadian accounts will be hit and people in North America will simply be shocked that their wealth has been stolen.” Jim Sinclair

-Jim Rogers: “I Suspect They’ll Take The Pension Plans Next; I For One Am Worried, And I’m Making Preparations.” Read more here-http://bit.ly/16O8yfV

-IMF Trims U.S. Growth Outlook in Draft Report Citing Fiscal Cuts. The International Monetary Fund lowered its forecast for U.S. growth as automatic budget cuts take hold, according to a draft of the Washington-based lender’s World Economic Outlook. U.S. gross domestic product will expand 1.7 percent this year compared with a previously forecast 2 percent advance, according to the draft report obtained by Bloomberg News. The draft, which was presented to the IMF board last week, may be subject to revisions before its scheduled April 16 release. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/YgciBg

-Greg Hunter: John Williams Interview, Budget Deficit Exploding Out of Control. Economist John Williams says don’t be fooled by the new highs on the Dow. Williams contends, “The economy is still in serious trouble. The banking system is still in serious trouble. The budget deficit is exploding out of control.” Williams thinks the ongoing banking crisis in Cyprus has global implications. Williams says, “You have a precedence set in Cyprus that they can seize the funds.

They will not guarantee all deposits. If that’s the case, you may have a much worse crisis than you had back in 2008.” Williams adds, “The big problem is the government is insolvent in the long term.” Williams says the U.S. dollar could start selling off in May because of a deadlock in Congress on the budget. Williams predicts, “The global markets are looking for the U.S. to address its long term sovereign solvency issues. That’s not going to happen. In response, it’s going to be off to the races with a dollar sell-off. That could be the trigger for the early stages of hyperinflation.” Watch more here-http://bit.ly/14XZkPy

-David Stockman: Welcome to Irrational Exuberance 2.0. Fundamentally, investors should not believe the mainstream propaganda. Do not believe that Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and the rest of the Fed know what they are doing. They are making it up as they go along. And they keep getting it wrong. People are frustrated and may be even getting angry because they know better than to jump back into the frying pan. We are just north of 1560 on the S&P 500 for the third time since early 2000. Yet this third bubble will burst too because the Main Street economy is failing. We lost 6 million full-time breadwinner jobs in the Great Recession and have only recovered 15% the headline jobs numbers being reported are mostly part-time work at bars and restaurants.

Yet the stock market has recovered 110% of its losses during the same period. The Fed’s money printing does nothing except crush Main Street savers on a cross of ZIRP (zero interest) while fueling the Wall Street carry traders and speculators with the cheapest money ever invented by a central bank. Therefore, the markets are a dangerous place because the speculation will reach a crescendo and then crash just as it did the last two times. All real people can do right now is stay liquid and not fall for the propaganda of convenience from the Wall Street houses that want to sell you anything they can and scalp a margin off of you whenever possible, as well as from the politicians and the Keynesians in Washington.

How are you protecting yourself? The same thing I have said before: by investing in anything Bernanke cannot destroy, Bernanke standing for the Federal Reserve, for a state that wants to undermine the financial system. Gold is a good investment over time because sooner or later people will lose confidence in the money-printing central banks of the world. In the long run, the fiat monies will lose their value. In the short run, the only thing you can do is stay liquid, stay out of risky asset markets and try to preserve your wealth. It will be impossible to increase your wealth in the next decade; everything is going to come down. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YdlExu

-Paul B. Farrell: Critical Warning No. 13, Stockman’s ‘Apocalypse.’ If this sounds like advice to get out, it is. Read more here-http://on.mktw.net/14cEIUK

-As cities lay off police, frustrated neighborhoods turn to private cops. With cities cutting their police to balance budgets, some well-to-do neighborhoods are hiring private security, marking an expansion of unarmed guards beyond office parks and gated communities. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10VFdh0

-Unfit for Work The startling rise of disability in America. In the past three decades, the number of Americans who are on disability has skyrocketed. The rise has come even as medical advances have allowed many more people to remain on the job, and new laws have banned workplace discrimination against the disabled. Every month, 14 million people now get a disability check from the government. Read more here-http://n.pr/XuVM2Z

-New York Renewable Power Plan Would Cost $382 Billion by 2030. New York would need about $382 billion and wind turbines covering an area equivalent to 13 percent of the state’s land mass if it followed a Cornell University plan to derive all of its power from renewables. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZjXsd3

-Hagel Says North Korea ‘Skating Very Close to a Dangerous Line.’ U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said North Korea has “been skating very close to a dangerous line” and should tone down its “bellicose rhetoric” to ease tensions. “Their actions and their words have not helped defuse a combustible situation,” Hagel said Wednesday at a Pentagon news conference. He said the U.S. is “fully prepared to deal with any contingency.” Tensions have risen since North Korea conducted a nuclear weapons test in February in defiance of tightened United Nations sanctions that were backed by China, its closest ally and biggest trading partner. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Z9FnS0 and http://bloom.bg/14d314N

-Bird Flu Causing Suffocation Shows Severe Spectrum of New Virus. Bird flu turned fatal for a 52-year-old Shanghai woman whose lungs became so damaged that she began to suffocate, causing her vital organs to rapidly shut down, doctors in China said. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZMnLyY

-China Bird Flu Outbreak May Stem From Numerous Sources. China’s avian flu outbreak that has killed 10 people since March is being driven by at least two closely related viruses, a situation that may make it more difficult to contain in humans and birds, researchers said. Read more here- http://bloom.bg/10Xc4PQ and http://bloom.bg/YdkK45

-Deadly Lessons From SARS Spur Global Reaction to Bird Flu. China’s government is pledging openness in divulging details of a deadly bird flu outbreak, saying it won’t repeat mistakes made during the SARS outbreak a decade ago that delayed response to the global contagion. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/14cahxS

-Russian Billionaire Buys Greece’s Most Famous Private Island For $153 Million. Read more here-http://read.bi/YqRGuq

-Set phaser rifle auction to stun: Star Trek prop once used by Captain Kirk sold for $231,000 over Four times its estimated price. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZpeVQz

-PHOTO OF THE WEEK: Food Prices At The Masters Are Incredibly Low. Read more here-http://read.bi/10U0giZ

Back to Top

-Rarecoloreddiamonds.com Featured Diamond of the Week. This week’s Diamond is a 0.40 Carat Radiant Cut Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink I1 Argyle. Harold Seigel-Watch video of the Featured Diamond here-http://bit.ly/LIsp98

-Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels and Jadeite Sale, April 8 2013, Hong Kong. See more here-http://bit.ly/11OUFNk and http://bit.ly/Ygc9lB

-Sotheby’s HK Jewels Sale Garners $61M. Sets Record Price/Ct. For D, IF, Triple EX Diamonds. Sotheby’s Hong Kong sale of magnificent jewels and jadeite generated $61.4 million on Monday with high-end white diamonds dominating the top lots. ‎The auction sold 78.6 percent by lot and 77.4 percent by value.‎ There were strong prices paid at the auction on April 8 for highly desirable and ‎important round white diamonds of the highest caliber in all attributes D color, internally ‎flawless and of excellent cut, polish and symmetry,” said Quek Chin Yeow, deputy ‎chairman and head of jewelry department for Sotheby’s Asia. ‎

The top lot was an un-mounted brilliant cut, 28.86-carat, D, flawless diamond which sold ‎for $6.9 million, or $239,351 per carat, to a private Asian buyer. ‎Sotheby’s reported that the second top lot set a world record price per carat for a round, ‎D, IF, white diamond with the sale of pendent earrings weighing 8 carats each for $2.8 ‎million or $239,352 per carat, also to a private buyer from Asia. ‎A brilliant-cut, 21.54-carat, F, IF diamond ring sold for $2.7 million, or ‎‎$124,038 per carat, while a heart-shape, 3.04-carat, fancy intense blue diamond, pink ‎diamond and diamond ring sold for $2.2 million, or $710,188 per ‎carat. Read more here-http://bit.ly/14UQ3YK and http://bit.ly/14fB0tv

-Richard Russell: The Fed, Hard Times, A Crash & Collectibles. Back in about 1965, I bought a second-hand (sorry, previously owned) Submariner Rolex watch for $12,400. The other day I was in a jewelry store, and the owner offered me $11,500 for my old but still shiny Rolex. The market for watches has gone mad. Last week I opened the New York Times to pages 2 and 3, and I counted display ads for six “fancy” watches. One watch was so covered with diamonds that it was downright vulgar.

There are only two brands of watches that hold their value and can always be sold Rolex and Patek Philippe. Those are the only two I would ever buy. Gem quality diamonds with GIA certs have been increasing in price at about 5% a year or better, every year. Ten years ago I was buying three-carat diamond rings (J color) set in platinum with side stones for $10,000. Today those same rings go for $25,000 to $35,000 and up, depending on the quality of the stones.

I just received the trade publication, Rapaport Magazine, which lists approximate prices for stones. I was surprised to see the biggest price boosts were for “I” clarity stones. These are stones with slight inclusions visible with the naked eye. Ten years ago, I would not have bought an “I” clarity stone. Now they are readily salable. The Chinese have become big diamond buyers, but they prefer stones as near perfect as possible. Chinese women apparently love to flash their wealth, and a large, sparkly diamond fits the bill. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10WvQfO

Back to Top

QE

-FOMC Minutes Show Several Members Saw QE Over by Year-End. Several Federal Reserve officials said the central bank should begin tapering its quantitative easing program later this year and stop it by year end, minutes of their March meeting showed. The Federal Open Market Committee members “thought that if the outlook for labor market conditions improved as anticipated, it would probably be appropriate to slow purchases later in the year and to stop them by year-end,” according to the record of the March 19-20 FOMC meeting released Wednesday in Washington ahead of the regularly scheduled 2 p.m. time.

Fed officials, who met before a Labor Department report last week showed payroll growth in March was the slowest in nine months, debated how and when to curtail asset purchases that have swollen its balance sheet to a record $3.22 trillion. The committee, led by Chairman Ben S. Bernanke, decided at the gathering to press on with $85 billion in monthly bond buying until the labor-market outlook has “improved substantially.” “You have to take this with a really large grain of salt,” said John Herrmann, director of U.S. Rate Strategy at Mitsubishi UFJ Securities in New York, because the meeting was held before the March jobs report. That report showed “the economy doesn’t quite yet have the momentum to consistently grow near the Fed’s objectives” and an early tapering of Fed purchases is now “much less likely,” he said. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/16Rmgg9 and http://bloom.bg/11UtMHK

-Bass Says Japan Bondholders’ Reaction to Stimulus Telling. Kyle Bass, whose Dallas-based hedge- fund firm Hayman Advisors LP made $500 million in 2007 betting against U.S. subprime mortgages, said Japanese government bondholders’ reaction to the central bank’s unprecedented stimulus may foreshadow a broader selloff. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Xt8K1m

-IMF: Billions of pounds of QE unlikely to cause inflation. Central banks can unleash billions of pounds more quantitative easing with little threat of stoking inflation, according to analysis by the International Monetary Fund. Read more here-http://bit.ly/14YHImP

-Volcker: Central banks are too aggressive. Former Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker warned Monday about potential dangers from what he calls “unorthodox” and aggressive moves by central banks around the world. Read more here-http://cnnmon.ie/120SAxT

Back to Top

U.S. DEBT-DEFICIT

-The combined spending of federal, state and local governments actually exceeded the median household income for 2010, which is the latest year for which all relevant government data are available. In that same year, according to the Census Bureau, the median household income was $49,445. That means total net government spending per household ($50,074) exceeded median household income (49,445) by $629. Terence Jeffrey As reported in my new book Completely Predictable

-U.S. Budget Deficit Narrows as Spending Drops 21%. The U.S. budget deficit narrowed in March from a year earlier as spending shrank almost 21 percent during the first month of mandatory federal cutbacks known as sequestration. The shortfall totaled $106.5 billion after a $198.2 billion gap in March 2012, the Treasury Department said in Washington. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZjpzJF

-Obama Proposes $3.8 Trillion Budget to Revive Debt Talks. President Barack Obama sent a $3.8 trillion budget to Congress calling for more tax revenue and slower growth for Social Security benefits in a political gamble intended to revive deficit-reduction talks. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Xutzt9

-Obama Budget Shows $1 Trillion Tax Gap With Republicans. President Barack Obama and congressional Republicans are $1 trillion and a conceptual leap apart on taxes, a policy gap accentuated by the administration’s 2014 budget. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZpfOZm

-Obama Squeeze on Savings of Wealthy Muddles Estate Plans. President Barack Obama wants to prevent people from accumulating too much money in their tax- advantaged retirement accounts or trusts for heirs, adding to pressure on the wealthy after raising tax rates in January. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Zpg1M9

Back to Top

SOVEREIGN DEBT

-Margaret Thatcher Was Correct About Why The Euro Would Be Such A Big Disaster. Read more here-http://read.bi/10X6pvQ

-Italy’s Debt to Rise to Record in 2013 as Recession Lingers. Italy’s debt will reach a postwar record this year as the recession-hit country borrows to contribute to bailouts and pay arrears to suppliers. The public debt will rise to 130.4 percent of gross domestic product in 2013 from 127 percent last year, Prime Minister Mario Monti’s office said in a statement after his Cabinet reviewed its budget plan. The budget deficit will drop to 2.9 percent of GDP this year, putting Italy within the European Union’s 3 percent limit. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/12MCEho

-New Trouble for Euro in Portugal. Just weeks after European leaders tamped down a banking crisis in Cyprus, troubles in the euro zone have again reared their head, this time in Portugal. A critical moment for the latest trouble took place on Friday, when Portugal’s Constitutional Court struck down four of nine contested austerity measures that the government introduced as part of a 2013 budget that included about 5 billion euros, or $6.5 billion, of tax increases and spending cuts. The ruling left the government short about 1.4 billion euros of expected revenue, or more than one-fifth of the 2013 austerity package. Read more here-http://nyti.ms/10OUAGw and http://bit.ly/14fnUwu and http://read.bi/120K2H8

-Slovenia, Spain Warned of Excessive Economy Imbalances by EU. The European Commission warned of “excessive” risks to the economic health of Slovenia and Spain, calling on both governments to take urgent action to stem the spread of the euro crisis. Slovenian banks are likely to need fresh capital injections as over-indebted corporate borrowers struggle to pay back loans amid a double-dip recession, the Brussels-based commission said. It said Spain is encumbered by public and private debt. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZLAEt0

-Greek Unemployment Soars By 1.5% In One Month, Hits Record 27.2%. Read more here-http://bit.ly/XFppB6

Back to Top

REAL ESTATE

-Keith Jurow: The US Housing Recovery Is A Mirage And A Serious Delinquency Crisis Is Coming. Read more here-http://read.bi/10Nfhmi

-David Rosenberg: It Looks Like Demand For US Housing Is Cooling Off. Read more here-http://read.bi/10WPqqW

-Detroit Homes Rot as Appraisals Stopping Sales. In most American cities, a limestone home with a large front turret and paneled library would have a waiting list of buyers at $135,000. In Detroit’s Rosedale neighborhood, it almost didn’t sell at all. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10MXMma

-Foreclosures Jump in New York as U.S. Sees Decline. Foreclosure notices surged last month in states where courts oversee home seizures, slowing the process and causing prices to lag behind in the U.S. housing recovery, according to RealtyTrac Inc. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZbHhlb

-Canada February New Home Price Index Rises 0.2% on Calgary Gain. Canada’s new home price index rose 0.2 percent in February on the largest gain in Calgary in almost six years. Prices in the Alberta city grew 1 percent from January, the most since May 2007, because of higher labor and material costs, Statistics Canada said today in Ottawa. Prices in Regina, Saskatchewan, rose 1.4 percent. From a year earlier, new home prices increased rose 2.1 percent in February, slower than January’s 2.2 percent rate. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/16PwIGS

-Toronto Condo Kings Retreating to Avert Crash. Toronto condo builders are slowing development in a bid to avoid a crash after a decade-long boom led to 159 towers now under construction. So far this year, they’ve announced 13 new condominium projects, the fewest since the recession in 2009, when there were just three over the same period, figures from real estate researcher RealNet Canada Inc. show. In the same period last year, 29 new projects were announced, including Tridel Corp.’s Ten York, the third-tallest residential tower in the country at 75-stories when it was first marketed. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/12MBTIZ

-Singapore Downtown Mansion on Sale at Record $242 Million. Wing Tai Holdings Ltd. Chairman Cheng Wai Keung is seeking a record S$300 million ($242 million) for a home near Singapore’s Orchard Road shopping belt, betting that developers may profit from dividing the site. The 85,000-square-foot site on an elevated lot at 33 Nassim Road, near the city’s Botanic Gardens, includes a two-story home, swimming pool and tennis court, according to Jones Lang LaSalle Inc., the sole marketing agent. Wing Tai’s stock rose to the highest in more than three years. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10UE20k

Back to Top

WORLD FINANCIAL REPORT ON RADIO APR 9 2013

WWPMC.COM  PRECIOUS METALS TELEPHONE # 1-866-623-2002

RARECOLOREDDIAMONDS.COM  DIAMONDS TELEPHONE # 1-800-432-1022

HSFINEAUCTIONS.COM NEXT AUCTION TBA

GOLD

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Citi analyst Tom Fitzpatrick, Gold Chart. We still believe it is a basing and consolidation pattern in gold. The longer this base continues to build, the larger the impulsive move will be when gold actually breaks out. Obviously at this point in time we are still waiting for the breakout. The first levels we are looking at in the short-term are located in the $1,620 to $1,625 area. If we break through that zone it is the starting point which would indicate that gold may be getting ready for the big push. Above that we are still focused on the major breakout at the $1,790 to $1,800 area. A break above that major resistance zone would take gold well above the $2,000 area, and we still believe we will see that this year. Read more here-http://bit.ly/109rZgi

-If you need a “yardstick” of present Gold “prices” as they appear on the markets for paper claims to Gold, consider this. In January 1980, Gold reached a “price” of $US 850. Today, Gold is “priced” at less than twice that level at $US 1595. Yet over the intervening thirty-three and a bit years, the debt of the US Treasury has risen by a factor of more than 17. That huge increase in money creation is faithfully reflected on the markets for paper assets. The Dow, for example reflects it almost exactly. The paper Gold price does not even approach it. Nor do we know if the Gold “price” ever will approach an accurate reflection of the degree of monetary debauchery which has gone on since 1980. But we do know that it is impossible to inflate Gold into oblivion. Gold is financial insurance and with each passing day, the need for that insurance becomes more acute. Bill Buckler Gold This Week March 30 2013

-Americans Start New Gold Rush: CNBC Survey. Gold fever continues to grip the nation. The CNBC All-America Economic Survey finds that Americans once again chose gold as the top investment choice, beating out real estate, stocks, savings accounts and bonds. The poll of 800 Americans finds that 35 percent picked gold as their best investment choice, down from 37 percent a year ago, but still beating real estate, which was the top pick of 27 percent of the public. That was followed by 21 percent who chose stocks. Read more here-http://bit.ly/14OJyXA

-John Embry: This Will Signal The Final Collapse & End Game Has Started. I think the US stock market is building a massive rounded top, and when it finally buckles it will probably be the start of the end game. The volume keeps declining as the markets rise. This is not a good pattern when viewed from a historical context. So the whole situation we find ourselves in makes me very uncomfortable. The mainstream media continues with its propaganda in order to mislead people regarding the true state of the economy. At the same time the markets keep being propped up by the Fed, and gold and silver are being wildly suppressed. The suppression of the metals is taking place to keep people believing everything is fine. So this is where we are today and it has frustrated some investors, but it will end the way all bubbles end, badly. Read more here-http://bit.ly/17c4Yxc

-Stephen Leeb: West Much Closer To Collapse As Gold War Continues To Rage. If people see gold go up to $1,800, $1,900, which in my opinion is nothing compared to what you are going to see, they are going to say, ‘Something is really wrong with the West.’ That is one reason why you are going to see selling and pressure in gold. It’s kind of remarkable you haven’t seen gold break below those lows. They are holding, and the reason they are holding is you do have countries out there that see the picture from a much broader term (perspective).

I’m talking about China, India, and all of these countries that are accumulating gold. They see and they get it. The West gets it too. They don’t want this metal to go up. A barometer for what’s wrong in the world right now, and it’s always been the best and most accurate barometer, is gold. So, you have this hideous situation in Cyprus, you have more evidence that austerity is causing massive pain to people, pain where they can’t get medicine in Greece, pain where they can’t get food or gas in Cyprus, etc, yet the barometer of pain is being kept artificially low (gold). That can’t stand for very much longer. Read more here-http://bit.ly/17c6bog

-Egon von Greyerz: What We Are Now Seeing Is Unprecedented In World History. We are in unprecedented times. What we are seeing right now could be the end of a 2,000 year cycle, or possibly the end of a 300 year cycle. We also have the end of the 100 year cycle which is based on the creation of the Fed in 1913. The confluence of these cycles will cause unimaginable turmoil in the future. What is clear is that the world has been living above its means for a very long time.

What we have seen has been the result of printed money and a massive increase in credit. This is why much of what we have seen is not real growth, and therefore the wealth is not real wealth. This is why the current system cannot last. We now have a house of cards, and as I said before, this is unprecedented in world history because this is happening in every country in the world. Every single country is indebted to a level that has never happened on a worldwide basis before.

This is why the consequences will be so much greater than the what the world has ever experienced at any time in history. Eventually the current system will implode, and we will see a dramatic lowering of the standard of living. Before that time you will have social unrest, war, cyberwars, etc. But you will have massive suffering. So, sadly we are entering very difficult times. It could take decades of turmoil. Remember, the Dark Ages after the fall of the Roman Empire lasted 500 years.

So we could see an initial fast decline of the world economy, and then we could just go along the bottom for a very long time. What is clear is that it will happen, and the first phase of this will take place in the next few years. Unfortunately the world will suffer for a very long time. This is why it is so important for investors to protect themselves and not plan on any government looking after them. Also, you must own physical gold and silver to get through this difficult period. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZzKKWv

-Jim Sinclair: The Most Dangerous & Potentially Fatal Gamble In History. So the fight we see going on in the gold market between the increase in the physical buyers in the last two weeks, while at the same time the paper traders attempting to significantly decrease the price of gold, the physical buyers have been standing up and taking that supply of paper, and then standing for delivery.

This dramatic increase in physical buying is directly related to the Cyprus disaster. This battle taking place between let’s say between $1,550 and $1,650 is the final battle to determine who is the ultimate arbiter of price in the gold market the paper gold traders, which are simply an arm of the US government, or the physical buyers around the globe. The money that is now being scared out of the banks is only in a small way finding itself into the gold market. But that is the motivation, the energy, and the fuel of the physical buyers in gold.

So the battle we see going on in the gold market now as to who is champion, physical or paper, is a product of this last great “Hail Mary’ play to try to improve economic circumstances. So the catastrophic danger here is if the central planners fail they will have totally run out of tools and this thing will implode because they will have inherently weakened the banking system at the most inopportune time. This is one of the most dangerous and potentially fatal gambles in history. Read more here-http://bit.ly/XpZGML

-Paul Craig Roberts: Former US Treasury Official Fed Desperate To Save System. As I have explained, the orchestrated move against gold and silver is to protect the exchange value of the US dollar. The Federal Reserve is creating one trillion new dollars per year, but the world is moving away from the use of the dollar for international payments and, thus, as a reserve currency. The result is an increase in supply and a decrease in demand. That means a falling price. The orchestration against bullion cannot ultimately succeed. It is designed to gain time for the Federal Reserve to be able to continue financing the federal budget deficit by printing money and also to keep interest rates low and debt prices high in order to support the banks’ balance sheets.

When the Federal Reserve can no longer print due to dollar collapse which printing would make worse, bank deposits and pensions will be grabbed in order to finance the deficit. The manipulation of the bullion market is illegal, but as government is doing it the law will not be enforced. It is an act of desperation. If bullion were not a threat, the government would not be attacking it. The fact that the Federal Reserve is short selling bullion means that there is something desperate going on, and I assume it’s related to the US dollar. If the dollar drops sharply in exchange value the Fed can’t control the interest rate and the bond price and so all of the bubbles would blow up. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13T58KX and http://bit.ly/XrUEzn

-Fed shorting gold to support dollar, former Assistant Treasury Secretary Roberts says. Listen to more here-http://bit.ly/YyQlkD

-Louise Yamada: Cyprus, Key Chart Plus Gold & Silver Commentary. Read more here-http://bit.ly/XeJVpC

-Lawrence Williams: Post Cyprus gold price defying logic why? European politicians in particular cannot afford to let the gold price rise out of control for fear of a run on the banks which could see the whole economic system crashing down. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10zYi76

-Addison Wiggin: Dow Never To See 2009 Lows Again But Gold Bull Has Miles To Go. Read more here-http://onforb.es/Z2QkSe

-Turkey gold exports to Iran resume despite tough US sanctions. Read more here-http://reut.rs/10zQDpg

-Agustino Fontevecchia: Central Banks Bought More Than $3B In Gold In 2013 UBS. Read more here-http://onforb.es/Xs4Qb5

-In Daily Reckoning interview, Sprott notes central banks’ deceptive accounting of gold. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16zEKU5

-Grant Williams tells Hong Kong conference about gold price suppression. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16tsgvq

Back to Top

SILVER

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $33.33

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $40.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $66.67

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $100.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $133.33

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $41.67

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $62.50

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $83.33

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $125.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $166.67

-I am still of the mind that we are close to a silver price bottom of some great significance and that the investment risk/reward ratio in silver has rarely been more attractive than it is currently. The essence of successful investment is to place funds into the thing least likely to lose money and most likely to show great gains. In this instance, silver is it. Silver analyst Ted Butler March 30 2013 via Ed Steer Casey Research-Read more here-http://bit.ly/12l1d8I

-I would now calculate JPMorgan’s net short position to be 23,000 contracts as of the cut-off. While down 12,000 contracts from their large short of 35,000 contracts on Feb 5, simple math shows that JPMorgan held 96% of the total commercial short position of 24,000 contracts in the latest COT report. I doubt such an extreme measure of concentration has ever occurred in any other regulated futures market. On this measure alone, it is safe to conclude that JPMorgan has manipulated the silver price, as there would be virtually no commercial short position in COMEX silver without this crooked bank. That the CFTC and the CME Group can sit by and allow such an unnatural concentration to exist shows how inept and corrupt the regulators have become. – Silver analyst Ted Butler March 30 2013 via Ed Steer Casey Research-Read more here-http://bit.ly/Yz8E94

-Q1 2013 US Silver Eagle Sales Beats All Records. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13VeLc2

-The great disconnect between paper and physical Silver. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16twPpu

-Jim Sinclair: Silver Market Update. You can clearly see that from the day the JP Morgan suit on silver manipulation was basically thrown out for the second time, the silver market has seen an explosion of selling and it has been trading very heavy. So the volume of selling has risen constantly since the plaintiffs against JP Morgan attempted to have the suit reinstated, but it was thrown out for a second time. People have to remember it is easier to push the gold market around if you can make silver look weak.

But I still believe we have seen the lows already in the silver market. People who watch the gold and silver markets have to understand that silver is more widely owned than gold. So you can create a significant amount of negative public sentiment more so in the silver market by making it look weak, rather than in the gold market. The gold market is like a joust. It’s like the knights of old, fighting. Tuesday three banks downgraded gold. This went along with the push to the downside. So, again, the takedown was totally coordinated. Yes, these operations are completely illegal and totally unethical, but that doesn’t matter in what has now become our brave new world. Read more here-http://bit.ly/14NZ0Dv

-Citi analyst Tom Fitzpatrick: Silver Market Update. The downside action we have seen on silver since September and October of last year still looks corrective in nature to us. We still expect a break above the critical $35 area on silver. A break above $35 on silver is the equivalent of breaking $1,791 on gold. So as silver clears that area it really opens up the way for significant gains in the price of silver. Read more here-http://bit.ly/109rZgi

-Alena Mikhan and Jeff Clark: Silver ETFs Signal Bears Are Wrong. It’s a simplistic conclusion but not necessarily inaccurate: silver rises if the economy improves and industrial demand grows or it rises if the world’s major currencies continue to be debased, regardless of whether the economy is on the mend. Two different reasons, the same investment solution. What if we get both outcomes: a robust economy and high inflation?

That, of course, would be music to the ears of silver owners the demand from industry strains supply, while bullion owners refuse to sell. Prices would go ballistic. Does this mean silver is a no-lose proposition? Of course not. No investment comes without risk. An outright depression would be destructive to industrial demand. Roughly two-thirds of silver is used in industry and jewelry, so Doug Casey’s Greater Depression could severely impact the biggest portions of current demand. The same events would increase monetary demand for silver, but the two trends may not have equal weight on the price of silver at the same time.

We thus wouldn’t make silver our sole investment, but we see a lot of upside in the metal under current market conditions. At the end of the day, we’re more inclined to buy silver for the same reasons we buy gold. While a case can be made for an improving economy, there’s an overwhelming one already built for government money-printing to result in a massive loss of purchasing power, and that argues for seeking the safe haven of precious metals both of them. Don’t be an April Fool: prices are low, and that makes it time to buy. Read more here-http://bit.ly/XSK9V1

-Michael Kilbach: Buy Silver Now? Read more here-http://bit.ly/10CiEv5

-GE Christenson: Silver Keep It Simple! Part 2. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11t6DMi

-Geoff Candy: Chinese surplus weighs on silver Standard Bank. Abundant inventory and weak demand make for a poor outlook for silver in 2013, says Standard Bank. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YyLOP9

Back to Top

CHARTS OF THE WEEK-QUOTES-QUICK HITS

-CHART OF THE WEEK: The S&P 500 Is Nowhere Near Its All-Time High Priced In Gold. Read more here-http://read.bi/14Frvmk

chartoftheday.com

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Britain’s debt mountain reaches £1.39TRILLION, equivalent to 90% of the entire economy, ONS reveals. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16AnRIV

-CHART OF THE WEEK: MLB Team Revenues Show The True Disparity Between The Haves And Have Nots. Read more here-http://read.bi/Xg0HVB

chartoftheday.com

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Dodgers Have Doubled In Value In Just Two Years And Are Probably Worth Much More. Read more here-http://read.bi/14FsUt6

chartoftheday.com

-”Policymakers will tighten fiscal policy and raise taxes in an effort to address budget deficit issues. However, if they do this when the economy is weak, they risk pushing the economy right into recession, which would actually decrease tax revenues and cause budget deficits to rise.” David Rosenberg

-”Fear and greed drive the investment markets. Those two emotions rarely manifest themselves at the same time. Doubts about the safety of bank accounts and sovereign debt could trigger such a confluence. The impact on the prices of real assets, particularly gold and silver, would be a sight to behold.” Robert Fitzwilson

-”So the end game is coming quick. There is only so long they can keep pulling this off. I believe that by the time the new year comes the game will be over. You know what happened to me with MF Global: My money was in a segregated account. They stole it. Now they call it a ‘haircut.’ Isn’t that wonderful? They call it a haircut when they steal your money. The moral of the story is, if you don’t have your money where you can get it, without a middle man, you don’t own your money. But with gold and silver, and you are seeing what happened in Cyprus, you can buy what you need, and you may even need it to buy your freedom.” Gerald Celente

-”I am currently at a conference in Boston. This is a conference for hedge funds and family offices. These people still don’t understand gold. Virtually nobody here is invested in gold. It shows you how early we are in this bull market. That will change over the next few years. We will see massive inflows into gold from these type of funds. It will be absolutely necessary to protect them from the coming destruction of their portfolios. So there is no reason for people to be nervous when it comes to gold. Gold is real wealth. It is an asset that will preserve your wealth in a way that no other asset will. As far as I’m concerned gold is going to $5,000 first, then $10,000, and probably much higher.” Egon von Greyerz

-”So the panic will be of a magnitude that no one can understand today. This will lead to destruction of paper currencies. It will also lead to precious metals going up dramatically as they will ultimately reflect the destruction of the paper currencies. There are two ways for people’s savings to disappear: It can be stolen by investors or depositors having to take massive cuts. The money can also be stolen or destroyed through endless money printing. This money printing is absolutely guaranteed in the future. Whatever path we see, investors will suffer. Anyone holding cash today in the banking system will have, number one, the risk of the banking system, and secondly the risk of confiscation or taxation. But third, there is the destruction of their money through endless paper money printing. This will ultimately lead to the currencies going to their intrinsic value which is zero.” Egon von Greyerz

-”It is extremely important for people around the world to understand that if history has taught us one thing, it is that central planning has never, ever succeeded. This group of central planners will fail as well. They are designed to fail and they know it. They are simply there to buy time before a new world currency is put in place.” Jim Sinclair

-”As money flees the financial system, one of the top items being purchased will be physical gold. Right now the gold market is engaged in an enormous fight between physical and paper. But two to three years from today people around the world will come to realize that gold is for your savings, and currencies are for doing business. There’s absolutely no question that when it’s confirmed that the depositors’ loss of money is not a tax, not a new way of making things whole, but in fact the actual disaster that the global banking system is currently in, you will have a move toward physical gold greater than anyone on this planet now believes is possible. We will also witness the beginning of a level of fear and panic not seen in this world since 1929.” Jim Sinclair

-”The paper manipulation of the gold market has had a significant impact on people who don’t understand what is really happening here. At this point we know they can create an infinite supply of paper to suppress the paper side of the market. Although this may be discouraging to the smaller players in the market, for the entities such as Russia and China, they are just using the low price to continue their massive accumulation of physical gold.” John Embry

-”Right now there is this growing belief that the US economy is rebounding in a robust manner. The reality is that much of what is being reported is propaganda and government manipulation of economic numbers. I don’t see how the economy cannot run into trouble in the near future. In an over-indebted economy you really can’t get it to grow sustainably by creating more and more debt because the problem in the first place is the debt. So I’m watching the economy and waiting to see if it begins to follow in the path of Japan, Europe, and most of the rest of the world which is struggling mightily.” John Embry

-”As Asia looks forward, you can see Europe and North America looking backward and becoming a police state. But the bottom line is the world financial system is engaged in extremely inflationary policies, and because of that you will eventually see it kick into commodity prices as well as gold and silver. So I am still very bullish on the metals. No matter what happens with Cyprus, all of this is going to be good for both gold and silver.” Keith Barron

-”The important point here is if they can steal it in Cyprus, they can do the same in Spain, Italy or any other country where the banks are insolvent, and the reality is that most of the global banking system is insolvent. But sometimes it takes a while for a lesson to sink in. Some people began recognizing the counterparty risk that comes with bank deposits when Northern Rock collapsed in 2007, and the point was driven home again in 2008 with the Lehman debacle. This crucial lesson is again being made clear from Cyprus, and the key point here is the one you and I have made time and again over the years: It is essential to have money outside the banking system, and the best way to do that is to own physical gold and silver.” James Turk

-”I still buy gold. It is central bank insurance. Maybe we need to think of it as bureaucrat insurance if you are in Europe. I mean you had a bunch of guys get together in Europe and go, ‘Well, let’s do this. Don’t you think it’s a good idea?’ So they just ran off and they are confiscating bank deposits. If you had gold and gold coins you are looking a lot better today. You need some government insurance. You need some central bank insurance. I don’t think of gold as an investment. I keep saying that. I hope I never use my gold, but I still buy it every month.” John Mauldin

-What Happened In Cyprus Will Happen Everywhere: Marc Faber. Growing wealth inequality means that the wealthy have nowhere to hide and that events like those in Cyprus will happen in more countries around the world, including developed nations, said Marc Faber, the contrarian investor and publisher of the Gloom, Boom & Doom Report. “It will happen everywhere in the world, in Western democracies,” Faber said “Squawk on the Street” on Tuesday. “You have more people that vote for a living than work for a living.

I think you have to be prepared to lose 20 to 30 percent. I think you’re lucky if you don’t lose your life.” “If you look at what happened in Cyprus, basically people with money will lose part of their wealth, either through expropriation or higher taxation,” he added. “The problem is that 92 percent of financial wealth is owned by 5 percent of the population. The majority of people don’t own meaningful stock positions and they don’t benefit from a rise in the stock market.

They are being hurt by a rising cost of living and we all know that the real incomes of median households has been going down for the last few years,” he said. He added that in other periods when there was only one game in town, including the NASDAQ in 1997-2000 and the housing market and commodities in 2008 “it ended badly, and I’m very cautious about the U.S. market.” “I think we could very well rise and then have a crash from the summer onward,” he said. “I am not short U.S. equities because we have this money printing, which will obviously lead to some misallocation of capital,” he said. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16xpRSm

-Eric Sprott & Shree Kargutkar: Caveat Depositor. Governments around the world are finally beginning to realize the gravity of the risk that exists in their banking sectors. The EU has decided to build upon the new template of the “bail-in” regime. The US, UK and Canada have all followed suit. This puts the onus squarely upon the depositor. The depositor is a lender to the financial institution that he banks with. However, most depositors naively assume that their deposits are 100% safe in their banks and trust them to safeguard their savings. Under the new “template” all lenders (including depositors) to the bank can be forced to “bail in” their respective banks.

Several G7 countries already have provisions that allow troubled banks to be bailed in using depositor accounts. We have been vocal about our concerns over the state of the global financial system for the better part of the decade. The Greek tragedy is now being played out in Cyprus with a new twist as depositors have been unwillingly turned into sacrificial lambs. Given the size of the banking sector in most G7 countries and the burgeoning government debts, the ability of the governments to bail out their banks is severely constrained, especially considering the political headwinds that exist today. For this reason, we strongly believe that real assets trump a fiat currency in a “savings” account. It is not our intention to be alarmist here, merely to say, “caveat depositor.” Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZeNEHb

-Neil Macdonald: Ottawa weighing plans for bank failures. Federal government looking at ‘Cyprus solution.’ Buried deep in last month’s federal budget is an ambiguously worded section that has roiled parts of the financial world but has so far been largely ignored by the mainstream media. It boils down to this: Ottawa is contemplating the possibility of a Canadian bank failure and the same sort of pitiless prescription that was just imposed in Cyprus. Meaning no bailout by taxpayers, but rather a “bail-in” that would force the bank’s creditors to absorb the staggering losses that such an event would inevitably entail. If that sounds sobering, it should. While officials in Ottawa are playing down the possibility of a raid on the bank accounts of ordinary Canadians, they chose not to include that guarantee in the budget language. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13Vn7Rd

-Brian Lilley: The Cyprus model for Canada’s big banks. I started asking on Monday, and again on Tuesday, whether the confiscation of money from private bank accounts could happen in Canada the way it has happened in Cyprus. My argument was that yes it could, especially given that Cyprus is a modern European nation and that the decision to dip into accounts was made by finance ministers and officials from countries such as Germany, France and Italy. This was not a Robert Mugabe theft of cash. If it can happen there then it can happen here. Little did I know that the answer was already in the budget on page 145 (155 of the PDF). Read more here-http://bit.ly/10xmpUa and http://bit.ly/10sGc83

-Russian Leader Warns, “Get All Money Out Of Western Banks Now! A Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) “urgent bulletin” being sent to Embassies around the world today is advising both Russian citizens and companies to begin divesting their assets from Western banking and financial institutions “immediately” as Kremlin fears grow that both the European Union and United States are preparing for the largest theft of private wealth in modern history.

According to this “urgent bulletin,” this warning is being made at the behest of Prime Minister Medvedev who earlier today warned against the Western banking systems actions against EU Member Cyprus by stating: “All possible mistakes that could be made have been made by them, the measure that was proposed is of a confiscation nature, and unprecedented in its character. I can’t compare it with anything but decisions made by Soviet authorities when they didn’t think much about the savings of their population. But we are living in the 21st century, under market economic conditions. Everybody has been insisting that ownership rights should be respected.” Read more here-http://bit.ly/16pOgqN

-Russia to ban cash transactions over $10,000. Russia may ban cash payments for purchases of more than 300,000 rubles (around $10,000) starting in 2015. The move is expected to boost banks’ cash reserves and put a damper on Russia’s shadow economy. However, the middle class will most likely end up having to pay the price for the scheme. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10y5Kzm

-Stockman Warns of Crash of Fed-Fueled Bubble Economy. The U.S. economy is in a bubble inflated by “phony money” from the Federal Reserve and will burst within a few years, warned David Stockman, who was budget director for President Ronald Reagan. In an essay published in the New York Times, Stockman wrote that the Fed’s quantitative easing policies following the credit crisis have flooded stock markets with cash even while the “Main Street economy” remains weak. The combination, he wrote, is “unsustainable.”

“When it bursts, there will be no new round of bailouts like the ones the banks got in 2008,” wrote Stockman, a former senior managing director at Blackstone Group LP and a former Republican congressman from Michigan. “Instead, America will descend into an era of zero-sum austerity and virulent political conflict, extinguishing even today’s feeble remnants of economic growth.” Stockman, 66, is the author of “The Great Deformation: The Corruption of Capitalism in America,” which was published this week. He rose to prominence during the early 1980s in the Reagan administration while pushing supply-side economics, which held that income tax cuts would boost economic growth and raise more revenue for the government. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Z9gcuP and http://bloom.bg/XquyNg

-Judge rules Stockton, Calif., to enter bankruptcy. The people of Stockton will feel financial fallout for years after a federal judge ruled Monday to let the city become the most populous in the nation to enter bankruptcy. Read more here-http://buswk.co/XPffNn and http://lat.ms/XqECFX

-State auditor: California’s net worth at negative $127.2 billion. Were California’s state government a business, it would be a candidate for insolvency with a negative net worth of $127.2 billion, according to an annual financial report issued by State Auditor Elaine Howle and the Bureau of State Audits. Read more here-http://bit.ly/XPip3C

-U.S. sees highest poverty spike since the 1960s, leaving 50 million Americans poor as government cuts billions in spending so does that mean there’s no way out? The number of Americans living in poverty has spiked to levels not seen since the mid 1960s, classing 20 per cent of the country’s children as poor. It comes at a time when government spending cuts of $85 billion have kicked in after feuding Democrats and Republicans failed to agree on a better plan for addressing the national deficit. The cuts will directly affect 50 million Americans living below the poverty income line and reduce their chances of finding work and a better life. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12f3X7F

-8,853,614: Americans on Disability Hits Another Record; Exceeds 3x Population of Chicago. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Zb2d7U

-Jack Bogle Warns: Prepare For Two Massive Market Declines In The Next Decade. CNBC anchor Scott Wapner put the question to Bogle: “You say, ‘prepare for at least two declines of 25-30 percent, maybe even 50 percent, in the coming decade.’ For a buy-and-hold guy, that’s a little concerning, don’t you think?” Read more here-http://read.bi/16pFwRw

-Jim Rogers: ‘You Better Run For The Hills.’ Rogers said that he has started the process in several European countries to get his bank accounts under the insured amounts. “Everybody should do the same thing too, because they’re going to go crazy the next time around,” he said. On the stock market hitting all-time highs, Rogers said that “it is very artificial. If you give me a trillion dollars, I’ll show you a good time too and a lot of people are having a good time. I’m somewhat skeptical because I know it’s going to end badly.” “I’m certainly not investing in the U.S., because the U.S. is making all-time highs based on money printing,” he said, adding that he’s put money in Russia and Japan recently. “The whole world is benefiting from all this money being printed, but there are better places than where the all-time high is.” Read more here-http://read.bi/YwM29d

-Richard Russell: I Haven’t Seen Anything Like This In 60 Years. The disconnect between the stock market and reality is becoming acute. For instance, retirement has become an American dream. New research by the Employee Benefit Research found that only 13 percent of workers felt that they would ever be able to stop working, which represents a huge drop since 2007. This means that many workers will remain on the job, rather than try for retirement. The sad part of this is that new-comers to the job market are having a very difficult time finding a job since there are far fewer job openings. Read more here-http://bit.ly/XPIiAj

-David Rosenberg: I See 10 Signs That Show The Stock Market Is Overbought. Read more here-http://read.bi/Z5oH0X

-Gross Says Buffett to Soros Careers Fueled by Expansion. Bill Gross, manager of the world’s largest mutual fund, said the most renowned investors from Warren Buffett to George Soros may owe their reputations to a favorable era for money management as expanding credit fueled gains in asset prices across markets. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Z8s5Z4

-Ambrose Evans-Pritchard: Helicopter QE will never be reversed. Readers of the Daily Telegraph were right all along. Quantitative easing will never be reversed. It is not liquidity management as claimed so vehemently at the outset. It really is the same as printing money. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13VnECs

-BOJ to pump $1.4 trillion into economy in unprecedented stimulus. The Bank of Japan unleashed the world’s most intense burst of monetary stimulus on Thursday, promising to inject about $1.4 trillion into the economy in less than two years, a radical gamble that sent the yen reeling and bond yields to record lows. New Governor Haruhiko Kuroda committed the BOJ to open-ended asset buying and said the monetary base would nearly double to 270 trillion yen ($2.9 trillion) by the end of 2014, a dose of shock therapy officials hope will end two decades of stagnation.

The policy was viewed as a radical gamble to boost growth and lift inflation expectations and is unmatched in scope even by the U.S. Federal Reserve’s own quantitative easing program. The Fed may buy more debt, but since Japan’s economy is about one-third the size of the economy, Kuroda’s plan looks even bolder. “This is an unprecedented degree of monetary easing,” a smiling Kuroda told a news conference after his first policy meeting at the helm of the central bank. “We took all available steps we can think of. I’m confident that all necessary measures to achieve 2 percent inflation in two years were taken today,” he said. Read more here-http://reut.rs/14HtUwO

-China to Surpass U.S. as World’s Top Crude Importer, OPEC Says. China is on course to overtake the U.S. as the world’s top crude importer by 2014, as the Asian country’s growing refining capacity boosts demand and America’s fracking boom cuts the need for foreign oil, OPEC said. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10t8rT1

-Hunt Becomes Billionaire on Bakken Oil After Bankruptcy. William Herbert Hunt was once one of the wealthiest men on Earth. With his brother, Nelson Bunker Hunt, the billionaire bought more than 195 million ounces of silver 60 percent of the U.S. market in the 1970s. By early 1980, their stake was valued at more than $9 billion. The Hunts’ position imploded when silver prices plummeted 80 percent over the course of a few weeks in March 1980, culminating 33 years ago this week on what traders called Silver Thursday. The crash rattled Wall Street and sent the Texas brothers into bankruptcy. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/16xutru

-Freeh Says Corzine’s Risky Strategy Helped Fell MF Global. Former MF Global Holdings Ltd. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Jon S. Corzine’s risky business strategies and mismanagement helped accelerate the futures brokerage’s demise, according to a report by bankruptcy trustee Louis Freeh. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10zKUjh

-The World’s Oldest Bank Admits To Losing Billions In Deposits After String Of Scandals. Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena, Italy’s third-largest bank and the world’s oldest, has admitted in a statement posted quietly on its website that its customer deposits have fallen by a “few billion euros.” That was after a series of scandals rocked the more than 600-year-old institution, which included a €730 million derivatives loss it racked up from 2006 to 2009. These transactions are at the heart of a fraud probe at the bank. Italian prosecutors are investigating whether MPS used derivatives transactions to hide losses from regulators. Read more here-http://read.bi/10slNA2

-Ex-Goldman Trader Admits to Hiding $8 Billion Position. Former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. trader Matthew Taylor pleaded guilty to concealing an unauthorized $8.3 billion trading position in 2007, causing the bank to lose $118 million. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10y5jVQ

-Libor Suits by Bondholders Tossed Over Lack of Damages. Banks including Bank of America Corp., Barclays Plc and JPMorgan Chase & Co. won dismissal of antitrust lawsuits by plaintiffs claiming they were harmed by the rigging of the London interbank offered rate. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10×0b4v

-Money-Laundering Banks Still Get a Pass From U.S. Money laundering by large international banks has reached epidemic proportions, and U.S. authorities are supposedly looking into Citigroup Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. Governor Jerome Powell, on behalf of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, recently testified to Congress on the issue, and he sounded serious. But international criminals and terrorists needn’t worry. This is window dressing: Complicit bankers have nothing to fear from the U.S. justice system. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10A0VEw

-Italy seizes record 1.7 billion euro from Sicilian. Italian police have seized a record $1.7 billion in cash and property from a single person, a Sicilian alternative energy entrepreneur alleged to have close ties to the Mafia. Read more here-http://yhoo.it/YSM3nB

-Unemployment in Euro Zone Reaches a Record 12%. While the euro zone has been transfixed lately by the Cyprus meltdown, another and potentially bigger European crisis has continued to simmer: record-high unemployment. Read more here-http://nyti.ms/YU2uzZ and http://cnnmon.ie/YwZcmR

-Currency auction puts Venezuela through new devaluation. A Venezuelan government foreign currency auction for local importers has triggered a de-facto currency devaluation, the second in less than 50 days, analysts said. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16tDq3c

-Programmer Robert McNally Put Together A Presentation On What Bitcoin Really Is. Read more here-http://read.bi/XNex38

-Can bitcoin compete with government currencies? Read more here-http://bit.ly/16xsHXg

-China bird flu: More people die from new H7N9 virus. Commission experts said on Saturday the cause had been identified as H7N9, a strain of avian flu not thought to have been transmitted to humans before. There is no vaccine against the strain, the commission said, adding it was currently testing to assess its ability to infect humans. Scientists around the world who are investigating the strain suggested the virus could be hard to track because it shows no symptoms in poultry but can be fatal in humans. Read more here-http://bbc.in/Z8hQ74 and http://buswk.co/16nKzSG

-Five Dead of Bird Flu in China as Virus Found in Pigeons. Five people have died from the new strain of bird flu that emerged in eastern China as authorities detected the virus in pigeon samples collected at a marketplace. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10woNeK

-Signed Copy of Beatles’ ‘Sgt. Pepper’s’ Auctions for $290,500. The album was signed by the Fab Four in 1967, and shattered the previous selling price for such an item. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YTInSH

-Holy Cow! Karlie Sells for $170,000. Think beef is expensive now? A cow just sold for a record $170,000 at auction in Syracuse, New York. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10sfrkb

Back to Top

-Rarecoloreddiamonds.com Featured Diamond of the Week. This week’s Diamond is a 0.76 Carat Heart Cut Fancy Intense Pink Argyle. Harold Seigel-Watch video of the Featured Diamond here-http://bit.ly/LIsp98

-Bulgari diamond ring set to top £1 million. A rare deep-blue diamond ring worth more than £1 million could make history when it goes on sale this month. The “fancy” diamond weighs 5.30 carats and is set in a Trombino ring made by renowned Italian jeweller Bulgari, who is favoured by Hollywood film stars. The term fancy is used to describe a diamond of intense colour and the colour fancy deep-blue is one of the rarest in the world. The cushion-shaped diamond is set horizontally within a mount of brilliant-cut diamonds and baguette-cut diamonds.

Blue diamonds are structurally very pure and account for less than 1% of all diamonds mined. The ring is thought to have been made in 1965 and is estimated to fetch up to £1.5 million at Bonhams Fine Jewellery sale on April 24. The world record price for a fancy deep-blue diamond is 1,038,000 US dollars (about £686,000) per carat but, according to staff at Bonhams, the Bulgari ring has the potential to break this. Jean Ghika, director of the jewellery department, said: “There have only been 30 diamonds of this size and colour that have come up for sale globally over the last 10 years which is a fraction of the percentage of white diamonds that have been sold during the same period of time.

“There are a number of people who are interested in this kind of stone because they don’t come on the market very often. It attracts connoisseurs, collectors and people who just simply want to wear it because it’s a wonderful stone.” In September 2011 Bonhams sold a fancy vivid-blue diamond ring by Bulgari for £1.9 million. The ring, set with two pear-shaped diamonds, more than doubled the pre-sale estimate which is why experts predict the Trombino Bulgari ring will produce another record-breaking sale. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12lOnHi

Back to Top

CYPRUS

-Bank of Cyprus Clients May Lose Up to 60% on Deposits. Cyprus may impose losses of as much as 60 percent on Bank of Cyprus Plc accounts exceeding 100,000 euros as part of an aid deal to stop the country from going bankrupt. Customers will have 37.5 percent of their deposits above this amount converted into shares with full voting rights and access to any future Bank of Cyprus dividend, the Nicosia-based central bank said in an e-mailed statement. A further 22.5 percent will be temporarily withheld to ensure the lender meets the terms of its recapitalization, as agreed under Cyprus’s loan agreement with international creditors, the central bank said.

President Nicos Anastasiades agreed March 25 to impose losses on Bank of Cyprus’s larger depositors in exchange for a 10 billion-euro bailout after failing to get financial aid from Russia, one of the nation’s biggest investors. The agreement also shuttered Cyprus Popular Bank Pcl, the country’s second- largest lender. The deposit-loss plan “will make things worse as small and medium-sized companies will run out of liquidity,” Marios Mavrides, a lawmaker for the ruling Disy party, said in a phone interview from Nicosia. The move “does not help to gain back people’s trust, deposits should be free in order to gain that trust.” Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10b1Uxw and http://reut.rs/14FupHI

-Numbness gives way to anger in Cyprus over bailout. Public shock in Cyprus about the tough terms of an international bailout is turning into anger as millions of euros remain locked in the country’s banks. Cypriots were stunned by last month’s collapse of its second-biggest lender, Popular Bank, and a decision to slap losses on large deposits at the Bank of Cyprus in return for financial aid from the European Union and IMF.

They are now demanding answers after allegations earlier this week that a company connected to the family of President Nicos Anastasiades shifted money out of one of the distressed lenders just before the banking system was effectively locked down on March 15. Anger and impatience is rising as the results of an official inquiry into what caused the crisis, and exactly who knew what and when, is unlikely to be ready for weeks. Read more here-http://yhoo.it/10CHg6W

-’I went to sleep Friday as a rich man. I woke up a poor man.’ ”Very bad, very, very bad,” says 65-year-old John Demetriou, rubbing tears from his lined face with thick fingers. ”I lost all my money.” John now lives in the picturesque fishing village of Liopetri on Cyprus‘ south coast. But for 35 years he lived at Bondi Junction and worked days, nights and weekends in Sydney markets selling jewellery and imitation jewellery. He had left Cyprus in the early 1970s at the height of its war with Turkey, taking his wife and young children to safety in Australia.

He built a life from nothing and, gradually, a substantial nest egg. He retired to Cyprus in 2007 with about $1 million, his life savings. He planned to spend it on his grandchildren some of whom live in Cyprus putting them through university and setting them up. There would be medical bills; he has a heart condition. The interest was paying for a comfortable retirement, and trips back to Australia. He also toyed with the idea of buying a boat. He wanted to leave any big purchases a few years, to be sure this was where he would spend his retirement. There was no hurry. But now it is all gone. ”If I made the decision to stay, I was going to build a house,” John says. ”Unfortunately I didn’t make the decision yet. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Zaf4OA

-Michael Pento: The Real Fallout From Cyprus. The EU is simply setting the tone for the future in that more banks will go under and not all creditors and depositors will be made whole. Therefore, expect more depositors to lose their money. But the important point here is that future bailouts from the IMF, ECB and EU will also involve some deleveraging from the private sector. And that is several steps towards capitalism ahead of the U.S.

We shouldn’t forget that when the U.S. had its financial crisis in 2008, our government unlike what the Troika is trying to accomplish now in Europe guaranteed all bank debt and actually expanded deposit insurance. Shouldn’t holders of Euros find some long-term solace that their central bank is taking a stand against endless money printing? It should also be noted that Cyprus’ debt to GDP ratio is about 127% and the U.S. only carries a slightly less burden of 107%. Therefore, expect the high probability of massive currency depreciation and bailouts needed here once our interest rates rise. This will not bode well for the dollar in the long-term and will be a strong catalyst to send gold prices higher. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Z00int

Back to Top

REAL ESTATE

-Obama administration pushes banks to make home loans to people with weaker credit. The Obama administration is engaged in a broad push to make more home loans available to people with weaker credit, an effort that officials say will help power the economic recovery but that skeptics say could open the door to the risky lending that caused the housing crash in the first place. Read more here-http://wapo.st/XdCdw0

-Inside The US Housing Market That Robert Shiller Is Already Calling ‘Exuberant.’ Legendary housing expert Robert Shiller describes the Las Vegas market is “frothy” and showing signs of “exuberance.” Read more here-http://read.bi/10wQiCq

-Americans Seize Second Chance Post-Foreclosure. Jason Schmitt lost his $90,000-a- year job at an oil rig in 2009. The bank repossessed his Tulsa, Oklahoma home and the former Army combat engineer went bankrupt. Last month, after moving with his family to his Missouri hometown, he got a Veterans Administration mortgage that lets borrowers buy property just two years after a foreclosure. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10vEwK5

-Review of Botched U.S. Foreclosures Beset by Missteps, GAO Says. A $2 billion search for U.S. foreclosure errors was hampered by poor planning from the regulators who demanded it, according to a review by the Government Accountability Office. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/16pu20u

-Manhattan Apartment Prices Climb as Home Inventory Drops. Manhattan apartment prices climbed in the first quarter as buyers competed for properties amid the biggest inventory decline in more than a decade. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/XerxNJ

-IMF Urges Denmark to Drop Risky Mortgages as Losses Loom. The International Monetary Fund is urging Denmark to phase out interest-only mortgages or risk destabilizing its housing market, as lawmakers and lenders debate whether to aid borrowers unable to pay their loans. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/YR7upb

-Mexico Follows U.S. in Foreclosures Crushing Builders. Just as the U.S. emerges from the worst of its foreclosure crisis, Mexico’s is getting worse. Home repossessions more than doubled last year to a record 43,853 from 2011, according to Infonavit, the state-backed lender responsible for about 70 percent of home loans in Mexico, as the past decade’s expansion in government-subsidized housing backfires and adds to a glut of empty homes weighing on the nation’s beleaguered builders. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/104EKc5

-Beijing Curbs Second Home Buying as China Cools Property Market. China’s capital, Beijing, banned single-person households from buying more than one residence and increased the minimum down-payment for all buyers of second homes as the government seeks to cool the property market. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10xZrvF

-A Closer Look At The Chinese ‘Ghost Mall’ Seen On ‘60 Minutes’ Reveals A Complicated Picture. Read more here-http://read.bi/12cc7xo

-Step Inside The Magnificent NYC Penthouse That Just Hit The Market For $125 Million. Read more here-http://read.bi/13RtZPn

Back to Top

GEOPOLITICAL

-North Korea says it has approval to use its ‘cutting edge’ nuclear weapons against the United States in a ‘merciless’ attack just hours after Chuck Hagel calls them a ‘clear and present danger.’ Read more here-http://bit.ly/10s3lYf and http://bloom.bg/11oMx5G

-U.S. General Says North Korea Situation Is ‘Volatile’ and ‘Dangerous.’ Gen. James Thurman, the top U.S. commander in South Korea, said that in his two years on the job he has never seen things as tense as they are right now, telling ABC News the situation on the Korean peninsula as “volatile” and “dangerous.” Read more here-http://abcn.ws/12fbNOH

-US Navy shifts destroyer in wake of North Korea missile threats. The U.S. Navy is shifting a guided-missile destroyer in the Pacific to waters off the Korean peninsula in the wake of ongoing rhetoric from North Korea, U.S. defense officials said. The USS McCain is capable of intercepting and destroying a missile, should North Korea decide to fire one off, the officials said. Read more here-http://nbcnews.to/14OIu6c

-North Korea Says It’s in ‘State of War’ With South Korea. North Korea said it’s in a “state of war” with South Korea, escalating threats against the neighboring nation a day after putting its forces on standby to strike South Korean and U.S. targets. “Every issue raised between the North and South will be dealt with in a wartime manner,” the state-run Korean Central News Agency said today, citing what it called a special statement. U.S. stealth bomber flights over South Korea this week are “unacceptable” and North Korea’s statement is a “final warning” to the U.S. and its allies, KCNA said. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Z9j6jj

-North Korea Seen Unable to Deliver Nuclear Attack on U.S. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/12mhXsw

-North Korean Reactor Restart Provocative Act, Kerry Warns. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said it would be a “serious step” if North Korea violates its obligations by following through on a threat to restart nuclear facilities shut by a 2007 disarmament accord. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/108HZiK

Back to Top

WORLD FINANCIAL REPORT ON RADIO APR 2 2013

WWPMC.COM  PRECIOUS METALS TELEPHONE # 1-866-623-2002

RARECOLOREDDIAMONDS.COM  DIAMONDS TELEPHONE # 1-800-432-1022

HSFINEAUCTIONS.COM NEXT AUCTION TBA

GOLD

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Record-Free Gold Run Longest Since 28-Year Gap. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/16g6CMV

-”There’s a clear and present opportunity we see in the Cyprus crisis, which has already given the price of gold a shot in the arm. However it turns out, the cat is out of the bag as regards how the EU regards peoples’ savings, and that could lead to the next leg up in the gold market. If the whole system does topple over the edge of the abyss, it should spark a gold mania such as have never been seen before, not even during the famous spike of 1980.” Louis James Senior Metals Investment Strategist Casey Research

-”Gold is an expression of lack of confidence or fear for your wealth, any number of things like that. It’s about an expression of lack of confidence in the authorities. It (the Cyprus disaster) is a huge catalyst. All I can say is the markets are so warped by money printing for so long, they don’t react to anything until the last minute and then they implode.” Bill Fleckenstein

-”Gold continues to see a war going on at the $1,600 level. It is not in the best interest of the West to see gold do any type of move that would increase its exposure as being an alternative currency. Once gold begins its next magnificent rise and breaks to new all-time highs there will be even more demand for gold and the people in charge of the West know this. That’s why they are battling so hard to keep the price suppressed. This latest series of events in Cyprus just shows how desperate Western central planners have become. They are not letting the markets trade freely because they would reveal the horror of what has just taken place. But gold will have its day and so will silver. Just make sure you have physical gold and silver and not paper.” Stephen Leeb

-Jim Sinclair: Cyprus, Gold, Russia & A New Monetary System. It’s obvious that the intention of the paper market for gold is to collapse the price under $1,600. The buyer of this market has been the physical buyer. The transition we are going through is, who is the arbiter of price, paper or physical? The worst thing that could happen to the paper shorts is that, yes, they do get it through $1,600 (on the downside), but barely. Gold may trade to $1,575 to $1,580 in that event, but gold will immediately come back through $1,600 and all the way through the $1,800 level. This action would be the beginning of the end of the paper market controlling the price of gold. Read more here-http://bit.ly/WTKB3A

-John Embry: Cyprus, Massive Global Debt, Derivatives & The End Game. I’m not the least bit concerned about gold. Every time they push gold under $1,600 it’s just another fabulous buying opportunity. The manipulators are being short-sighted because I know the Russians can’t be too happy about what is taking place with the Cyprus issue. The Russians understand the gold market as well as anybody. I’ve seen Russian representatives at GATA conferences as far back as 8 years ago.

So when they see gold being pushed down to unrealistically low prices, I can assure you they are in there buying, and I’m sure the Chinese will be right behind them. I would also note that ABN AMRO Bank just said that even if you hold gold in their system, you can’t get it out. If you want to sell it they will give you cash, otherwise your gold is in good hands. This just confirmed what I’ve always believed, and this is that the gold in the banking system has been hypothecated and re-hypothecated so many times that nobody is going to be able to get their physical gold. So, again, Egon von Greyerz deserves credit because he’s been telling people for years to get their gold out of the banking system. This latest announcement by ABN AMRO just confirms exactly what Egon has been saying. Read more here-http://bit.ly/WTNBNA

-Robert Fitzwilson: There was a time when the world was focused on creating wealth. In the last 10-15 years, the wealth creation machine and the firewalls protecting it were dismantled. The goal then changed to grabbing as much of the wealth that existed and confiscating what remained through excessive monetary/debt creation. A small percentage of the global population has succeeded in accumulating vast sums of money. Our guess is much of that wealth has remained in financial instruments including bank deposits.

What the events of last week demonstrated was that the assumptions about the safety and sanctity of the financial instruments were flawed. Bank accounts can be confiscated. The shocking nature of the proposed confiscation also suggests that the monetary systems themselves are coming to the end of the road. Instead of continuously creating more debt, this was really a raw power grab to extinguish previously created debt in the form of bank deposits.

As money really represents claims on someone else’s property and labor, perhaps the Germans are really saying that they are not willing to provide the means of repayment on those obligations. The most direct way to do that is outright confiscation. So for the truly wealthy, they now face the same risk of the small depositors, and that is what to do. If they leave the money in the financial system, they are easy targets for confiscation. If they decide to mitigate that risk, the question becomes “To where and into what?.”

The central banks and the global monetary system are all joined at the hip. If you start to doubt the system, where can you go? You can go into real assets such as prime real estate, resources, gold and silver, but there is not enough to go around. We wrote last year about how people panic in groups. If you are very wealthy, are you the lucky one to panic early, or are you going to be part of the norm and panic late? If the latter, your wealth will likely be destroyed.

The available solutions will have already been taken by those who panicked early. Like a tsunami, it can spread silently throughout the world financial markets. We should look for the telltale ripple effects as the early movers try to protect their assets before it is too late. If the wealthy panic as a group, we will see the equivalent of 50-foot financial tsunamis in virtually all markets. It has been said that staying wealthy is much harder than becoming so. The truly wealthy are about to relearn that lesson. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11HUQZ9

-Rick Rule: Cyprus & Why Investors Must Be Careful Not To Get Wiped Out. A second, bigger issue is the whole idea of government bank regulation. It was pointed out to me before the call that the British government is basically telling the British banks how much money to raise. These regulators, these governments, are the very people who can’t balance their own budgets. And now they are trying to explain to the banks how the banks should budget? This is truly crazy. We have a situation where the inmates are in control of the asylum.

Further to that (point), if you look behind the collapse of the Cypriot banks, what it had to do with was their investment in defaulted government bonds. So you have the class that caused the banks to go broke, regulating how and in what the banks can invest, and how they can fashion their recovery. This is like asking bank robbers to explain to the bank how to make up the shortfall that was a consequence of the bank robbers busting into the bank to begin with. This is truly strange.

People need to take the whole range of lessons from Cyprus into account: One, that ultimately, given the leveraged nature of the system, deposit insurance is just another social promise which won’t be able to be kept. Two, that the regulators are completely incapable of balancing their own budgets, never mind managing a business as complex as banking. Three, you need to have some of your assets outside of the system. You need to own some things that they can’t print and regulate. And of one my nominations for one of those things would be bullion, gold, silver, platinum or palladium. Read more here-http://bit.ly/WXceZH

-Gijsbert Groenewegen. Backwardation in a down market! Gold and silver are poised to go much higher. I believe that when the market finally realizes the bankrupt state of the economies, as illustrated again by the problems of a small country like Cyprus, that the US dollar and gold will rise in tandem. Though at one stage the US dollar will drop like a stone, when people realize what kind of dire straits the US economy and finances are in, and that will be the moment that we will see gold and silver going stratospheric! In my point of view gold and silver look very cheap and very attractive and the backwardation can be explained as a clear indication that the monetary authorities are very nervous about gold and silver taking off. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YdslmO

-Clive Maund: Gold Market Update. Read more here-http://bit.ly/106Okdg

-Frank Holmes: In Gold, Not Cyprus, We Trust. It may be apt timing for investors to become reacquainted with gold, as our oscillator chart shows that the yellow metal appears to be oversold. On a year-over-year basis, gold has fallen more than 2 standard deviations, an event that has rarely occurred over the past 10 years. As I’ve indicated before, following these extreme lows, gold has historically rallied. Read more here-http://bit.ly/15RKrdL

-Kyle Bass Explains Why He Had The University Of Texas Take Physical Delivery Of $1 Billion In Solid Gold. Read more here-http://read.bi/1076R9d

-Mike Kosares: Wealth won, wealth lost. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11JrCsI

-Richard Russell: Cyprus, Gold, & The World’s Money Masters. Read more here-http://bit.ly/14n7gcZ

-Summary of Jim Sinclair’s New York seminar. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10cf0YB

-Jeff Clark: Whom to Believe on Gold: Central Banks or Bloomberg? Read more here-http://bit.ly/15VtdMF

-Zero Hedge: Dutch bank won’t let gold customers take their gold away. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13uXBC4

-Swiss gold reserves make TV appearance hours after repatriation petitions are filed. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZVQVYu

-Martin Sibileau: Central bank secrecy means a manipulated gold market. Read more here-http://bit.ly/15RM4s0

Back to Top

SILVER

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $33.33

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $40.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $66.67

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $100.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $133.33

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $41.67

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $62.50

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $83.33

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $125.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $166.67

-”The big take away [from the civil lawsuit against JPMorgan] is that the filing of the civil case was unprecedented in that no government case preceded it. The main reason why this occurred was because the CFTC refuses to acknowledge the obvious, namely, that it is growing common knowledge that silver is manipulated in price by JPMorgan and the agency is in some sort of cahoots with JPM to allow the manipulation to continue. The ongoing CFTC silver investigation was initiated two years before the civil case was brought in November 2010. The civil case should have been patterned after the same issue of concentration that the CFTC still can’t address, namely, how can a U.S. bank holding 30% of a market not be manipulative to the price? Silver analyst Ted Butler March 20 2013 via Ed Steer Casey Research-Read more here-http://bit.ly/YSDd5g

-Clive Maund: Silver Market Update. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZVqylt

-Dr. Alex Cowie: Silver ‘$100 Within Two Years.’ Read more here-http://bit.ly/10QRiF3

-David Baker: Silver’s Investment Demand Conundrum. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13v1l6l

-Ted Butler: The Good, Bad and Ugly. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YDbadX

-US Silver Sales Growing. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YGVWBz

-Russia, South Africa seek to create OPEC-style platinum bloc. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11O9TUZ

Back to Top

CHARTS OF THE WEEK-QUOTES-QUICK HITS

-CHART OF THE WEEK: In One Chart You’ll See Why Nothing’s Getting Fixed In Europe. Read more here-http://read.bi/13tWh2j

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Imagine Logging Into Your Bank And Seeing This. Read more here-http://read.bi/10L9FuT

-CHART OF THE WEEK: It’s Tough To Be A Stock Investor. Most investors understand that they are unlikely to beat the major stock market indexes. Still, many investors remain convinced that they can pick better stocks than everyone else. Mebane Faber points us to some eye-opening statistics from a recent study conducted by Longboard Asset Management who took a close look at the returns of 3,000 stocks from 1983 to 2007.  They show how the odds are stacked against the investor who strays from an indexing strategy.  From Faber:

• 39% of stocks were unprofitable investments.

• 19% of stocks lost at least 75% of their value.

• 64% of stocks underperformed the index.

• 25% of stocks were responsible for all the market’s gains.

In other words, chances are you’re picking the wrong stocks. Read more here-http://read.bi/11Ihctk

chartoftheday.com

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Oil-Demand Plateau Seen as Natural Gas Favored. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/YUmzlG

-”The nature of success and failure in speculation: discipline and perseverance matter much more than strength or speed. It’s necessary, but not sufficient, to be right you have to stay the course.” Louis James Senior Metals Investment Strategist Casey Research

-”What government has succeeded in doing is making the corporate and banking sectors appear to be solvent, while simultaneously bankrupting the Fed and Treasury. Since this is the case, investors should not take any solace in a PE multiple that appears not to be too far stretched. If market forces were allowed to prevail and the government permitted the economy to deleverage, earnings of U.S. corporations would be in a depression. And the price to earnings ratio would reveal that stock prices are already in a bubble. A bubble that is only becoming more dangerous with each day of the Fed’s money printing.” Michael Pento

-”People always say to me, ‘Mr. Celente you are always talking about gold. What are you going to do with gold when everything collapses and there is no money?’ Well, let’s say you are a Cypriot and all of the ATM machines are out of money and the banks are closed? Do you think those pieces of silver are going to buy you what you need? Do you think that ounce of gold is going to get you what you want? That’s the real money. There is no other money. When it all comes down, gold and silver are the only things you have to buy what you need, get what you want, or even get out if you need to.” Gerald Celente

-”Cyprus is truly a disaster for the West. It basically says to every citizen of the West, if your country runs into trouble the governments can come along and just take your money. That’s basically what is says. What worries me is if you have an individual who is retired with let’s say 300,000 or 400,000 euros in the bank, and they suddenly find they have had some of their money or a great deal of their money stolen by governments. Let’s say they are not retired and just run a small business and need to make a payroll. What happens in that situation? The funds are frozen and then part of it is stolen. This is outrageous.” Stephen Leeb

-”While the FDIC currently has about $25 billion available to bail out failing banks in the event of isolated events (mainly held in U.S. treasuries that would need to be sold), it insures more than $10 trillion in deposits. Clearly it lacks the resources to cover major losses in a systemic failure. A failure of just one of the nation’s forty largest banks could swamp the resources of the FDIC. I believe that a significant spike in Treasury yields, to say 6%, would result in the failure of several major banks. Bank of America and Citibank for example each have over $1 trillion in deposits. Where would the FDIC get the money to make the depositors whole in such a situation? The government would be unlikely to pass a major tax increase to fund an FDIC bailout. More likely the Fed would print the money. In that event, depositors may not lose their money, but their money will lose much of its purchasing power.” Peter Schiff

-”The most important point I want to make today is how absolutely critical it is for investors to preserve their wealth. The crisis in Cyprus is yet another sign of the massive destruction of wealth that we will see in the financial system in coming years. Investors must heed this warning and get their assets out of the banks now. The reality is the financial system could fail at any time and this is why investors must act today. See what’s happening in Cyprus: Banks are closed and whether people have cash, stocks, or gold in the bank, they won’t get it out of there. This is why back in 2002 we told our investors to put up to 50% of their assets into physical gold and silver, and also advised them to store it outside of the banking system. The bottom line is that gold is guaranteed to reflect the massive money printing we will continue to see worldwide.” Egon von Greyerz

-”They don’t want to call it theft. But they do want to make the depositors have their capital at risk as an investor would. Of course it comes down to theft, given the traditional nature of a depositor. But they are trying to get around that so that the cost can be imposed on depositors. So, yes, it is theft.” Dr. Paul Craig Roberts

-”The mainstream media is saying this is a banking problem of minor significance. This is Joseph Geobbels style propaganda at its finest because Cyprus will ultimately be seen as a defining event in history. The term ‘Bail-In’ really doesn’t define what it is, which is confiscation. It’s the removal of part of your deposit.” Jim Sinclair

-”The main take away from this is it is a victory because Cyprus remains in the euro. The question is, if you have any deposits in Europe or the United States, are your deposits above $250,000 for the multiple banks you have in is it in fact guaranteed? Many people have had great success in life in terms of accumulation of money, and it sits in banks and brokerage firms with comfort from an FDIC guarantee. However, if that brokerage firm or bank goes broke, what are the parameters that says that the amounts above the guarantee will in fact be made whole. Up to now everybody has been made whole. Up to now every dollar in banks has been returned through QE, bailouts, and through TARP. So, the most important thing regarding what’s taken place here is that large bank deposits are in limbo as to whether or not above the minimums that money will be returned. In Cyprus, the answer is in one bank no, it’s not being returned. The other banks, possibly.” Jim Sinclair

-”Right now the price in the market for gold is clearly not being made by the paper guys. The price of gold is now being made by the physical buyers, and that is a quantum leap in change in the character of the gold market to the degree that I haven’t seen since 1979. Of course the world witnessed a massive rise in the price of gold when that took place. History is about to repeat. I would also add that as we see an increase which I have described in the velocity of money, that is also extraordinarily bullish for gold going forward.” Jim Sinclair

-”I think that leaves us exactly where we’ve been all along. People have to realize that real assets are going to be their salvation when the system comes to a grinding halt. We are at the same point as when we spoke last. Nothing has been solved, and people have to realize the markets are being manipulated in such a way that tells investors everything is fine but everything isn’t fine. The message from the mainstream media is that the economies are going to be recovering, and any positive news is emphasized. Even though the Cyprus news from last week was viewed as catastrophic, the US stock market barely moved to the downside. The stock market is constantly rising and this is supposed to be telling people that things are fine. There are a couple of mainstream commentators communicating that the stock market is telling investors nothing other than the fact that there is a lot of paper being jammed into the system and it’s being reflected in the price of stocks.” John Embry

-”Investors need to be careful here of the Fed’s supposedly good intentions. The desire of the Fed to create a controlled level of inflation is a dangerous game that may end in a disaster that is much worse than Cyprus. If we see a major spike in money velocity because of central planner action, investors must protect themselves with hard assets such as physical gold and silver in order to survive what could turn into an inflationary holocaust. I am inclined to believe that the general purchase of hard assets and tradable goods will begin to pick up in Europe very soon as a result of the Cyprus debacle. This will accelerate the velocity of money and feed inflation. Ultimately, gold and silver prices should rally dramatically.” Kevin Wides

-Greg Hunter: Peter Schiff Interview, Why Leave Extra Money in a Bank. Money manager Peter Schiff says, “Cyprus is a wake-up call for everybody who has a bank deposit. When you are depositor, you are, in fact, lending your money to the bank.” Schiff predicts, “There’s no question banks will fail. The question is will government do the right thing and allow depositors to lose money. Or, do the wrong thing and bail out depositors by printing a bunch of money which, in the long run, means deposits will lose even more value.”

The FDIC has just $33 billion to insure more than $10.8 trillion in deposits. Schiff is not expecting bank runs anytime soon. “Don’t expect an immediate stampede on the banks because I don’t think most people are smart enough to realize what the danger is,” says Schiff. What’s the best way to protect yourself? Schiff says, “Why would you leave any extra money in a bank to get zero percent interest. I think pull your money out, put it into some kind of investment anything other than a piece of paper that’s going to lose value.” Watch more here-http://bit.ly/YUJoFW

-Greg Hunter: Laurence Kotlikoff Interview, I Moved my Money Out of the Stock Market. In January, Economist Dr. Laurence Kotlikoff said he was “worried” that the economy was reaching “a real threatening point.” The Cyprus banking crisis hit the Globe last week. Now, when asked if he was still “worried,” he replied, “This morning, I moved my money out of the stock market because I’m worried about Cyprus.” Dr. Kotlikoff explained his dire concern by saying, “The rich people are already running on these banks. That’s been going on for a year. The everyday working people could start visibly running on these banks, and that could spread like wildfire throughout Southern Europe and Northern Europe and into the U.S. because we have a banking system that’s built to fail.” Dr. Kotlikoff also says, “It’s going to happen in the form of a crash in the bond market. Interest rates are going to skyrocket, and we’re probably going to have high inflation because the government is printing money out the wazoo.” Watch more here-http://bit.ly/YUJCwD

-Nigel Farage: Major European Bank Runs Now Taking Place. The sooner the whole eurozone breaks up and collapses the better off we will all be. Clearly, any sense of an orderly retreat from the eurozone is now going to be very difficult to achieve. But the alternative to that is the rise of violence and extremism across the south of Europe. It’s not pretty whichever way it goes, but as I said, the sooner it breaks up the better. The game that is going on now is so big it is really difficult to foretell what’s going to happen.

But I do fear that if the Cypriot banks have suffered the way they have, mostly of course because of their holdings of Greek debt and the haircuts they had to take, I really think the concern now will move toward the Spanish banking sector. We need to remember that Spain is a very big country. To bail out Spain appeared to me to be something that was just too big. I have said before on KWN that it would mean massive amounts of IMF and American money. The scale of a Spanish bailout would be a staggering 500 billion to 700 billion euros, but now they have shown they are prepared to steal private money. I just do not know where we go from here, but it’s very, very difficult to see things getting better. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YCAxN5

-Fed doves in no rush to scale back asset purchases. Flurry of speeches by central bankers doesn’t change policy outlook. Leading supporters of the Federal Reserve’s bond-buying program are not rushing to scale back the pace of purchases as the job market improves. Read more here-http://on.mktw.net/11OP1cr

-Marc Faber: U.S. Is Creating Nowhere-to-Hide Bubbles. Watch more here-http://bloom.bg/YfsCFR

-BRICS Nations Plan New Bank to Bypass World Bank, IMF. The biggest emerging markets are uniting to tackle under-development and currency volatility with plans to set up institutions that encroach on the roles of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/13u3krG

-Alasdair Macleod: Money supply accelerating. Read more here-http://bit.ly/15QVcx1

-BOE Says U.K. Banks Have a Capital Shortfall of $38 Billion. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/YJXCKx

-Canada Consumer Prices Post Fastest Increase Since 1991. Canadian consumer prices rose at the fastest monthly pace in more than 20 years in February on higher prices for gasoline and clothes, as the nation’s inflation rate rebounded from three-year lows. Consumer prices rose 1.2 percent in February, the biggest monthly gain since January 1991 when the country implemented a new sales tax, following a 0.1 percent increase the previous month, Statistics Canada said today. From a year earlier, prices were also up 1.2 percent, the highest since October, following a 0.5 percent gain in January. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/XcKPVR

-Obama Inks 2013 Funding Bill Locking in Cuts He Opposes. President Barack Obama signed into law a catchall government-funding bill that ends the 2013 budget fight and locks in $85 billion in budget cuts the president opposes. With Obama’s signature, day-to-day operations of cabinet departments and federal agencies will continue without interruption through Sept. 30, the end of the fiscal year. With the automatic budget cuts known as sequestration taking effect, the spending will amount to about $984 billion. The previous funding authorization was due to expire March 27th. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/WUFeB6

-FAA to Close 149 U.S. Airport Towers After Budget Cuts. The U.S. will close 149 air-traffic control towers run by contractors at small- and mid-sized airports beginning on April 7 as a result of automatic budget cuts at government agencies. The Federal Aviation Administration spared 24 towers on its original list of 173 subject to closing, it said in an e-mail. All the towers being shut down are run by private companies, not the government as at larger facilities. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/14mlkDF

-Student loan write-offs hit $3 billion in first two months of year. Banks wrote off $3 billion of student loan debt in the first two months of 2013, up more than 36 percent from the year-ago period, as many graduates remain jobless, underemployed or cash-strapped in a slow U.S. economic recovery, an Equifax study showed. Read more here-http://trib.in/10b36yb

-France’s Towns Demand Rescue From ‘Time Bomb’ of Dexia Loans. French towns from Asnieres to Sainte-Etienne are calling on President Francois Hollande’s government to save them from about 10 billion euros ($13 billion) in Dexia loans whose risks they say weren’t made clear. Sitting on debt pegged to foreign interest rates or currencies, many troubled municipalities are struggling to service their loans and clamoring for help from the state. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/XfvfI6

-European regulators to charge banks over derivatives. European antitrust authorities are moving soon to bring a case against some of the world’s largest banks alleging collusion in the $27 trillion market for credit derivatives, people familiar with the investigation said. The probe by the European Commission involves 16 financial groups. It focuses on whether they sought to stifle competition from exchanges in the market for credit-default swaps, which pay out when a country or a company defaults on its debts. If the European regulators press ahead with their administrative case and win, some or all of the banks could face fines. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10jrOxv

-N. Korea Cuts Hotline to South After Attack Threats. North Korea cut off a military hotline with South Korea a day after putting its artillery forces on high alert and threatening to attack the U.S., in the latest escalation of tensions on the peninsula. “Under the situation where a war may break out any moment, there is no need to keep north-south military communications,” the official Korean Central News Agency said, adding that South Korea was informed at 11:20 a.m. Wednesday. The regime cut off a separate Red Cross hotline on March 8. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/YEva2x

-Ambrose Evans-Pritchard: The dangerous drift towards world war in Asia. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YEo3qW

-Alameda County rewards boss: $400k for life. Alameda County supervisors have really taken to heart the adage that government should run like a business rewarding County Administrator Susan Muranishi with the Wall Street-like wage of $423,664 a year. For the rest of her life. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YcV8b3

-Customers Flee Wal-Mart Empty Shelves for Target, Costco. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10aXBPW

-Millions May Be Affected by Web Disruption in Online Attack. Millions of people may have been affected by an attack that caused disruption and a slowdown of the Internet, according to a not-for-profit anti-spam organization that blacklisted a Dutch Web-hosting company. The interruptions came after Spamhaus, a spam-fighting group based in Geneva, temporarily added CyberBunker to a blacklist that is used by e-mail providers to weed out spam. The attacks work by trying to make a network unavailable to its intended users by overloading a server with coordinated requests to access it, according to security firm Kaspersky Lab. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10a4S4b

-N.J. Deli Worker With $338 Million Lottery Ticket Wants New Car. A 45-year-old bodega worker from Passaic, New Jersey, held the winning $338 million Powerball ticket sold at a liquor store, lottery officials said. Pedro Quezada, who moved to the U.S. from the Dominican Republic at 19, has said he’ll take a lump-sum payment of $151,931,117 after taxes, said Carole Hedinger, executive director of the New Jersey Lottery. Quezada, a married father of five, said his first plan is to buy a “good car.” Read more here-http://bloom.bg/15RnM16

-Cohen Buys Picasso’s ‘La Reve’ From Wynn for $155 Million. Steven Cohen, owner of SAC Capital Advisors LP, has bought Pablo Picasso’s “Le Reve” for $155 million from casino owner Steve Wynn, a person familiar with the transaction said. The price is the highest paid by a U.S. collector for an artwork, art dealers told Bloomberg. Wynn had previously agreed to sell the painting to Cohen for $139 million in 2006. The purchase was canceled after Wynn, whose vision has deteriorated owing to retinitis pigmentosa, accidentally put his elbow through the canvas. Cohen remained interested in the work for years as it was repaired. “The restoration seems to be factored into the price,” said Beverly Schreiber Jacoby, valuation specialist and president of New York-based BSJ Fine Art. “If you didn’t know that it has been damaged, you would not see it. It’s superbly restored.” Read more here-http://bloom.bg/WTCjZy

Back to Top

-Rarecoloreddiamonds.com Featured Diamond of the Week. This week’s Diamond is a 0.49 Carat Radiant Cut Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink Argyle. Harold Seigel-Watch video of the Featured Diamond here-http://bit.ly/LIsp98

-Harold Seigel of Rarecoloreddiamonds.com Announces His Next Online Seminar on April 3, 2013 at 8:00 PM EST. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YpQYLq

-Pink Diamonds: Diamonds that are not forever. Every year, about 12 million tonnes of Australian earth is shifted in search of diamonds, of which the rarest pink ones, all together, would rattle around in a teacup. It is these that the world’s top jewellers most desire yet have no guarantee of acquiring. Since 1984, the somewhat secretive Argyle Pink Diamond Tender, a moveable feast which tours international cities before the auction takes place by sealed bid, has caused considerable excitement; that is, if you are among the few hundred people worldwide who even know it is happening. The 2013 tender, of less than 60 stones, is likely to tour from Perth to Hong Kong, Tokyo, New York and beyond the diamond world does like to be rather cryptic about specifics. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Z529JP

-Exceptional 75-Ct. Pear-Shaped Diamond Highlights Sotheby’s NY Sale. Sotheby’s New York annual spring auction of Magnificent Jewels on April 17 will offer 400 lots and a combined presale estimate in excess of $35 million. The centerpiece of this sale is an exceptional 74.79-carat, D, VVS1, potentially flawless, type IIa, pear-shaped diamond with a presale estimate of $9 million to $12 million.

Lisa Hubbard, the chairman of North & South America at Sotheby’s International jewelry division, said, “This truly exceptional stone exemplifies the strength of the white diamond market over the last decade. It was acquired by the present owner in 2001 for $4.3 million and today we have estimated it conservatively at $120,000 per carat. The stone has universal appeal and we anticipate that it will draw attention from both the diamond industry and discerning private collectors alike.” One of the highlights, a magnificent pair (5.79 carats and 5.68 carats) of pink diamond earclips, was first sold Sotheby’s in 1987 and this lot returns with a presale esimtate of $3.5 million to $4.5 million.

Sotheby’s stated that these earclips are distinguished by their classic pear-shaped diamond pendants, an exquisite pair of pink diamonds that are particularly rare today as they were cut prior to the modified cuts being introduced to the market. Another highlight comes from the estate of Lynn Wolfson, a 21.46 carat, D, internally flawless, type IIa, emerald-cut diamond ring with a presale estimate of $2.5 million to $3.5 million. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YF90gP

Back to Top

CYPRUS

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Cyprus bailout deal. Read more here-http://bit.ly/15QRXpm

-Cyprus Banks to Open Midday Thursday With Capital Restrictions. Cyprus’s banks will open for six hours Thursday with capital restrictions in place after staying shut for almost two weeks as the island nation faced financial collapse. Capital controls include a 300-euro ($383) daily limit on withdrawals and will restrict transfers to accounts outside Cyprus, according to a decree from the Central Bank of Cyprus. The decree will remain valid for four days, according to an e-mailed statement from the bank.

“Please let’s all be calm and be careful not to create more problems,” Yiangos Dimitriou, head of the central bank’s audit department, said in comments broadcast on state-run CyBC. “It will serve no purpose for us to run to banks and try to find ways to get money. To get it where?” Banks will open at midday Thursday and shut at 6 p.m. local time, he said. Cyprus’s lenders have been closed since a March 16 plan by the European Union to force losses on all depositors in exchange for a 10 billion-euro bailout touched off a political upheaval.

While parliament rejected that plan, a subsequent agreement shuts Cyprus Popular Bank Pcl, the nation’s second-largest lender, and imposes larger losses on uninsured depositors. The measures to be imposed include a ban on terminating time deposits and prohibit cashing checks. The restrictions aim to protect the country’s financial industry, while simultaneously trying to uphold as far as possible the principle of free movement of capital within the EU, Aliki Stylianou, a central bank spokeswoman, said today before the decree was published. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZZTKaY

-Cyprus strikes last-minute EU bailout deal. Agreement set to involve heavy losses for wealthy investors, while those with savings under €100,000 will be spared. Backed by euro zone finance ministers, the plan will wind down the largely state-owned Cyprus Popular Bank, known as Laiki, and shift deposits under 100,000 euros to the Bank of Cyprus to create a “good bank”, leaving problems behind in, effectively, a “bad bank.” Deposits above 100,000 euros in both banks, which are not guaranteed by the state under EU law, will be frozen and used to resolve Laiki’s debts and recapitalize the Bank of Cyprus, the island’s biggest, through a deposit/equity conversion. The raid on uninsured Laiki depositors is expected to raise 4.2 billion euros of the 5.8 billion euros the EU and IMF had told Cyprus to raise as a contribution to the bailout. Cyprus government spokesman Christos Stylianides said losses for uninsured depositors would be “under or around 30 percent.” Read more here-http://bit.ly/16fvzbl and http://bloom.bg/YG2Wi8

-Dutch Finance Minister and President of the Eurogroup of euro zone finance ministers Jeroen Dijsselbloem said that the Cyprus deal will serve as a template for future bank restructurings in the euro zone. Savings accounts in Spain, Italy and other European countries will be raided if needed to preserve Europe’s single currency by propping up failing banks, a senior eurozone official has announced. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11HBL9r and http://read.bi/106iMnZ

-See You in Court: Russians May Sue Over Cyprus Losses. Russian businesses and banks that face losses from the European Union’s bailout of Cyprus are considering legal action but may have a hard time making a case, say lawyers who are combing through treaties find strategies to recover funds. Big depositors-many of them Russian face losses of up to 40 percent as the result of a so-called “bail-in” to back 10 billion euros ($13 billion) in EU financial aid to stabilize the Cypriot banking system. “It’s worth trying, it’s not going to be easy, it’s not going to be a one-off, 24-hour court case, but the nature of the action itself sounds like expropriation,” said Andrey Goltsblat, managing partner at Moscow-based law firm Goltsblat BLP.

There could be a basis to sue either Cyprus or individual banks, say lawyers who have been contacted by current and prospective clients seeking redress. “People are just frustrated and are trying to find a way to get their money off Cyprus,” said Goltsblat, who said that two clients one in Russia and a second Russian client residing in Cyprus had inquired about legal options. Steven Philippsohn, partner at London-based law firm PCB Litigation, said three major banks based in or around Russia had asked about the possibility of legal action. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11MnNqo

-ECB warns Latvia not to accept Russian money coming from Cyprus. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16Z6MJN

-Cypriot president ‘warned his friends to move money abroad’ before financial crisis hit. Cypriot president Nikos Anastasiades ‘warned’ close friends of the financial crisis about to engulf his country so they could move their money abroad, it was claimed on Friday. The respected Cypriot newspaper Filelftheros made the allegation which was picked up eagerly by German media. Germans are angry at the way their country has been linked to the Nazis and Hitler by Cypriots angry at the defunct rescue deal which called for a levy on all savings. The Cyprus newspaper did not say how much money was moved abroad but quoted sources saying the president ‘knew about the possible closure of the banks’ and tipped off close friends who were able to move vast sums abroad. Italian media said the 4.5 billion euros left the island in the week before the crisis. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13tQjhY

-CITI: Cyprus Set A Bad Precedent, And Is Long-Term Negative For The Euro. It makes the euro zone more susceptible to bank deposit runs in the event that banks come under question. This may make any future bank-related crisis more intense. The fact that deposit insurance was called into question so casually will make other depositors wary of policymaker assurances that they would not behave similarly. It told depositors that policymakers could act that way if they wanted to. The German FM’s comments that deposit insurance does not apply to levies and is only as good as the sovereign backing the insurance will be remembered at the next crisis. So now we have a deal that does not involve repudiating deposit insurance or imposing a levy on deposits yet is has managed to raise fears of deposit insurance repudiation and deposit levies down the road. Read more here-http://read.bi/11I2v9N

-It’s Official: Banks In Europe May Now Seize Deposits To Cover Their Gambling Losses. The main reason that Cyprus depositors will lose their cash is because it has become politically difficult (impossible?) for leaders in Germany and other rich European countries to bail out their brethren in the “periphery” without taking many pounds of flesh. And it is that precedent, in addition to the fate of big depositors in Cyprus, that should spook Europe’s big bank depositors and lenders.

If Germany is done bailing out countries and banks without having those countries and banks cover some of the cost, it’s not clear why Germany will relent next time Spain, Italy, Greece, and other countries in near-desperately bad financial shape come rushing to the EU with their hands out. Unlike Cyprus, the banking systems in these countries do have bondholders that can get haircut before the depositors get haircut, but the effect will be the same. For the first time since the collapse of Lehman Brothers, those who lend their money to banks or keep their money in banks are at risk. Because the neighborhood loan shark (Germany) is now extracting much more onerous terms. That’s a sobering precedent. And it will likely cause many people to wonder and worry about where their money is. Read more here-http://read.bi/16fzdlk

-Saving Cyprus Means Nobody Safe as Europe Breaks Taboo. The devil lies in the detail of Cyprus’s salvation. The island nation’s rescue sets precedents for the euro zone that may stick in the memory of depositors and bondholders alike as investors debate who will next fall victim to the debt crisis. Under the terms of the agreement struck yesterday in Brussels, senior Cypriot bank bond holders will take losses and uninsured depositors will be largely wiped out.

The message that stakeholders of all stripes can be coerced into helping a cash-strapped nation may make investors more skittish they’ll be targeted if Slovenia, Italy, Spain or even Greece again is next in line to need help. The risk is that bank runs and bond market selloffs become more likely the moment a country applies for a new rescue, said economists and academics from Nicosia to New York. “We now have a new type of rule and everyone within the euro zone has to sit down and see what that implies for their own finances,” Nobel laureate Christopher Pissarides, an adviser to the Cypriot government, told Bloomberg. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/16fAZD4

-Economist Tyler Cowen: Cyprus Basically Just Left The Euro. If capital controls get put properly in place, it’s the end of this monetary system as we know it at the very least it’s probably the end of Cyprus’s place within it. A euro within Cyprus will suddenly be worth significantly less than a euro in Germany or, for that matter, Greece. Read more here-http://read.bi/ZrLjoU

-SocGen: ‘Depression For Cyprus.’ Depression for Cyprus: Our Cypriot GDP forecast entails a drop of just over 20% in real GDP by 2017. This forecast had already factored in much what was agreed, but did not account for the additional uncertainty shock generated by the past week’s appalling political mess. Risks are clearly on the downside and Cyprus will in all likelihood require additional financial assistance further down the road. Accounting for less than 0.3% of euro area GDP, any downward revision to Cyprus will be barely visible on the euro area aggregate. Read more here-http://read.bi/YySUFl

Back to Top

QE JAPAN

-Kuroda Wants to Achieve BOJ’s 2% Price Target in Two Years. Haruhiko Kuroda said he wants 2 percent inflation in two years and pledged to buy more government bonds, underscoring the new Bank of Japan chief’s efforts to accelerate an end to falling prices. “Achieving the 2 percent inflation target in two years is something that I have in my mind,” Kuroda said in Parliament. He said the BOJ may scrap a rule limiting the scale of asset buying and consider purchasing more bonds with longer maturities. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10gwg03

-Abe’s Inflation Exceeds Merkel’s After 14-Year Lag. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s pledge to halt falling prices has caused bond investors’ expectations for inflation to surpass Germany’s by the most on record, after 14 years in which Japan’s living costs have lagged behind. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/XakTJt

Back to Top

REAL ESTATE

-Robert Shiller: ‘We’re Living In A Totally Artificial Real Estate Economy.’ “One thing that makes it very hard to forecast home prices right now is that we’re living in a totally artificial real estate economy,” said Shiller, co-creator of the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller Index, a widely followed measure of housing prices. Shiller pointed to the Federal Reserve, which last week reaffirmed its policies on bond purchases and record-low interest rates.

In September, the Fed launched a third round of quantitative easing (QE), in which it has bought $40 billion of mortgage-backed securities per month, primarily in mortgage-backed bonds. Meanwhile, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two largest U.S. home funding sources, remain in government conservatorship as Congress looks for ways to raise new tax revenues, Shiller noted. “All of these things are weighing on the futures of housing,” Shiller said on CNBC’s “Futures Now,” adding the recovery might even be a bubble. “One thing you learn from history is that bubbles can occur at any time.” Read more here-http://read.bi/15S8VUi

-Home Prices in 20 U.S. Cities Climb by Most Since June 2006. Residential real estate prices increased in January by the most since June 2006, indicating the U.S. housing market strengthened at the start of the year. The S&P/Case-Shiller index of property values in 20 cities climbed 8.1 percent in January from the same month in 2012 after rising 6.8 percent in the year ended in December, the group said in New York. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/XaU3B4

-Pending Sales of U.S. Existing Homes Decline 0.4%. Americans signed fewer contracts to buy previously owned homes in February, indicating a pause in momentum for an industry that is helping power the economy. An index of pending home sales fell 0.4 percent to 104.8, the second-highest level since April 2010, after a revised 3.8 percent increase the prior month, the National Association of Realtors reported today in Washington. Contract signings, unadjusted for seasonal variations, increased 5 percent from February 2012. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/14oVgHW

-Sales of New Houses in U.S. Cap Best Two Months Since 2008. Sales of new U.S. houses in February capped the best back-to-back months in more than four years, spurred by near record-low borrowing costs and improving job prospects. Purchases of newly built homes fell 4.6 percent to a 411,000 annualized pace, following a 431,000 rate in the prior month that was lower than previously estimated, the Commerce Department reported in Washington. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/11Isqy7

-Home Value Highest Since ’07 as U.S. Houses Make Cash. More American homeowners will be able to use their properties as cash machines again after real estate equity jumped last year by the most in 65 years. Property owners recaptured $1.6 trillion as home values climbed to the highest levels since 2007. The amount by which the value of the houses exceeds their underlying mortgages rose to $8.2 trillion last year, a gain of 25 percent, according to Federal Reserve data. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/106Tbep

-12 States Where Homeowners Are Deep Underwater. Despite the housing recovery, 10.4 million or 21.5 percent of all residential properties continued to be underwater at the end of Q4 2012, according to latest data by CoreLogic. The value of negative equity when homeowners owe more on their mortgages than their home is worth fell to $628 billion, from $670 billion the previous quarter. Read more here-http://read.bi/ZrXySo

-Houston Makes Top 5 as Boom Lures Foreigners. International real estate investors are falling in love with Houston, a fast-expanding energy hub that’s luring buyers from Toronto to Tel Aviv seeking properties with lower costs and higher returns than buildings in the priciest U.S. cities. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10MkM6Y

-RBC: Canadian Home buying intentions plummet. Only 15 percent of Canadians say they’re likely to buy a home in the next two years, according to a poll by RBC. That’s a 27-percent drop from last year, marking the sharpest decline in the survey’s 20-year history. RBC economist Paul Ferley explains what’s behind the drop. Watch more here-http://bit.ly/16fJIFs

Back to Top

WORLD FINANCIAL REPORT ON RADIO MAR 26 2013

WWPMC.COM  PRECIOUS METALS TELEPHONE # 1-866-623-2002

RARECOLOREDDIAMONDS.COM  DIAMONDS TELEPHONE # 1-800-432-1022

HSFINEAUCTIONS.COM NEXT AUCTION TBA

GOLD

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Gold’s Bull Run. With gold currently trading 15% below its September 6, 2011 peak, today’s chart provides some long-term perspective on the bull market in gold that began back in 2001. As today’s chart illustrates, the pace of the 12-year bull market has increased over time. Over the past 18 months, however, the price of one ounce of the yellow metal has declined more than at any point since 2008. In the end, this latest pullback has resulted in gold coming right back to support of its six-year accelerated uptrend channel. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11gi5co

chartoftheday.com

-Eric Sprott: Jim Sinclair, $11,000 Gold & Skyrocketing Silver. I have to admire Jim Sinclair because I started looking at his site back in 2000. You would go to his site, gold was $300 and he kept showing these angels with a magnet and showed on the magnet that the price of gold was going to $1,650. It seemed so incredulous at the time. Yet there we were ten years later and we took out $1,650. So I have a wonderful respect for James Sinclair. I had the honor of attending his GATA presentation in London.

Of course at that time he suggested gold could go to $3,500. We’ve had some tough sledding along the way, but I certainly think that all of his logic suggests that (move to a much higher gold price). I think I actually heard him suggest it might go to $11,000. The reason for it is a simple numbers thing. You look at the (amount of) dollars and other currencies out there and compare it to what needs to back the currencies. And I think people are going to less and less believe in trusting the government to look after you because they are not going to look after you. We see evidence of that every day. So it (the world’s reserve currency) has to be backed by something real, and when it is the price of gold and silver will be revalued accordingly. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11bBsU6

-Eric Sprott & Shree Kargutkar: Do Western Central Banks Have Any Gold Left??? Part II. We are currently in an environment where policy makers are intent on devaluing their currencies in an effort to create growth. Real rates continue to stay negative in most of the developed world. Every marginal dollar of debt that is created is producing lower and lower amounts of growth.

In a world overwhelmed by mountains of debt and economic growth which is sub-par at best, precious metals and real assets can act as insurance against the stupidity of policy makers. The evidence pointing towards the suppression of the gold price is becoming increasingly apparent. Don’t be the last person to figure this out! The current sell-off in gold should be viewed not with extreme trepidation but as an unbelievable opportunity to buy the metal at an artificially low value. Read more here-http://bit.ly/XZJFvm

-Jim Sinclair: All Hell Is Breaking Loose After Cyprus Catastrophe. The thesis upon which the hedge funds have gone short of gold has now been destroyed. This is the birth of a transition of the gold market to a cash market. The paper markets will now be moving towards becoming cash markets. It is the birth of an entire new era of trading in what, up until now, has been a paper dominated market for gold when it comes to setting price.

Ultimately, this will mean the end of the manipulation of the gold market because it will become 100% cash. Paper, in gold, is about to exit as a business as the physical market retakes its rightful position once again, and the physical market makes the market price in gold. This will be the beginning of a minimum $1,900 advance in gold. This will represent more than a doubling of the current price of gold as all hell breaks loose, and this Cyprus catastrophe has a ripple effect around the world. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZcsUIZ

-Jim Sinclair: One Of The Most Important Events In History & Gold. The answer is that this is one of the most important events in modern times for the popularity of holding gold rather than holding fiat money. This is the catalyst that will propel gold through the $1,600 level. To prevent a break above $1,600 in gold would take extraordinary efforts on the part of any manipulator in the marketplace. It’s very dangerous in doing business with the Russians, to lose their money. Revenge will be very much a part of the motivation for what happens from this point forward. This type of event will take us out of the $1,500s and we may never see those prices again in our lifetimes. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YFjmpT

-Rick Rule: Is The United States The Next Cyprus? What just happened in Cyprus was the surface manifestation of an underlying problem. Theft, to a much greater degree, has been going on in the United States for the last 6 or 7 years. The suppression of interest rates in the United States is the exact same thing. The government has penalized people who have done the right thing for 30 or 40 years, and have saved and accumulated wealth. They have penalized these savers by manipulating interest rates down and depriving those people of the rightful benefits from their savings.

We are talking about lost interest here. Yes what happened in Cyprus is tragic and represents theft and the transfer of one person’s wealth to another wealth. But the fact is that Americans shouldn’t look at it as a problem just in Cyprus. Americans have to look at the fact that the same promises have been made here. In addition to the fact that the promises won’t be kept, the theft is taking place right here, right now in the United States to a much greater degree. Cyprus, for you and I, is a prologue or an example of what has been happening under our nose, to us, for the last 5 or 6 years. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11pxwTC

-Dan Norcini: Incredibly Important Developments In Gold & Silver Markets. Hedge funds have their smallest net long position since July of 2007. But what it extremely interesting here is that hedge funds now have their largest overall outright short position in history. The bottom line is I don’t recall seeing anything like this since this bull market began 12 years ago. The hedge funds are now essentially battling against Middle-East and Far-East central banks and commercial banks. The problem is these central banks are behemoths compared to the hedge funds.

So the hedge funds are extremely vulnerable to a reversal in the gold market because of the physical demand in the market from these central banks. Also, he bullion banks get a bird’s eye view of the physical market, and when the time is right they will assist with the kill on these hedge fund and speculative short positions. Here is what we want to look for: If gold can break solidly above $1,600 it will change the psychology of the gold market immensely.

A break above this level will bring in more longs, but more importantly it will trigger some serious short covering. If gold can clear $1,600 that will convince some of the nervous sideline money to also re-enter the gold market. In addition it will trigger some panic short covering from the bears who have shorted gold at lower levels. The massive hedge fund short position represents a great deal of fuel for some upside activity in gold. If gold can break above key levels, that will reverse the algorithms and put those algorithms on the buy side as well. Read more here-http://bit.ly/146PXwF

-Richard Russell: Stocks, Fed & Gold Shorts To Get Squeezed. I am beginning to agree with those who claim that a lot of the gold that has supposedly been stored at Fort Knox and West Point and at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York is simply not there. Where are the blessed audits? Where’s the proof that the gold is there? I suspect that the talk of “missing gold” has some substance behind it. Why not end the recurring rumors with an audit? What are we hiding? What are the Treasury and the Fed waiting for?

If the gold is there, then dammit, show us. No wonder Germany is calling its gold in. But why is it taking seven years for Germany to get its gold back. If some gold is missing, it would be the scandal of the century. Meanwhile the rumor is that JP Morgan has been manipulating silver via a huge short position. Is anything or anybody honest in the world today? No matter, I suspect that the long, tedious correction in gold is at or very near an end. I have recently heard news that Soros has sold much of his gold, and other funds have also turned tail and run. Gold-hating has been popular big news over recent months, and now I believe gold is about to make fools out of the gold-haters. If I’m correct, even the gold mining stocks should soon be coming to life. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16Mf4Vj

-Stephen Leeb: Investors Shocked & Frightened In Aftermath Of Cyprus Scare. Ironically, both the US and China, for completely different reasons, don’t want to see gold go up. The Chinese are using these low prices to continue their massive accumulation of gold. The price the United States pays for continuing its suppression of gold is that we are continuing to ship gold out of Western vaults and into Eastern vaults. For people around the world that are afraid in the aftermath of what has just taken place in Cyprus, my heartfelt advice is to own some physical gold.

It also makes sense to have physical gold and not paper gold if you can find it. I’m not sure our government has any gold. Why else does it take the US 7 years to ship a few hundred tons to Germany when China can import 1,000 tons a year or more? For what it’s worth, the Cyprus banks being closed for such a long period of time has convinced me that everyone should have some physical gold and silver on hand because this may happen here as well. Read more here-http://bit.ly/103IGYX

-Alena Mikhan and Jeff Clark: Gold ETF Outflows Paint Only Half the Picture. Read more here-http://bit.ly/WC9osN

-PBOC: Massive increase in Chinese gold reserves unlikely. Vice Governor Yi Gang of the People’s Bank of China told a press conference that the country’s gold reserves currently stand at 1,054 tons, stressing that a massive increase is unlikely in the future. Read more here-http://bit.ly/15YGztr

-David Baker: China’s Gold Reserves: Watch What They Do, Not What They Say. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11aT9TF

-WGC: Gold still an important diversifier for central banks. According to the World Gold Council, central bank allocations to gold remain below optimal levels and should be at around 8%. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Yq6h4J

-Goldman Bearish Gold Call Overrun by Inflation. Argentines are buying more gold than ever to protect their savings from the Western Hemisphere’s fastest inflation as the country’s bonds suffer the worst returns in developing nations. While Goldman Sachs Group Inc. called for gold prices to peak last month and billionaire George Soros cut his stake by more than half, Banco de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires, Argentina’s only gold trader, is talking with mining companies to buy the metal directly as surging demand exhausts its supply of scrap.

The bank began marketing gold to individuals after the nation tightened currency controls in October 2011, selling 280 kilos in its first year for 102.6 million pesos ($20 million). Argentines are turning to the precious metal to preserve the value of their savings as economists forecast the peso will lose more value than any currency in the world and President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner bans most dollar purchases.

The nation’s estimated inflation rate of 26 percent is also eroding the value of fixed-income securities, causing Argentina’s peso- denominated bonds to lose 5.5 percent this year versus a 2.2 percent gain in emerging markets, according Barclays Plc. “I’m buying gold every chance I get,” Guillermo Acosta, a 27-year-old security guard, said inside a branch of Banco Ciudad in downtown Buenos Aires. “With this inflation, I feel like my savings will evaporate if I keep them in pesos.” Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZcvbUB

-Bill Fleckenstein: Is gold ready to turn? The distortions created by the misguided policies of central bankers have inverted the investing world and hurt the precious metals. But investors will wake up. Read more here-http://on-msn.com/ZShTgT

-Eagle sales soar even as gold prices fall. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZUIWIx

-Special video of Arensberg’s Got Gold Report is extremely bullish. Watch more here-http://bit.ly/11hlrfk

-John Embry: Manipulation of gold market at an all time high. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11dkbd4

-Audio of GATA secretary’s interview on Hong Kong radio. Listen to more here-http://bit.ly/ZQObJo

Back to Top

SILVER

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $33.33

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $40.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $66.67

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $100.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $133.33

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $41.67

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $62.50

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $83.33

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $125.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $166.67

-That it is JPMorgan as the likely concentrated short candidate in all four [precious metals] is deeply troubling. Why is any U.S. bank so heavily involved on the short side of any metals market, to say nothing of why is our most systemically important bank probably the one big precious metals short? It’s hard not to reach the conclusion that JPMorgan has been anointed by some entity within the U.S. Government to tamp down any price rally in any precious metal market. This also explains why the CFTC has stood by in allowing the silver manipulation to spread to other markets, violating its most important mission of preventing manipulation. Instead, it appears the CFTC is sanctioning an ever-expanding price manipulation scheme. As such, they appear as crooked as JPMorgan. Silver analyst Ted Butler March 20 2013 via Ed Steer Casey Research-Read more here-http://bit.ly/Y1WLZ8

-Eric Sprott: Silver Market Update. Well, the funny part about gold and silver. If you put all of the gold in the world that is above ground and compare it to the known silver above ground, the ratio is 150 times more gold than silver. So if people keep buying silver at a 1/1 ratio with gold, which the US Mint data shows, obviously there is a time when the silver shortage will present itself. You just can’t invest that much money in that product (silver). It’s a very small product when it comes to known inventory. Yet the demand has been substantial.

I think the data on silver (demand) is it’s up something like 50% to 100%. It’s been up substantially this year. And I think there is an element of the population, probably most of them tune in to your network, that realize there are problems out there. They are quite prepared to own silver and they do so in increasing amounts. So we will win the day. When that day comes I don’t know, but your friend Mr. Sinclair has suggested it could be explosive, and I tend to agree with that, that someday the jig will be up and all of the sudden the silver and gold prices will really start to motor higher. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11bBsU6

-Eric Sprott on banks, gold and silver mania, manipulation and meltdown. Eric Sprott may have surprised a new audience with some very pessimistic views on banks and the global economy, but spoke very positively on the investment merits of gold and particularly of silver. Sprott’s main focus is on silver as potentially being a far better investment even than gold. As he has stated before he reckons silver is the investment of the current decade.

He follows the mathematics of silver supply and notes that there is around 11 times more silver produced in the world than gold of which a high proportion is taken up by the investment sector leaving only about three times more silver than gold being available for investment yet, going by U.S. Mint gold and silver coins sales, and his own experience in Canada, that 55x more silver than gold is being purchased by bullion investors.

This, he feels has to lead to a severe shortage of supply for the investment sector, sooner rather than later. He has often stated, although not actually on this occasion, that he expects the gold:silver ratio (GSR) to return to its historic level of around 16:1 and although we do not necessarily expect this to occur, there could well be a big fall in the GSR from its current level of around 55:1 which would indeed make silver a better investment choice than gold in pure value terms. Read more here-http://bit.ly/11k3Mrg

-Dan Norcini: Silver Market Update. It is important to note that the swap dealers have moved to the long side of the silver market since the middle of February of this year. Since that time they have continued to increase their overall long position in the silver market. So the swap dealers are very bullish on silver going forward. We also have the bullion banks covering shorts on silver in addition to the swap dealer buying. The hedge funds have been trying to cap the price of silver at $29.

What has happened in the last week is that the price of silver is hanging closer to that $29 level. If silver breaks above $29.35, then we will have to look for silver to take out the critical psychological level of $30. This will bring in the sideline money to the long side of the market. The bears will be in trouble at that point, and trust me they’ll know it. So we’ll see some short covering as the silver market gains traction above that critical $30 level and the bears run for cover. Read more here-http://bit.ly/146PXwF

-JPMorgan wins dismissal of silver price-fixing lawsuit. JPMorgan Chase & Co. has won the dismissal of a nationwide investors’ lawsuit accusing the largest U.S. bank of conspiring to drive down silver prices. Read more here-http://reut.rs/11gDD8M

Back to Top

CHARTS OF THE WEEK-QUOTES-QUICK HITS

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Gold and Silver Performance Since 2001 to March 13th 2013. Read more here-http://bit.ly/100EjxT

-”Cyprus cannot, will not, absolutely must not leave the euro. They know that quite well. So the break of the euro market down into the 1.28 area must have sent shock waves through decision-makers in euro land. Cyprus must be rescued because they cannot be allowed to leave the euro. In the end, however, all of this will create a demand for other alternative ways of being able to support the value of money, and gold will benefit enormously from it.” Jim Sinclair

-”John Mauldin says, ‘Own things they can’t print.’ It’s a very important lesson. If you happened to be a Cypriot, and you had your money in gold, silver, platinum or palladium, all of the events which took place over the last week would be extraordinary to witness, but not relevant to your financial position.” Rick Rule

-”Do not trust in your government to look after you, begin to trust in yourself. Yes, by all means have some dollars, euros, or some yen, but also have financial assets that aren’t simultaneously somebody else’s liability. Own some bullion, it’s important.” Rick Rule

-”Part of the result of all of this is the Russian elite will now move heavily out of currencies and into gold. Going forward, the Russian sovereign entity will now support the price of gold and it will be for the benefit of the Russian oligarchy. This will also serve to bring Russian and Chinese financial interests closer together, and, in time, will finally result in freeing the gold market from Western price manipulation and influence. This IMF catastrophe in Cyprus is literally a landmark event in history, and the single most important event in the entire history of the gold market. I fully expect that the key point I have now made, that this concerns much more money than has been reported, will now be cloned in the mainstream media as well.” Jim Sinclair

-”I think Jim Sinclair’s observations are spot on because the question has been, what is going to get sentiment turned around in the gold market? Well, this seems to me to be one hell of an opportunity to turn the sentiment around because people will ask themselves, ‘Would I rather have a bank deposit or would I rather have gold in my own possession?” The clear answer to that question is gold, and this reality has just been made even more clear based on these incredible developments in the last few days. One thing is absolutely certain, the impact of this Cyprus catastrophe has people all over the world frightened and looking at what to do with their money so that it doesn’t get stolen. John Embry

-”The risk here does not come from owning metals. Instead, the real risk is clearly in not owning any physical gold and silver.” James Turk

-”The fallout from the Cyprus banking collapse cannot be predicted. We just have to wait and watch to see how things unfold. But clearly, the best way to do that is to watch while sitting with the safety provided by your physical gold and silver your money outside of the banking system. Because they are money outside the banking system, you do not have counterparty risk. These tangible assets that you own and store safely are not based on any bank’s or politician’s promise.” James Turk

-”It should never be overlooked that what the government, Fed, and the Treasury have accomplished is doubling down on the same philosophy that created the bubbles of the last decade in the first place. They were money printing, very low interest rates, and debt accumulation. So the cause of the catastrophe of 2008 has been doubled-down. Therefore, what government has succeeded in doing is making the corporate and banking sectors appear solvent, while at the same time bankrupting the Federal Reserve and the Treasury. Once the free market takes interest rates higher, all of this charade comes crashing down, and that will reveal the insolvency of not only America, but of the European Union and also Japan. It’s mind boggling to me that people don’t own more physical gold, silver, and platinum (in this environment). Michael Pento

“I cannot believe this (move to steal money) could have been thought through. Frankly, if you would have asked me on Friday before the announcement, ‘What’s the worst thing you could possibly do that would trigger a run on the banks?’ Well, that’s what they did.” Gold has to be a significantly good bet now that we’ve seen that governments are prepared to behave in a way that demolishes our trust in the entire banking system. Yes, we could be ready for the next phase of the bull market in gold, and this could be the big one.” Nigel Farage

-”The Federal Reserve can print all of the money it needs in order to support bond prices, but printing dollars doesn’t support the dollar price. And the Fed has not the power to print foreign currencies with which to support the dollar price. So the dollar is the vulnerable spot in the Fed’s policy management, and the popping of the bubble is likely to come from the dollar.” Dr. Paul Craig Roberts Former Assistant of the US Treasury

-Forget Cyprus, Nobody Is Stealing from Depositors More than Bernanke. After the Federal Reserve reaffirmed its easy money policy Wednesday, Chairman Ben Bernanke was asked whether the U.S. would ever think of taxing bank depositors as Cyprus has done. He said that was very unlikely but Jim Rickards, senior managing director of Tangent Capital Partners, says the Fed already has its hands in depositors’ pockets. “Nobody is stealing more money from bank depositors than Ben Bernanke,” Rickards tells The Daily Ticker.

Bernanke’s doing that, Rickards says, by maintaining interest rates near zero. “At this stage of a recovery normalized interest rates should be around 2-3%,” says Rickards. “Apply that 2-3%…to the entire multi-trillion-dollar deposit base of the United States of America and that’s a $400-billion per year wealth transfer from savers to bankers so they can pay themselves bigger bonuses or make crazy bets.” Over time, Rickards says, that wealth transfer could reach $1 trillion. Read more here-http://yhoo.it/YJk6KH

-John Embry: Cyprus Catastrophe Has People Scared To Death. The first time I saw the Cyprus news hit the wire I immediately thought about Einstein’s comment that two things are infinite, ‘The universe and human stupidity.’ I couldn’t believe Western central planners and the IMF would try to do something like this because it represented the tip of an iceberg. If they could steal money in Cyprus, then they could do it anywhere and that would create another disaster. I think Jim Sinclair shed some light on this situation when he talked about the motivation for it being the fact that they were going to try to get the money out of bank depositors to take care of bank bailouts.

The move to steal money out of banks would be an effort to stop QE to infinity, but this has quickly turned into a disaster that has frightened people in Cyprus and around the world. But after floating this trial balloon in Cyprus, the politicians and central planners are backtracking like crazy because the reaction was so negative, particularly from the Russians. Europe is really in a bind now because they don’t want to allow anyone to leave the euro.

They know that when the first country leaves the euro it may start a chain reaction. I have always been of the belief that the euro was a doomed project, but I think this catastrophic situation in Cyprus may be the event that marks the beginning of the dissolution of the euro as we know it. So I would agree with Sinclair, this was a huge initiative which was badly concocted and executed, and that is even without the Russian implications which are terrifying. I wonder what the central planners will do next because this was met with a firestorm of protests, and I’m not so sure they knew what they were doing when they attempted to steal from Cyprus. I firmly believe the Cyprus government will now reject this for several reasons, including their own personal safety and the safety of their families. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16JH9wp

-US Deposits In Perspective: $25 Billion In Insurance, $9,283 Billion In Deposits; $297,514 Billion In Derivatives. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YYd1cF

-Eric Sprott: The Current Financial System Will End In Ruin. My concern early on about the financial system was leverage in the banking system, that the banks were levered 20/1. By interpretation this means that for every dollar of assets there is 5 cents of capital, and if that dollar goes down by 5 cents there is no capital. That’s before we even get into the derivatives which are out there, and would take that ratio from 20/1 to probably 50/1 or even higher, which means you can only lose 2% of your money before there is no capital.

And I think it’s this huge derivatives book that is just going to blow up one day. There is $1 quadrillion of derivatives out there, which is a number that bears no relationship to world GDP. It’s all in the hands of the banks, and someday we are going to find out that one of the counterparties is not going to pay because their capital will have been dissipated. And as we have to witness one bank after another failing, the whole study of the financial goings on would suggest it’s just rampant in all the banking systems.

They play games, and they manipulate things (such as gold and silver). They are so lucky because they get to borrow money at zero (percent) and lend it to people. They are given this right to make money, and then they turn around and lever it up, and throw derivatives on top of that. I totally agree that someday it will just fall apart and we will find out that none of the counterparties can pay. I’ve never been hopeful for the financial system. Ever since the 2008 financial crisis all we’ve had is printing of money and backstopping of banks.

The one thing which has happened since Lehman, Lehman was a liquidation, and there has never been a liquidation allowed since. Nothing is allowed to liquidate, whether it’s Fannie, Freddie, various banks, nobody is allowed to liquidate, and I know exactly why they are not allowed to liquidate, because if they liquidated the first domino falls. And once the first domino falls, everyone starts worrying about counterparties and the whole system fails. That’s why they need to keep propping it up week after week. Somebody is always getting bailed out. It’s just ongoing and anybody who has any common sense at all knows it will end in ruination. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YEzSXf

-Dr. Paul Craig Roberts: Former US Treasury Official US Financial System To Collapse. I can point out three giant bubbles that threaten the remains of the American economy. When these bubbles pop, the consequence is obvious: The wipeout of the remaining wealth from bond and stock collapses, and a very strong domestic inflation from the rise in the import prices. The United States is now an import dependent country. It doesn’t produce its own manufactured products, clothes, shoes. These import items dwarf the import of oil or energy.

So what is the potential for happening when these bubbles burst is widespread unemployment, and a rapid increase in inflation, before which the economic policy has no known solution. It is frightening, and it shows the extent to which the economic policy of the United States is misused in support of four or five big banks that are ‘too big to fail.’ We now have one bank, JP Morgan, which has derivative exposure equal to the (entire) world’s GDP. Unless these derivatives all net-out in some way, the bank (JP Morgan) has no way of covering its exposure.

When you have your top policymakers so utterly incompetent, well, then you are going to be in a huge mess. So they’ve gone from one crisis to putting in place the foundation of a much bigger crisis. There is no way for them to avoid it unless people think that dollars can be printed indefinitely without any effect on the value of the dollar. But of course the demand for dollars is not growing in keeping with the supply. So we have a potential massive crisis waiting to happen, but you can never predict what sets something like that off. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZbU0A3 and http://bit.ly/WVWqIL

-Art Cashin: If America Is Anything Like History’s Great Civilizations, Then This Is The Beginning Of The End. Read more here-http://read.bi/WEA38t

-Congress Clears Legislation to Avoid Government Shutdown. Congress gave final approval to legislation to avert a partial government shutdown, in a rare example of bipartisan cooperation on federal spending. The House voted 318-109 Thursday to send the spending bill to President Barack Obama for his signature. The measure, which would fund federal agencies through the Sept. 30 end of the 2013 fiscal year, cleared the Senate on a bipartisan 73-26 vote Wednesday. Legislation currently funding government agencies expires March 27. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/102Kx04

-Hoarding Groceries Survival Strategy for Furloughed Workers. Pete Randazzo already has dipped into his savings to pay his daughter’s medical bills. Now another setback looms: a 20 percent reduction in pay for his job at a Navy school under federal budget cuts. Randazzo, 51, an information technology specialist at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, is bracing for furlough days that now may begin in May. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Z43WPB

-Fed Maintains $85 Billion Pace of Monthly Asset Purchases. The Federal Reserve will keep up its bond buying at a pace of $85 billion a month even as the world’s largest economy and the job market pick up. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZwMEKO

-El-Erian Say Fed ‘Forced’ Central Banks to Ease Policy. The Federal Reserve’s record monetary stimulus has compelled central banks from Mexico to Japan to follow suit, said Pacific Investment Management Co.’s Mohamed El-Erian. The Fed’s “artificially low” benchmark interest rate has put upward pressure on several currencies, threatening to erode the competitiveness of those nations’ economies, El-Erian, chief executive officer of the world’s largest manager of bond funds, said in a speech today in Stanford, California. “Ultimately, they are forced Mexico has been forced, Brazil has been forced, Korea has been forced, Japan has been forced into doing exactly the same thing” as the Fed. Mexico’s central bank unexpectedly cut its benchmark interest rate last week for the first time since 2009, while Haruhiko Kuroda, who was confirmed as Bank of Japan governor, has pledged to do more to beat deflation. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZbLiSq

-Americans Cut Restaurant Spending as Taxes Bite. Restaurants are reeling from their worst three months since 2010, as American diners spooked by higher payroll taxes cut back on eating out. Sales at casual-dining establishments fell 5.4 percent last month, after declining 0.6 percent in January and 1.6 percent in December, according to the Knapp-Track Index of monthly restaurant sales. This was the first three months of consecutive declines in almost three years, with consumers caught in a “very emotional moment,” said Malcolm Knapp, a New York-based consultant who created the index and has monitored the industry since 1970. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/160D9GK

-China poised to top U.S. as top oil buyer; increased car sales spur jump. China appears to be at a tipping point where surging domestic auto sales will soon drive it past the U.S. and turn it into the world’s biggest oil importer, taking a title that distinguished and some might say hobbled the U.S. for decades. China already has drawn even with the U.S. on oil imports, with both nations reporting net imports of 6 million barrels a day of crude in December, according to the latest data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Y0Ncf2

-Naimi Says $100 Crude Oil Is Reasonable Price. Oil at $100 a barrel is a “reasonable” price that won’t choke global economic growth, Saudi Arabia’s Oil Minister Ali Al-Naimi said. “Prices will stay at these current levels in the foreseeable future,” he said in a speech in Hong Kong, according to the text reported by the official Saudi Press Agency. “Current price levels will not affect economic growth in Asia,” he said. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/14abAww

-Morgan Stanley: Here’s What 15 Major Commodities Will Do For The Next Two Years. Read more here-http://read.bi/XXfmW5

-The Man Who Once Saved NYC From Bankruptcy Explains Why Detroit May Go Under. Read more here-http://read.bi/WDcCO2

-Detroit Is So Broke It Can’t Pay Lawyers To Prosecute All Of Its Criminals. Read more here-http://read.bi/148iT7w

-Freddie Mac Sues Multiple Banks Over Libor Manipulation. Freddie Mac sued Bank of America Corp., UBS AG, JPMorgan Chase & Co. and a dozen other banks over alleged manipulation of the London interbank offered rate, saying the mortgage financier suffered substantial losses as a result of the companies’ conduct. Government-owned Freddie Mac accuses the banks of acting collectively to hold down the U.S. dollar Libor to “hide their institutions’ financial problems and boost their profits,” according to a complaint filed in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/100ufou

-SAC to Pay a Record $616 Million Over Insider Trading. SAC Capital Advisors LP, the hedge fund run by billionaire Steven A. Cohen, will pay a record $616 million to settle U.S. regulatory claims that two of its units engaged in insider trading. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/WBxHr0

-Iceland’s Lost Billionaires Unmourned as Riches Draw Ire. Iceland, a country with a $13 billion economy, had six dollar billionaires before the financial crisis struck in 2008. Now it has none. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/YSCRyB

-NASA Program to Find Asteroids Is Decade Behind Schedule. The U.S. space agency is a decade behind in meeting a congressional mandate to detect meteors capable of destroying a city, and needs a telescope in space to improve tracking, the nation’s top science officials said. NASA’s leaders said most large asteroids that may trigger a global catastrophe have been found and tracked, and an impact within the next several centuries is unlikely. Smaller objects are harder to track, arrive more often and are less lethal. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Zbo3Ie

-US plan calls for more scanning of private Web traffic, email. Read more here-http://nbcnews.to/YuZBCg

-CIA Chief Tech Officer: Big Data Is The Future And We Own It. Read more here-http://read.bi/163L5XN

-Here’s Why Jeremy Grantham Thinks Billions Of People Are Going To Starve To Death. Read more here-http://read.bi/WTV69n

-$3 Garage Sale Bowl Sells For $2.2 Million At Auction. Read more here-http://read.bi/10pKmOZ

Back to Top

-Rarecoloreddiamonds.com Featured Diamond of the Week. This week’s Diamond is a 1.49 Carat Oval Cut Fancy Vivid Yellow Internally Flawless. Harold Seigel-Watch video of the Featured Diamond here-http://bit.ly/LIsp98

-Harold Seigel of Rarecoloreddiamonds.com Announces His Next Online Seminar on April 3, 2013 at 8:00 PM EST. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YpQYLq

-Pink Diamonds: Diamonds that are not forever. The world’s top jewellers have seen interest in pinks soar among their wealthiest clientele, which is somewhat inconvenient because the supply will probably be exhausted by about 2020. For years, there have been murmurs that the only consistent source of pink diamonds was coming to an end. Technological advances mean a shift from open-cast to underground mining at the Argyle mine is possible, with diamonds buried as deep as 450 metres soon to be accessed by a honeycomb of funnels. But they can’t keep going to the centre of the earth. The luxury world makes many claims to “rare”. Yet pink diamonds truly are. Their hue is not a result of impurity; it’s instead due to extreme pressure beneath the earth’s surface and geologically freaky conditions long before dinosaurs walked the earth. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Z529JP

-China may buy 25% of diamonds in a decade. China may comprise a quarter of world diamond sales in a decade supplanting the US as the biggest buyer of gems, said Philippe Mellier, CEO of De Beers. “China could grow to 20% to 25% of the market; the same for India. The US would fall to about 30% of the market,” said Mellier in an interview. China consumes 10% of total world retail sales. Although not a mature market, Mellier said that combined with sales to India, the two regions may be influential enough to help lift De Beers’ total sales in the current 2013 financial year.

Mellier said De Beers had made significant advances in diamond sales in China selling a diamond as an integral part of wedding jewellery. Diamonds are traditionally bought to celebrate engagements in the West. “China has historically been a region driven by gold and jade, but it is also a society of symbols. They have bought the idea of love represented by a diamond and it’s also a status symbol. The Chinese don’t like the idea of storing something at home; they like to be able to show it,” said Mellier. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZLFD86

-The ‘Incomparable’ Sets Guinness Record For Most Expensive Necklace, Valued at $55 Million. Mouawad‘s 637-ct. L’Incomparable diamond necklace has been named the world’s most expensive necklace by Guinness World Records, according to media reports, with a valuation of $55 million. The statement gem on the 18k gold necklace is the 407.48-ct. “Incomparable” diamond. The natural fancy deep-yellow shield step cut diamond is the largest internally flawless diamond ever graded by the Gemological Institute of America. The remainder of the necklace consists of 35 round diamonds, 27 pear-shaped diamonds, nine heart-shaped diamonds, five emerald-cut diamonds, five cushion diamonds, four oval diamonds, three Asscher-cut diamonds and two radiant diamonds. Read more here-http://onforb.es/YvaaW0

-Encrusted with the rarest red diamond, the world’s most expensive dress is unveiled and it will set you back a staggering $17 million. The saying diamonds are a girl’s best friend has been taken to a whole new level as the world’s most expensive dress has been unveiled. The dazzling dress is encrusted with 2000 stones in total including the star of the show: the world’s rarest and most expensive red diamond. One in every hundred million diamonds is a natural red colour and they are found on average every 50 years but generally too small to speak of, so this is something quite special. The individual diamond has a value of $7.1 million. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13d1DyM

-Graff Debuts $100M Peacock Brooch at TEFAF. Graff Diamonds unveiled a unique diamond peacock brooch at the TEFAF luxury art and antiques fair being held in Maastricht, The Netherlands. The brooch, which has a total carat weight of 120.81 is valued at $100 million, measures a little more than 10 centimeters in height and features a 20.02 carat fancy deep blue pear-shape diamond at its center. The peacock’s tail feathers consists of an array of white and colored diamonds that surround the center blue diamond, which features an additional clasp at the back allowing it to be removed and worn in two different ways.

Graff Diamonds has taken part in TEFAF since 2001, where the jeweler has unveiled and sold large and fancy diamonds, including the Gemini Yellows, a pair of 50-plus carat fancy intense yellow diamond earrings and a 100 carat, D flawless pear-shape diamond. In 2008, Graff sold a 70.12 carat yellow diamond for $11 million followed by a 30 carat emerald-cut diamond that achieved $5 million at the fair in 2009. TEFAF Maastricht runs from March 15 to 24 this year. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Y016ft

Back to Top

CYPRUS

-MAP OF THE WEEK: Here’s Where Cyprus Is On A Map. Read more here-http://read.bi/ZQtY6o

-Cyprus: Here’s the short version of what’s happening. Cyprus’s banks, like many banks in Europe, are bankrupt. Cyprus went to the Eurozone to get a bailout, the same way Ireland, Greece, and other European countries have. The Eurozone powers-that-be gave Cyprus a bailout but with a startling condition that has never before been imposed on any major banking system since the start of the global financial crisis in 2008. The Eurozone powers-that-be mainly Germany insisted that the depositors in Cyprus’s banks pay part of the tab. Not the bondholders.

The depositors. The folks who had their money in the banks for safe-keeping. When Cyprus’s banks reopen on Tuesday morning, every depositor will have some of his or her money seized. Accounts under 100,000 euros will have 6.75% of the funds seized. Accounts over 100,000 euros will have 9.9% seized. And then the Eurozone’s emergency lending facility and the International Monetary Fund will inject 10 billion euros into the banks to allow them to keep operating.

But, still, not surprisingly, news that deposits in Cyprus’s banks would be seized triggered an immediate run on the banks. Depositors rushed to ATMs and tried to withdraw their money before it could be seized. But the ATMs weren’t working. And the government has now made it impossible to transfer money out of the country. Now, half of these depositors are said to be Russian oligarchs and other non-residents. And unless you happen to have the misfortune of having an account in a Cyprus bank, you may not care much whether these depositors have their money seized.

After all, that was the risk they took for storing their money in bankrupt banks, right? Well, yes, that was the risk they took. But ever since the Great Depression wiped out a big percentage of the world’s banks, vaporizing the bank depositors’ savings in the process, banking system regulators have tried to do everything they can to protect bank depositors. And they are smart to do so. Because the moment depositors think that there is risk to their savings, they rush to banks to yank their money out. That’s called a run on the bank.

And since no bank anywhere has enough cash on hand to pay off all its depositors at once, runs on the bank cause banks to go bust. That’s what happened to hundreds of banks in the Great Depression. And it’s what happened to Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers, and other huge banks during the financial crisis (though, with Bear and Lehman, the folks who yanked their money out weren’t mom and pop depositors but other big financial institutions). It’s what threatened to bring the entire U.S. financial system to its knees. And it’s why the U.S. and European governments have been frantically bailing out banks ever since. Read more here-http://read.bi/Y05zAW

-ECB Gives Cyprus Funding Deadline as New Plan Sought. The European Central Bank said it may cut Cypriot banks off from emergency funds after March 25 as the island nation’s president, Nicos Anastasiades, pursued options at home and in Russia to stave off financial collapse. The ECB’s Governing Council said today that so-called emergency liquidity assistance, or ELA, “could only be considered” after Monday if an aid program from the euro area and International Monetary Fund “that would ensure the solvency of the concerned banks” is in place, the central bank said Thursday in a statement. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10nDl19

-Cyprus banks to remain shut until Tuesday amid bailout crisis. Banks in Cyprus will remain closed until Tuesday as the country tries to avert financial meltdown after rejecting the terms of a controversial bailout, turning instead to Russia for help. Read more here-http://nbcnews.to/16KkbVS

-Pictures From A Cyprus ATM Line. For a few days, the people of Cyprus were calm, quietly and orderly accepting the unreality of the levy being imposed upon them incredulous that it was even possible. As we reach the 4th day of bank closures, amid rolling rumors and ECB threats, it appears the people have reached a tipping point as this series of images from Cyprus ATM lines indicates the bank-jog has arrived. When will it become a full blown sprint? Read more here-http://bit.ly/WNYYri

-Panic and Anger: Here’s What I Saw At Cyprus ATMs This Morning. Read more here-http://read.bi/ZgwMJb

-The Rules For Getting Citizenship To Cyprus Make It Easy For Russian ‘Black Money’ To Flow To The EU. Read more here-http://read.bi/ZHo7Sv

-Wealthy Russians Have Completely Taken Over This Cyprus Beach Town. The tiny island country of Cyprus is in the spotlight this week for a surprise bailout plan that was specifically designed to tax deposits held by Russian gangsters and oligarchs. You see, wealthy Russians love the country’s lax citizenship requirements, which provides an easy way to get black money into the European Union. But that can’t be all that Russians love about Cyprus, right? Read more here-http://read.bi/WBlnqF

-CHART OF THE WEEK: Why did Cyprus have to make a grab for depositor cash to rescue its banks? In part because there just wasn’t any money left anywhere. The banks don’t have much debt, and the island’s equity has been wiped out. The Cypress Stock Exchange (whose components include banks, hotels, utilities, and retailers) is off about 98 percent in the last five years. Just a total complete wipeout. Read more here-http://read.bi/YoK7zI

-In 1941, The Federal Reserve Wrote A Letter Explaining Why The Cyprus Bailout Was Such A Terrible Idea. Read more here-http://read.bi/WBxjIN

-U.K. Air Force Flies 1 Million Euros to Troops in Cyprus. The U.K.’s Royal Air Force is flying 1 million euros ($1.3 million) to Cyprus for military personnel stationed on the island to ensure they don’t run out of cash. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/YmKUUU

Back to Top

REAL ESTATE

-Existing home sales touch three-year high. Home resales hit a three-year high in February and prices jumped, adding to signs of an acceleration in the housing market recovery, even though the supply of properties on the market increased. Read more here-http://reut.rs/11mUSoV

-U.S. ‘Underwater’ Homeowners Regain Equity as Prices Rise. About 200,000 U.S. homeowners regained positive equity in their properties in the fourth quarter as prices rebounded from a more than five-year slump, according to CoreLogic Inc. At the end of last year, 10.4 million homes, or 21.5 percent of all residential properties with a mortgage, were underwater, with owners owing more than the property was worth, the real estate data firm said in a statement. That was down from 10.6 million homes, or 22 percent, at the end of the third quarter. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/14ae4eh

-17 American Cities Where Foreclosures Are A Serious Problem. Read more here-http://read.bi/ZbDJuX

-Blackstone Crowds Housing Market as Rental Gains Slowing. Rents for single-family homes are rising slower than property prices as firms such as Blackstone Group LP flood the market with homes for lease, posing risks to investors betting billions on the burgeoning market. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/YmKEp4

-U.K. bets the house on £130bn pledge to help half a million families buy new homes after admitting growth has halved. Read more here-http://bit.ly/100KP7O

-Hong Kong Homes Face 20% Price Drop as Banks Raise Rates. Hong Kong officials, who have struggled in vain for three years to slow the growth in home prices, are about to get their wish as the city’s biggest banks raise mortgage rates. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/WHHbAN

Back to Top

GEOPOLITICAL

-Obama Says Israel Has Right to Defend Against Iran Threat. President Barack Obama said the U.S. will do whatever is necessary to prevent Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon and echoed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s declaration that Israel has the right to “defend itself, by itself.” Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZOt8Zq and http://bloom.bg/102SLW3

-Khamenei: Iran will destroy Tel Aviv if attacked. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Y1Xl9p

-Obama Backs Unproven Missile Defense for Uncertain Threat. The Obama administration’s decision to shift $1 billion to a missile-defense system in the U.S. is raising questions about the still-unproven missile shield’s effectiveness and the threats posed by North Korea and Iran. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said March 15 that the Pentagon would add 14 land-based interceptors in Alaska in response to threats from North Korea. To pay for that move and develop an advanced warhead, about $1 billion would be shifted from efforts to develop a missile shield in Poland and Romania. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Y0V0gT

-Pentagon to Add Missile Interceptors to Deter North Korea. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel said the U.S. will add 14 interceptors to the 30 in its missile defense system by fiscal 2017, sending a signal to North Korea after the totalitarian regime threatened nuclear strikes. The U.S. is taking several steps to bolster missile defenses and “stay ahead of the threat” posed by Iran and North Korea, Hagel told reporters at the Pentagon. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/145RWkL

-China Slams Anti-N. Korea Defenses as U.S. Reassures S. Korea. China criticized the bolstering of anti-missile defenses against North Korea, hours after the U.S. reaffirmed a commitment to strengthen its alliance with South Korea and deter Kim Jong Un’s regime from its nuclear ambitions. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Zufr2r

-U.S. Flies B-52s Over Korea in Show of Power Against North. South Korea said a B-52 bomber will fly over the Korean peninsula for the second time this month as part of the U.S. effort to send a signal to North Korea after it threatened preemptive nuclear strikes. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/YS07wx

-North Korea Vows Military Action Against More U.S. B-52 Flights. North Korea warned of “strong military counter-action” if the U.S. again flies B-52 bombers over the Korean peninsula, with two flights this month after the totalitarian regime threatened pre-emptive nuclear strikes. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/WCOUjO

-South Korea raises alert after hackers attack broadcasters, banks. South Korean authorities were investigating a hacking attack that brought down the servers of three broadcasters and two major banks on Wednesday, and the army raised its alert level due to concerns of North Korean involvement. Read more here-http://reut.rs/13bwoUT and http://bloom.bg/YrXa3w

Back to Top

WORLD FINANCIAL REPORT ON RADIO MAR 19 2013

WWPMC.COM  PRECIOUS METALS TELEPHONE # 1-866-623-2002

RARECOLOREDDIAMONDS.COM  DIAMONDS TELEPHONE # 1-800-432-1022

HSFINEAUCTIONS.COM NEXT AUCTION TBA

GOLD

-”Gold is about to take out $1,600. We may never see that $1,600 level ever again.” Jim Sinclair

-”What we are facing right now is simply a cyclical decline in a secular bull market. It’s very important for investors to understand this. It’s healthy and it’s normal. So you have these types of retrenchments in the market, but the moves out of the retrenchment are incredibly sudden, volatile, and very pleasant in terms of portfolio gains for investors who properly position themselves. Right now we are looking at just such an opportunity, one of the greatest in history.” Rick Rule

-Jim Sinclair: Shorts Are About To Get Mauled In The Gold Market. There is no question that the momentum of the gold market has made a significant change. The market has moved from decidedly bearish to neutral, and the potential for moving from neutral to positive is extremely high. My feeling is that the bottom we have already established will not be violated, and the market will now begin its move towards $3,500 coming out of this experience.

I believe gold can reverse on its own and shock people because of the crowded short position, especially amongst general speculators. Everything that has broken down has to fight its technical position. Having said that, this will be an enormous move off the low, and probably only have to start fighting in the $1,700+ area. Again, this will happen because of the crowded short position, and the bearishness being at historical levels, particularly in the shares. It wouldn’t surprise me if the quality mining shares put on a rally even better than gold itself. Remember, the crowd has an opinion, the crowd is bearish, and the crowd is never right. Read more here-http://bit.ly/XIWg6c

-Jim Sinclair: Gold War Rages As Bulls & Bears Continue To Battle. Gold and silver fully paid for represent a sounder form of currency, especially gold, than any piece of paper with a promise to pay, which is basically a debt. Fully paid for is the only insurance that you can have against the things you can’t control. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Yb6WHc

-Jim Sinclair: Expect $1,000 Days In Gold As West Battles East. I believe you will see a $1,000 day (in gold), and I think you will see it on at least three occasions. It’s not unimaginable if you go back to the market of the 1970s. And it will happen because kicking and screaming, gold is going to drag the US into a position of a balanced balance sheet, or near-balanced balance sheet, if you assume that the gold the US claims to have in fact they do have, and the world will assume that. I firmly believe gold is going up into the $3,500 range and higher. Gold is attached to debt.

A fiat currency has, on the other side of its ledger, debt. The fundamental occurrences that have taken place over the last few months are not that positive to the dollar. And today’s (jobs) report will be analyzed very carefully, already showing some significant lack of foundation in the amount of people out of the job market. So, this time I strongly believe that the dollar will not get much higher than it already has. (The Dollar Index) will return back into the 70s as gold begins to move toward the $3,500 level, which I believe will take place from the low we have already established.

In the beginning you climb the ‘Wall of Worry.’ You repair the technical damage. All of that (occurs) after the market has found a low due to physical demand by central banks. As we go forward and the expectations of general investors are not going to be met by the reality of economic activity, then you begin to get some short covering (in gold), which creates your most volatile upside moves. I think that the number of $4,000 to $4,400 is the reality of where this market is going to move off of this low, through the continual adventures of the soap opera called the gold price.

I think that’s the way we are going to move from $3,500 up into the $4,000 range. I (then) think that you will have your Western central banks actually oppose the Eastern central banks in the sense that the speculation in the paper markets, if they still exist to any significant degree, would be utilized to try to cause just what we’ve gone through now (a reaction), all in an effort to protect the dollar. I don’t believe that gold will have the fall that it had in the 1980s. I firmly believe that gold is moving into a greater monetary position. It’s not moving away from money, it’s moving towards money. I believe that gold will be the necklace that currencies will wear. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16sDS4o

-$1,000 daily price swings and $3500 gold Jim Sinclair’s dire predictions. ‘Mr Gold’, Jim Sinclair, who has a huge following amongst the pro-gold sector, propounds some interesting views on where the global economy and the gold price are heading. Read more here-http://bit.ly/WI4uNa

-Keith Barron: “Major Catalyst” About To Send Gold & Silver Prices Surging. There is a misperception that as interest rates turn higher this will be negative for gold. That is not true and not supported by history. Historically, if you look at when interest rates start to gallop higher, this has always been a good thing for gold. The only caveat to that is when the market begins to have net-positive real interest rates, but we are a long, long way from seeing anything like that. People have to remember that gold has been going up tremendously in currencies like the Japanese yen.

This is taking place as the Japanese actively devalue the yen. So they will continue with QE in Japan and debase the currency even further. This will be net-positive for gold. There are some 30 countries around the world that are actively engaged in QE. It is also important to note that in the US we have seen the unemployment rate tick up a tiny bit in the past week. The US also continues to see a rise in food stamp usage. So the reality is this is a very scary economic situation that is engulfing the world, particularly the West.

The money is printed, given to the banks, and the banks buy stocks. This is what has fueled the rally in stocks, not fundamentals. But what you have not seen is the money trickling down to the people. This is a major problem. There is a real disconnect going on as stocks continue to bubble higher. When things turn around in global stock markets, I think they are going to turn quite violently. I would also like to add that a number of pundits had been saying that gold was going to $1,200. That has turned out to be completely wrong.

Every single time there is a downturn in the price of gold, the Asians, particularly the Chinese, are in there aggressively buying. That’s not a recipe for $1,200 gold, but it is a recipe for a strong bottom like the one we are presently seeing. The Chinese have a history of playing down their gold purchases. They do not want to ramp up the gold market while they are trading in their dollars for physical gold. But at some point a major catalyst will emerge and we will begin to really see gold and silver prices surging. That catalyst could come from anywhere. It could be from trouble in Europe or the US. It could also come in the form of another major bank failure. We will see more bad news, that’s just the way these cycles play out. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZmHBLQ

-Robert Fitzwilson: The Case For Gold, Silver & Energy Has Never Been Stronger. Nothing has changed whatsoever as far as the case for gold and silver. In fact, it appears that some form of stasis has emerged. Despite unbelievably huge firepower thrown at suppressing the paper prices of the precious metals, there does appear to be a floor in the making. That does not mean, however, that there is not a ceiling in effect, too. While opposing forces might have set in some form of a floor, it is foolhardy to assume that the central bankers are out of capacity to enforce a ceiling. For the moment, the smart move continues to be to load up on the smashes and hold back on the rises in the mid-30s. If there were to be a breech in the ceiling, it should be easily recognizable. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10GRpkN

-Louise Yamada: 4 Gold & Silver Charts. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Yo3P0X

-Greg Hunter: Interview with Jim Willie, Staggering Bullish Indications for Gold. Jim Willie, who holds a PhD in statistics, says, “There are staggering bullish market indications for gold. The primary cylinder is negative real interest rates for the past 10 years.” Dr. Willie says other bullish factors include “phony accounting at insolvent global banks” being propped up by massive money printing. Dr. Willie contends, “In January alone, the European banks were the beneficiaries of $1.2 trillion from dollar swap facilities as directed by the U.S. Fed. That’s what’s keeping these bonds floating and the banks alive. They’re zombies.” Dr. Willie says, “Europe is on the verge of collapse.” When it does, Dr. Willie says a new “Gold Trade Finance System” is already in place to take over for the dollar. Dr. Willie’s sources say, “The trade finance system has already agreed on a gold price of $7,000 to $8,000. Silver would be $150 to $200 per ounce.” Watch more here-http://bit.ly/YojPjq

-Citi analyst Tom Fitzpatrick: Gold To Surge Over $460 & Smash Through Key $2,000 Level. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZRSoja

-Adam Hamilton: Contrary Gold Futures 2. Gold’s technical breakdown suffered in its recent capitulation selloff naturally unleashed a flood of bearish sentiment. Traders are totally convinced gold’s woes are just starting, that the worst is yet to come. This pessimistic worldview is largely universal, even among futures traders. But their collective bets are actually a strong contrarian indicator. Their bearishness peaks right before major rallies erupt. The bottom line is gold-futures speculators’ aggregate bets are a powerful contrarian indicator.

Despite their reputation of being sophisticated, they struggle with the same greed and fear we all do. So they wax the most bearish on gold right after major lows just before major uplegs. This secular gold bull’s record of aggregate speculator gold-futures positions as revealed in the weekly CoT reports make this crystal-clear. Thus prudent contrarians watch what the gold-futures speculators are doing and make the opposite bets near CoT extremes. The more bearish these specs get, the more bullish the outlook for gold actually becomes. Succumbing to groupthink in the markets always leads to big losses. Transcending it to think like a contrarian is the only way to consistently buy low and sell high. Fight the herd and grow rich. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Z2R6kj

-Richard Russell: Gold Action, Market Melt-Up & When To Exit. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZKVFkh

-Don Coxe: “Central Banks Are Busy At Work Creating The Next Big Bull Market In Gold.” Read more here-http://bit.ly/14XNK2A

-Brett Arends: The secret bull market in gold. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13WoHRK

-Gold sales shoot through the roof at Chinese retailers. The New Year in China is always a strong time to buy gold, and with gold on sale, consumers’ love to snap up a bargain ruled high. Read more here-http://bit.ly/12TH3De

-Where’s the gold or the silver? The ever continuing movement of vast amounts of gold and silver to the East in particular begs the question of how physical demand is being satisfied elsewhere. Read more here-http://bit.ly/XM19LR

-Encouragement from Peter Grandich, and a hunch. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13WBG5V

-Gene Arensberg: Gold breakout attempt with higher volume. Read more here-http://bit.ly/10I2LFn

-Gene Arensberg: Drop in GLD metal holdings is contrary bullish. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YemfPr

-Guillermo Barba: Bank of Mexico buys paper ‘gold,’ sells physical. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16vDVwy

-Infographic: A history of gold confiscation. See more here-http://bit.ly/YoFacn

-China is part of gold market rigging as well and tries to talk market down. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13Z3qHc

-Alasdair Macleod: Why they might want to rig the gold market. Read more here-http://bit.ly/WKClFc

-Could gold be the next LIBOR scandal? Read more here-http://bit.ly/12UeANR

-Are Gold Prices Being Manipulated in London? Watch more here-http://bloom.bg/WqUsxK

-CFTC’s Chilton Says ‘Foolish’ Not to Review Benchmark Pricing. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/12UhiCQ

-U.S. CFTC looking at London gold, silver fix: WSJ. The top U.S. derivatives regulator has started internal discussions on whether the daily setting of gold and silver prices in London is open to manipulation, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the situation. Read more here-http://reut.rs/XbhKVx and http://bit.ly/ZRJnqz

-One CFTC member talks down, another talks up probing gold, silver fixes. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZLDbhu

-Zero Hedge mocks CFTC’s supposed concern about gold and silver market rigging. Read more here-http://bit.ly/WKCRD8

-CFTC looking into London gold, silver price setting. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13W1aA7

-Video of GATA secretary’s interview on CNBC Asia is posted. Watch more here-http://bit.ly/WqTcKN

-CNBC prods World Gold Council, CPM Group’s Christian about GATA. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13W0nz3

-GoldSeek Radio interviews GATA Chairman Bill Murphy. Listen to more here-http://bit.ly/ZJ7BAQ

Back to Top

SILVER

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $33.33

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $40.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $66.67

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $100.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,000 the silver price would be $133.33

Gold to silver ratio at 60 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $41.67

Gold to silver ratio at 50 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $50.00

Gold to silver ratio at 40 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $62.50

Gold to silver ratio at 30 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $83.33

Gold to silver ratio at 20 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $125.00

Gold to silver ratio at 15 to 1 with gold at $2,500 the silver price would be $166.67

-John Embry: I Believe Global Silver Stockpiles Are Now Exhausted. It’s astounding that the price of silver has fallen from $35 to $28 with the nature of the tight physical market. I think silver is in enormously short supply. The combination of the industrial and medical uses, in combination with silver’s monetary attributes, is going to lead to the demand overwhelming available mine supply. We also have the massive short positions in silver and there is very little inventory available. The JP Morgan silver short position is the primary reason why the silver price continues to be held at levels that are unrealistically low. Once gold and silver begin their next move higher you are going to see silver move a lot faster, and the gold/silver ratio will collapse.

That ratio may plunge to 10/1. If you believe as I do that the gold price will go up multiples from here, just think about what the silver price is going to do. Virtually all of the available above ground silver is gone as I believe they have now chewed through the 129.8 million ounces of silver they forced out of Warren Buffett’s hands. Not only is the silver they extorted out of Buffett’s hands gone, but the US and Chinese stockpiles have been exhausted as well. So all hell is going to break loose in the silver market at some point. The reality that virtually all of the available supplies have now been exhausted just points to the fact that demand has been outstripping supply for years, and this is definitely going to intensify going forward.

This is why people that understand this market know that the physical market is going to take over and the paper market is headed to the dustbin of history. The paper market has been in charge now for 25 years, but the paper markets for both gold and silver are coming to a close because physical demand for gold and silver are outstripping supplies. As that transition takes place, this is when the pricing mechanism will change completely. Once silver clears $35 the sentiment will change.

And because the market is so tiny and there is this massive short position in silver it will move very violently to the upside. This is why the gold/silver ratio is going to plunge because once silver gets going there will be nothing to stop it. The reality is that it will be easy for the industrial and medical fields to absorb a higher price because it is a sufficiently small portion of the costs in both sectors. I’m surprised the manipulators have been able to hold back the price of silver this long, but when silver truly surges it will leave market participants speechless. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16sSp0a

-Stephen Leeb: Silver To Eclipse $100 On Skyrocketing Chinese Demand. Yesterday’s headlines were saying there is massive demand for photovoltaics in Japan and China. There is also massive demand for silver in the Middle-East for this type of energy infrastructure. KWN was way ahead of the curve on this because I have been discussing photovoltaics here for quite some time and this is just now starting to hit the mainstream media a little bit. But another circumstance that is of great concern in the Middle-East is the water tables have really crashed.

They can’t effectively drill for water anymore. So in the Middle-East they are going to have to go for desalinization of the ocean and guess what that takes? That takes a lot of silver for photovoltaics energy infrastructure. Yes, the Middle-East still has a lot of oil, but they have to export that oil in order to maintain their budgets. This leaves the Middle-East as a major user of solar energy going forward. You are going to continue to see the use of solar energy accelerate in the future as places like the Middle-East and Asia face greater energy needs. These countries are now focusing as much on solar energy as they are on wind energy.

The implications here are just extraordinary. Photovoltaics already accounts for about 5% or 6% of all of the silver that is mined in the world. We will see that grow at 30% or more for the next five years. There is simply not enough silver in the world to accommodate photovoltaics. When you add to that the industrial and investment demand for silver, you know silver is setting up to break $100. Silver under $30 is a joke. It really is a joke. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YbVcEo

-Investors Say Silver Outshines Gold. Watch more here-http://bloom.bg/W6Hmqx

-U.S. investment-manager guru says silver a good bet. Mr. Gundlach is going against the hedge-fund herd on his silver call, which is based on his bullish view on gold. In recent months, gold ETFs have experienced some of their largest outflows in years, and some noted hedge-fund operators, such as George Soros, have cut their positions in the yellow metal. By going on the other side of this trade, Mr. Gundlach is sticking his neck out in a high-profile way.

Of the two metals, he favours silver because it has a high beta, meaning in a bull or bear market it moves disproportionately compared to other precious metals. It is for this reason that silver is often described as gold on steroids, so if he’s right, his investment will yield far greater returns than an equal dollar amount of gold and far great losses if prices slide. The reason he’s bullish on gold is money printing by central banks. Over time, he expects the metal to rise in tandem with the expansion of central-bank balance sheets.

Over the past 18 months, the relationship between central-bank currency debasement and gold has broken down, with the yellow metal trading sideways as bank balance sheets expand. For Mr. Gundlach, the sideways trend is temporary, allowing value to build up in the precious metals space. “Silver was very much in favour two years ago. Now it’s very out of favour,” pointing to the previous highs near $50 (U.S.) an ounce compared to the present level around $29. He said current prices for precious metals represent a reasonably good entry point for investors who don’t have positions. Read more here-http://bit.ly/16vbwXp

-Ryan Jordan: Silver’s Industrial Demand, The Best Is Yet to Come. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YsL2yd

-Silver Institute: Industrial Uses Forecast to Boost Demand for Silver. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Z87hwK

-GE Christenson: Silver Keep It Simple. Read more here-http://bit.ly/X8k8fz

-Silver to recover faster than Gold from present slump. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13WPs8K

-Will We See a Silver Breakout in 2013? Read more here-http://bit.ly/XbiVV1

-Ted Butler: Silver Commentary, A Moment of Clarity. One final note there has been increasing talk of a silver and gold shortage leading to a COMEX contract default of some type. I don’t know where this talk of a gold shortage comes from. Gold is not industrially consumed and that makes it virtually impossible for it to develop into an actual physical shortage. I understand that silver and gold are manipulated in price by virtue of COMEX game playing, but I think it’s important to distinguish between the two based upon the facts. Yes, gold can go higher, even much higher than I anticipate, but a physical shortage is a completely different animal. It is the prospect of a silver shortage that lies behind my switch from gold to silver mantra. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Ybry1T

-Visualizing All The Silver In The World. See more here-http://bit.ly/10P48pi

-Silver lawyer explains amended lawsuit. Read more here-http://bit.ly/ZJh4Iv

Back to Top

CHARTS OF THE WEEK-QUOTES-QUICK HITS

-CHART OF THE WEEK: The Scariest Jobs Chart Ever. Read more here-http://read.bi/16s3ONQ

-Record 89,304,000 Americans ‘Not in Labor Force’ 296,000 Fewer Employed Since January. The number of Americans designated as “not in the labor force” in February was 89,304,000, a record high, up from 89,008,000 in January, according to the Department of Labor. This means that the number of Americans not in the labor force increased 296,000 between January and February. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) labels people who are unemployed and no longer looking for work as “not in the labor force,” including people who have retired on schedule, taken early retirement, or simply given up looking for work. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YrZGWz

-Lakshman Achuthan: Wow, The US Jobs Market Sure Looks Recessionary. Read more here-http://read.bi/Znrf5F

chartoftheday.com

-CHART OF THE WEEK: OECD Predicts $190 Oil In Seven Years. Read more here-http://read.bi/X8bhL3

-CHART OF THE WEEK: The rich pay majority of U.S. income taxes. Many people think that the rich are able to weasel their way out of taxes, but they actually pay an overwhelming majority of the taxes in the United States. The top 10 percent of taxpayers paid over 70% of the total amount collected in federal income taxes in 2010, the latest year figures are available, according to the Tax Foundation, a think tank that advocates for lower taxes. That’s up from 55% in 1986. The remaining 90% bore just under 30% of the tax burden. And 47% of all Americans pay hardly anything at all a fact that got Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney into political hot water last year. “There’s been a huge myth created that the rich aren’t paying anything,” said William McBride, the Tax Foundation’s chief economist. “The rich pay a much higher rate than the poor.” Read more here-http://cnnmon.ie/Z03RJ8

-”With the March 5th new high, the DJIA stood at 0.6% above its October 7, 2007 close. It is worth noting, however, that an investor who bought physical gold at the time of the last DJIA high, with the London afternoon fix at $736.00 per troy ounce on October 7, 2007, would have been ahead by 114.6% (119.0% for silver) as of the March 5, 2013 London afternoon fix of $1,579.75. That was a goodly gain, irrespective of how inflation is measured, and it was not an aberration. John Williams Shadowstats.com

-”A reason why I personally allocate substantial amounts to gold and currencies is because I believe bonds may be in a bubble; and stock valuations may be more driven by the printing presses rather than fundamentals. While it’s nice for investors to see stock holdings go up when more easy money is promised, the challenge is that stocks may no longer be trading based on fundamentals, but only based on the next perceived move of policy makers.” Axel Merk

-”The main thing that is pushing the market higher is liquidity. You’ve got the Fed monetizing the nation’s debt, buying practically all of the new bond issuance by the federal government. With the Fed monetizing the debt they run a risk of debasing the currency, but meanwhile that money has to go somewhere. People don’t want to put the money to work in start-ups and developing new enterprises. So what we have is the effort to prop things up is really just propping up the stock market, not the macro economy.

It’s wonderful when you see this kind of thing happening to just say, ‘Well, I’m going to be along for the ride and then I will get out of harm’s way before things unravel.’ But how do you do that? I prefer to step aside during liquidity-fueled rallies, and take advantage of them as an opportunity to take some risk off of the table. Thank you very much for these gains, now let me move to a more cautious posture. I would much rather be out of harm’s way than to pick up the last nickel in front of a steamroller.” Rob Arnott

-”When you buy Treasury bonds, you are putting your fate in the hands of the government, expecting it to give back your purchasing power and a reasonable amount of interest to you, in return for the use of your money. Should you trust these authorities with your money? I believe we are headed for a serious loss of confidence in the value of the dollar, which will be accompanied by a burst of the Bond Bubble. This Ponzi scheme is getting ready to explode.” Bud Conrad

-”The majority of jobs being created now will disappear when either the stimulus ends or rising interest rates bring back recession. When the time comes to pay the piper for all this stimulus, the bill will be large, and the collapse much worse than the financial crisis of 2008.” Peter Schiff

-”Eventually over time, the issuance of more and more paper money sets in motion a final reckoning, a collective summation of previous monetary excesses, and the longer and more “successful” the issuance of paper money has been, the greater and more destructive the subsequent and inevitable final collapse will be.” Darryl Robert Schoon

-”The ramifications for investors and the economy will be profound. Not only will the economy move gradually toward a pronounced condition of stagflation, but, more importantly, the bubbles being created by the Fed will be far greater and more devastating than any other in history. The economy is now set up for unprecedented volatility between rampant inflation and deflation; courtesy of Ben Bernanke’s sponsorship of the $7 trillion increase in new Federal debt since 2008. Investors need to own precious metals now more than ever as a means of protecting their portfolios during times of currency depreciation and economic chaos.” Michael Pento

-”Look at what happened with the Federal Reserve this past week: They’ve expanded their balance sheet another $18 billion. Meaning that the balance sheet of the Fed, for the first time, is now over $3.1 trillion. This is all monetary debasement and this monetary debasement is ultimately going to reflect itself in higher precious metals prices.” James Turk

-Ambrose Evans-Pritchard: Sputtering global economy belies stock market boom. Asia’s economic recovery is losing momentum and Europe’s slump is proving deeper than expected, raising concerns that soaring stock markets globally have jumped ahead of economic reality. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Z0PC6P

-Greg Hunter: James Turk Interview, We are in a Fiat Currency Bubble. Gold expert James Turk says, “Mr. Bernanke is so anti-deflation he’s willing to risk hyperinflation, and we are on this path of hyperinflation given the policies we are following.” Turk contends gold is a good value right now. Turk says, “Because it is money outside the banking system, it doesn’t have any counterparty risk, and that is very important as this crisis continues to unfold.”

Turk predicts, “Either we cut back on spending or the dollar is going to collapse. Those are the two choices.” Turk’s advice, “By owning physical metal, you are preparing for what looks like a collapse of fiat currencies. In fact, I call the environment we are in now a fiat currency bubble.” Turk predicts gold will reach “$11,000” per ounce in the next five years. Turk goes on to say, “It might come sooner. It depends on when confidence finally breaks, and we’re getting very, very close to that stage. There’s nothing holding the dollar together but confidence.” Read more here-http://bit.ly/XMv5Yc

-46,609,072 People on Food Stamps in 2012; Record 47,791,996 in December. Nearly a quarter of the people living in Washington, D.C. are on the program. Read more here-http://bit.ly/Y9Mp90

-White House Budget Office Notifies 480 Employees of Furloughs. Almost all of the 500 employees in the White House budget office have been told that they’ll have to take unpaid days off because of the across-the-board budget cuts that took effect March 1. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Wbnu5u and http://bloom.bg/XAEwfl

-Greg Hunter: What Happens if U.S. Doesn’t Cut Spending? Read more here-http://bit.ly/Ybew4C

-David Rosenberg: Restaurant Sales Haven’t Looked Like This Since The Start Of The Last Recession. Read more here-http://read.bi/10O2ZuB

-Norway Fund Flees Currencies Tainted by Stimulus Addiction. Norway’s $713 billion sovereign wealth fund is turning away from the world’s biggest currencies and their debt-laden governments as policy makers undermine their exchange rates through unprecedented stimulus measures. The Government Pension Fund Global, the world’s largest wealth fund, cut its holdings in French and U.K. government bonds by almost half last year as it raised its share of government bonds in emerging-market currencies to 10 percent of its fixed-income holdings by adding investments in Turkey, Russia and Taiwan. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/WItq7m

-Dylan Grice: Central Bankers’ ‘Crackpot Monetary Ideas’ Are Leading To A Breakdown Of Society. Read more here-http://read.bi/12PDmP2

-Jim Rogers: The World’s Savers Are Being Wiped Out, And History Says That Leads To Very Bad Things. Throughout our history any country’s history the people who save their money and invest for their future are the ones that you build an economy, a society, and a nation on. In America, many people saved their money, put it aside, and didn’t buy four or five houses with no job and no money down. They did what most people would consider the right thing, and what historically has been the right thing.

But now, unfortunately, those people are being wiped out, because they are getting 0% return, or virtually no return, on their savings and their investments. We’re wiping them out at the expense of people who went deeply into debt, people who did what most people would consider the wrong thing at the expense of people who did the right thing. This, long-term, has terrible consequences for any nation, any society, any economy. If you go back in history, you’ll see what happened to the Germans when they wiped out their savings class in the 1920s.

It didn’t lead to good things down the road for Germany. It didn’t lead to good things for Italy, which did the same thing. There were plenty of countries where it wiped out the people who saved and invested for their future. It’s usually a serious, political reaction, desperation in some cases, and looking for a savior and easy answers is usually what happens when you destroy the people who save and invest for the future. Read and listen to more here-http://read.bi/12Qr211

-Paul Brodsky: Gold, Destructive Hyperinflation & The Final End Game. The markets have begun to wonder whether the Fed (and other central banks) will ever be able to exit from its Quantitative Easing policy. We believe there is only one reasonable exit the Fed can take. Rather than sell its portfolio of bonds or allow them to mature naturally, we believe the Fed’s only practical exit will be to increase the size of all other balance sheets in relation to its own. Read more here-http://bit.ly/X85rcs and http://bit.ly/WIlJhv

-Fed ’stress test’: banks would lose $460bn if crisis struck again. America’s biggest banks would face losses of almost half a trillion dollars should a deep financial crisis and recession hit the US again, regulators said. Read more here-http://bit.ly/13WDOdZ

-JPMorgan Misled Investors, Dodged Regulator, Report Says. JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon sought to hide escalating trading losses that surpassed $6.2 billion, misled investors and dodged regulators as the bank’s position deteriorated last year, a Senate probe found. The largest U.S. bank “mischaracterized high-risk trading as hedging,” and withheld key information from its primary regulator, sometimes at Dimon’s behest, according to a report today by the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. The 301-page document also shows how managers manipulated internal risk models and pressured traders to overvalue their positions in an effort to hide growing losses in a “monstrous” credit derivatives portfolio in London. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10Ubb01

-Goldman, JPMorgan Ordered to Fix Capital Planning by Fed. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co., the world’s biggest trading firms, must submit new capital plans to regulators to address weaknesses in their planning processes found by the Federal Reserve. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10TrJ8t

-Home Repossessions Drop 29% to Lowest in U.S. Since 2007. Home repossessions in the U.S. plunged 29 percent last month from a year earlier to the lowest level since 2007 amid increased efforts by state lawmakers and courts to delay property seizures, according to RealtyTrac. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/15OPYUj

-Postal Service Urged to Weigh Contracting Most Operations. The U.S. Postal Service should consider keeping door-to-door delivery while privatizing the rest of its operations, a panel led by former Government Accountability Office head David Walker found. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/YdyQ5c

-Orr Named Detroit’s Emergency Manager by Michigan Governor. Michigan Governor Rick Snyder named Washington lawyer Kevyn Orr as emergency manager to lead Detroit out of a financial crisis that threatens the largest municipal bankruptcy in the U.S. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/WgB47R

-Only Wall Street Wins in Detroit Crisis Reaping $474 Million Fee. The only winners in the financial crisis that brought Detroit to the brink of state takeover are Wall Street bankers who reaped more than $474 million from a city too poor to keep street lights working. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZrbGdn

-Libya Wealth Fund Seeking SocGen Explanation on $1 Billion Loss. Libya, whose sovereign wealth fund declined by at least $4 billion in value over the past four years, said it’s demanding an explanation from Societe Generale SA on how it lost about $1 billion on derivative contracts. “We have been in contact a number of times but have not received a satisfactory answer,” Mohsen Derregia, the outgoing chairman and chief executive officer of the fund, said in an interview from Tripoli. “We are pursuing this matter further.” Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Yam2Qf

-U.S. Intelligence Chief ‘Very Concerned’ on North Korea. North Korea’s nuclear weapons and missile programs pose a “serious threat” to the U.S. and its allies in Asia, according to U.S. intelligence agencies in an unclassified worldwide threat assessment. Presenting the report to the Senate intelligence committee, Director of National IntelligenceJames Clapper said he is “very concerned” about the actions of North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un and the “very belligerent” rhetoric that has been emanating from his regime. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/13TpCSL

-Obama Says Iran Still More Than a Year Away From Nuclear Weapon. President Barack Obama said Iran is still more than a year away from building a nuclear weapon while indicating the U.S. is ready to act militarily if sanctions don’t force the Iranians to stop development. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10To8qY

-U.S. Drone Over Persian Gulf Pursued by Iranian Jet. A U.S. military drone operating over international waters in the Persian Gulf was pursued by an Iranian military aircraft on March 12, according to the Pentagon. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Ye2TKd

-Report: Half trillion need to update U.S. schools. America’s schools are in such disrepair that it would cost more than $270 billion just to get elementary and secondary buildings back to their original conditions and twice that to get them up to date, a report released Tuesday estimated. Read more here-http://yhoo.it/WkJVnI

-The U.S. wealth effect might be shrinking. The Dow keeps hitting all-time highs and home prices are rising. But many Americans do not feel any richer. That could be bad news for the economy. Read more here-http://cnnmon.ie/ZIwEEb

-Property Tycoon Buys One Of London’s Biggest Homes For A Record $120 Million. Read more here-http://read.bi/Z3sxUc

-Pew: For Every 10 Americans, Only 3 Trust The Government. The Pew Research Center in Washington, D.C. has found that fewer Americans than ever trust the decisions made by the government. Read more here-http://cbsloc.al/15NbNn8

-U.S. to let spy agencies scour Americans’ finances. The Obama administration is drawing up plans to give all U.S. spy agencies full access to a massive database that contains financial data on American citizens and others who bank in the country, according to a Treasury Department document seen by Reuters. Read more here-http://reut.rs/Z3o8AJ

Back to Top

-Rarecoloreddiamonds.com Featured Diamond of the Week. This week’s Diamond is a 0.34 Carat Oval Cut Fancy Vivid Purplish Pink Argyle. Harold Seigel-Watch video of the Featured Diamond here-http://bit.ly/LIsp98

-Harold Seigel of Rarecoloreddiamonds.com Announces His Next Online Seminar on April 3, 2013 at 8:00 PM EST. Read more here-http://bit.ly/YpQYLq

-World’s Biggest Colorless Diamond May Fetch $20 Million. A pear-shaped colorless diamond is estimated to sell for $20 million at an auction in Switzerland. The D-color flawless stone, weighing 101.73 carats, will feature in a jewelry auction by Christie’s International at the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues, Geneva, on May 15. It is the largest colorless diamond of this optimum grade to appear at auction and sold by a client who wishes to remain anonymous. This is the first time the gem has appeared for sale and the buyer will be able to name it, the London-based company said today in an e-mail. The stone was recently cut from a rough diamond, weighing 236 carats, that had been found at the Jwaneng mine in Botswana.

It took 21 months to polish, said Christie’s. Demand for the rarest diamonds as an alternative asset and portable store of value has pushed up prices in recent years. At the top end of the market, “white” stones are regarded as less desirable as their even rarer colored equivalents. The record price for any gem at auction is the 45.4 million francs ($45.6 million) paid by the London dealer Laurence Graff for a 24.78-carat emerald-cut “Fancy Intense Pink” at Sotheby’s, Geneva, in November 2010. The record auction price for a colorless stone is the 20.4 million Swiss francs ($21.5 million at the time) with fees paid for the 76.02-carat Archduke Joseph Diamond at Christie’s, Geneva, in November 2012. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZAKlUp and http://bit.ly/X8ucoS and http://bit.ly/Z0PTXt

Back to Top

U.S. DEBT-DEFICIT

-DeLong Says Not Time to Cut U.S. Budget With Free Lunch. Just as lawmakers force as much as $85 billion of budget cuts on the federal government, economists Bradford DeLong and Lawrence Summers have a message for Washington: Now is the perfect time to spend more, not less. Their advice is based on new research suggesting that, because of today’s rare economic circumstances, increased spending could be unusually potent in reviving growth. A study by former Treasury Secretary Summers and DeLong, a University of California at Berkeley economist, concluded stimulus now could generate so much growth that it would pay for itself. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/ZAioMq

-Bernanke Provokes Mystery Over Fed Stimulus Exit. When Ben S. Bernanke asserted last month that the Federal Reserve doesn’t ever have to sell assets, he raised questions about how the central bank can withdraw its record monetary stimulus without stoking inflation. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/WI0WKT

Back to Top

SOVEREIGN DEBT

-SocGen: Another ‘Eurozone Shockwave’ Is Coming This Spring. Société Générale strategists are warning clients of another “Eurozone shockwave” coming this spring. In fact, they say it’s going to be one of the three major themes driving global currency markets for the rest of 2013. The Italian election yielded inconclusive results, and it’s looking more and more likely that another election will have to be held. Of course, that one may not be conclusive either. Meanwhile, Germany holds its own elections in September. If Italian bond yields rise to unsustainable levels, German politicians aren’t likely to be too supportive of their neighbors to the south while trying to secure re-election at home. Read more here-http://read.bi/12TVmaV

-Italy’s Rating Cut by Fitch as Election Threatens Gridlock. Italy’s credit rating was cut one level by Fitch Ratings as an inconclusive election in February produced political paralysis that threatens the country’s ability to respond to a recession and the European debt crisis. The rating company lowered Italy’s government bond rating to BBB+ from A- with a negative outlook, according to a statement released late yesterday. That’s three levels above junk and one higher than Spain. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/10OhkLk

-Greece Faces 150,000 Job-Cut Hurdle to Aid Payment. Greece is locked in talks with international creditors in Athens about shrinking the government workforce by enough to keep bailout payments flowing. Identifying redundant positions and putting in place a system that will lead to mandatory exits for about 150,000 civil servants by 2015 is a so-called milestone that will determine whether the country gets a 2.8 billion-euro ($3.6 billion) aid instalment due this month. More than a week of talks on that has so far failed to clinch an agreement. Read more here-http://bloom.bg/XJnU2V

-Greece may still have to quit euro: Merkel ally. Greece remains the biggest risk for the euro zone despite a calming of its economic and political crisis and may still have to leave the common currency, a senior conservative ally of German Chancellor Angela Merkel said. Alexander Dobrindt, general secretary of the Christian Social Union (CSU), the Bavaria-based sister party of Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU), has long argued that Greece would be better off outside the euro zone. Read more here-http://reut.rs/XJqlm7

-The Greek Unemployment Nightmare Continues To Get Worse. Greek unemployment hit 26.4 percent last quarter, a new record. It was 2.6 points higher than Q3 2012 and 5.7 percent higher than Q4 2011. The figure ticked an astonishing 57.8 percent among Greek youth. Read more here-http://read.bi/ZrNTtP

-Nouriel Roubini: ECB must cut rates or risk crisis again. The European Central Bank will eventually be forced to cut interest rates or risk an even deeper recession that could test the eurozone again by inflaming political and social tensions, American economist Nouriel Roubini has warned. The ECB last week decided to hold interest rates at a record low of 0.75%, what they’ve been since July, even as it predicted the eurozone economy will shrink in 2013 by almost as much as last year and inflation will fall further below target. Read more here-http://cnnmon.ie/14XzNBK

-Europe to Contract as Much as 1.5%, El-Erian Says. Europe may contract 1 percent to 1.5 percent in the next 12 months with the private sector unable to borrow and austerity policies limiting growth, according to Pacific Investment Management Co.’s Mohamed El-Erian. “The private sector is still starved for credit,” El- Erian, the chief executive officer of the world’s largest manager of bond funds, said in a interview. “Given the austerity in place, the economy will contract, which is bad for unemployment, especially youth unemployment.” Read more here-http://bloom.bg/Zn7I5e

-Banks saved, but Europe risks “losing a generation.” Europe has spent hundreds of billions of euros rescuing its banks but may have lost an entire generation of young people in the process, the president of the European Parliament said. Since the region’s debt crisis erupted in Greece in late 2009, the European Union has created complex rescue mechanisms to prop up distressed countries and their shaky banking sectors, setting aside a total of 700 billion euros.

But little has been done to tackle the devastating social impact of the crisis, with more than 26 million people unemployed across the EU, including one in every two young people in Greece, Spain and parts of Italy and Portugal. That crippling level of unemployment has led to protests and outbreaks of violence across southern Europe, raising the threat of full-scale social breakdown, including rising crime and anti-immigrant attacks that can further rattle unstable governments. Read more here-http://reut.rs/WI17WF

Back to Top

STOCK MARKET

-Dennis Gartman: I’m Staying Out Of Stocks, Because I’m Concerned About All The Insider Selling. Read more here-http://read.bi/Yc529c

-Frank Holmes: Infographic, The Dow Today Versus The Dow In 2007. Read more here-http://read.bi/WHTK1r

-David Rosenberg: This Is Definitely Not An Earnings-Driven Stock Market Rally. Read more here-http://read.bi/16sr51S

Back to Top