April 25, 2024

Gold ETF Holdings Surge in 2022

April 20, 2022 by Leave a Comment

The SPDR Gold Shares Trust (GLD) continues to power higher in 2022 with a year-to-date gain of 7.5%.  The value of gold holdings of the GLD from the beginning of the year increased by over $11 billion to $68.13 billion.  Total gold held in trust by the GLD now amounts to over 1,106 tonnes.

The GLD hit an all time high during early March when it reached $191.50.  The demand for gold has increased due to of control inflation, a war in Europe that is spinning out of control, rampant money printing by the Federal Reserve and reckless spending by the Federal government.

Here are some basic facts about the GLD:

  • An investment in GLD allows investors to purchase an interest in gold without the costs of purchasing, transporting, insuring and storage of gold bullion or coins.
  • The fund expenses of the GLD are a modest 0.40% and allow an investor to purchase gold in whatever amount is desired, saving the cost of commissions and shipping on gold bullion.
  • The GLD does not give the buyer the right to receive gold bullion in lieu of shares purchased.
  • Purchases and sales can be done at any time during the trading day.  The GLD has excellent liquidity and the discount or premium from the value of gold bullion held is usually minimal.

Gold has been going steadily upwards since 2016 with minor pullbacks during 2018 and 2021.

The return on the GLD from date of inception on November 18, 2004 has been 8.36%.  In an uncertain world future returns look brighter every day.

 

 

Filed Under: Featured, Gold Tagged With: , , ,

What is the Best Way to Invest in Gold?

April 11, 2022 by Leave a Comment

Major Gold Mining Stock Outperforms Bullion and Gold ETFs

Investors in gold often wonder about the best way to own the precious metal.  Gold is gold but depending on the vehicle used to purchase gold, investment returns can vary dramatically.

Simply put, the three basic ways to invest in gold are gold bullion, gold bullion ETFs, and gold mining stocks.

Gold Bullion

Purchasers of gold bullion may not trust “paper gold” or they may simply appreciate the beauty of gold bars and coins.  There is an innate satisfaction in being able to physically admire and touch gold, a metal that has had value to man since before the dawn of civilization.  Paper currencies always eventually wind up worthless while gold will maintain purchasing power.  The pleasure of owning physical gold does have drawbacks, the biggest of which is security and storage.

Although gold has moved up dramatically since 2019, the current price of around $1,950 is still slightly below the record high of $2,061 reached in August 2020.

gold Technical chart [Kitco Inc.]

Gold Bullion ETFs

An easy and low-cost method for purchasing gold bullion is by investing in gold bullion ETFs.  Funds put into gold ETFs are invested in physical gold and the fund is responsible for physical security.  The largest gold ETF is the SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) which currently holds about $68 billion in assets.  The ETF has a relatively low expense ratio of 0.40%.  The GLD will closely match the move in the price of gold bullion less the expenses of running the fund.

The GLD currently trades at $181.47 slightly below its high of $190.81 reached in August 2020.

Another ETF worthy of consideration is the iShares Gold Trust (IAU) which currently trades at $36.97, holds $32 billion in physical gold and has an expense ratio of only 0.25%.

Gold Mining Stocks

Gold mining stocks are where it all starts.  Someone must undertake the expensive process of locating and mining gold ore to produce refined gold.  The profit generated by the gold mining stocks depends not only on the price of gold but also on how efficiently gold mining companies are at exploration and deploying capital.  Many junior gold mining companies have not been able to participate in price gains despite the increase in gold prices.

There are two ways to invest in gold mining companies.  An investor can invest in a basket of gold mining stocks in a mutual fund or ETF such as VanEck Gold Miners ETF (GDX) or by purchasing individual gold mining companies.  Purchasing an ETF allows an investor to spread risk across the industry.  Purchasing a successful gold mining company can result in gains that far exceed the increase in gold bullion.

For example, the GDX currently trades at $39.67, below the price reached in August 2020.

Now, look at the performance of Newmont Corporation (NEM) a major gold mining company which has recently exploded to an all-time high and up 173% since late 2019.

There is no way to know which way of investing will work out best until after it happens.  Always diversify to reduce risk is probable the best advice.

Filed Under: Featured, Gold, Gold Stocks Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Statistically Speaking Gold Should Have Been Strong In November – What’s Next?

December 4, 2013 by 1 Comment

gold1November has traditionally been a kind month for gold investors.  Since 2004 the price of gold during November (as measured by using the SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) as a proxy)  has been up 75% of the time with an average return of almost 5%.

As shown in a chart by @RyanDetrick, statistically speaking, the price of gold should have been up in November.

Instead of rising this November the GLD dropped from $126.95 to $120.70 for a price decline of 4.92%, the worst November for gold in 35 years.

GLD NOVEMBER

Conclusion?  Don’t rely on historical data to make current investment decisions.  Gold is in a downtrend and the selling is so overdone that the current market price of gold is below the production costs of most gold miners.

When will the price of gold recover?  No one can perfectly time price moves, but markets that are brutally oversold can come screaming back in a heartbeat when sentiment changes.  Long term gold investors only need to remember one important fact – the Federal Reserve is committed to a campaign that will continue to destroy the purchasing power of the dollar thus making gold a solid long term investment strategy for wealth preservation.

DOLLAR PURCHASING POWER

Filed Under: Currency debasement, Featured, Gold Tagged With: , , , , ,

Why Gold Stocks Are Not a Substitute for Gold

November 28, 2013 by Leave a Comment

gold & barAn investor who was correctly bullish on gold in late 2004 had three basic investment options to capitalize on an increase in the price of gold:

  1. Invest in physical gold
  2. Invest in a proxy for physical gold such as the SPDR Gold Shares (GLD)
  3. Invest in gold mining companies

The investor who picked option three does not have a lot to be cheerful about even after gold’s historic increase in value since 2004.  Why did gold stocks do so poorly in spite of a 500% increase in the price of gold bullion?  Merk Investment takes a look at gold versus gold stocks and explains why Gold Stocks Ain’t Gold.

A frequent mistake made by investors
is to invest in gold mining companies
(both juniors and majors) as a substitute
for gold. There are a couple of reasons
why this may be a mistake. Firstly, gold
mining company’s stock price does not
precisely track the price of gold. That’s
because lots of other factors influence the
share price of a company: management,
cost pressures, mining diversification,
stage of the mining process, to name just
a few.

This problem is generally more
acute for juniors than majors, because
juniors often have yet to “strike gold,”
therefore the stock price often trades more
like an option. Moreover, many mining
companies don’t only mine gold, many
also mine silver, palladium, diamonds
etc.

This dynamic also holds for baskets
of mining companies – baskets of miners
have significantly underperformed the
price of gold over recent years.  Some investors believe gold mining stocks may provide more attractive
investment exposure to gold than gold
itself. The investment thesis is as follows:
gold mining companies are able to take
advantage of an increase in the price
of gold through enhanced operational
leverage; as the gold price goes up, mining companies’ margins widen, ultimately increasing the bottom line.

However, this theory is predicated on fixed costs staying
relatively constant. Unfortunately, recent
performance does not support this
investment idea. Indeed, gold mining
stocks, on aggregate, have significantly
underperformed the price of gold.

The reality is that mining is a highly energy-
intensive undertaking, and therefore
many of the costs are closely linked to
energy prices, such as oil, which has also
experienced significant increases in price.
As a result, many mining companies
have not produced the anticipated
high level of profits. Additionally,
governments may demand higher taxes
and employees higher wages from mining
companies should profitability increase,
further limiting the upside potential for
shareholders.

The results for each investment option are shown below for physical gold, the GLD and the Vanguard Precious Metal and Mining Fund (VGPMX) used as a stock proxy.  Note that despite the horrible long term performance, a nimble investor in the VGPMX could have reaped  considerable gains by selling in early 2008 and then getting back into gold stocks after the crash of 2008.

PHYSICAL GOLD

PHYSICAL GOLD

SPDR GOLD SHARES TRUST (GLD)

GLD

VANGUARD PRECIOUS METALS FUND (VGPMX)

VGPMX

Filed Under: Featured, Gold, Gold Stocks Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Will John Paulson Cut His Losses On Gold?

June 12, 2013 by 1 Comment

gold1Hedge fund investor John Paulson, who made billions shorting mortgage securities ahead of the financial crash, lost 13% on his gold holdings in May after taking a blood bath in April. 

Billionaire John Paulson, the hedge-fund manager trying to recover from losses related to bullion this year, posted a 13 percent decline in his Gold Fund last month, according to a letter to investors.

The drop brings losses in the strategy to 54 percent since the start of the year, the firm said in the letter, a copy of which was obtained by Bloomberg News. The Gold Fund is the smallest strategy of the $19 billion money manager, with about $360 million, or 2 percent of assets, most of it Paulson’s own money.

Gold fell 5.4 percent and gold equities declined 3 percent in May on speculation the Federal Reserve will scale back its bond purchases, reducing the attractiveness of bullion and related securities as a hedge against inflation.

Paulson holds most of his massive gold positions in the SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) and had increased his position in mid 2012, bringing his total holdings to 21.8 million shares.  The  April 2013 gold crash resulted in losses on Paulson’s gold positions of over $600 million.   Even as other large hedge fund traders such as George Soros  liquidated large gold positions, Paulson remained committed to his gold positions and has told investors to remain invested in gold since current valuations provide a “significant upside.”

At December 31, 2012, Paulson’s position of 21.8 million shares in the GLD was valued at $3.4 billion.  Based on yesterday’s closing price of $133.25, the value of Paulson’s GLD shares would be worth $2.9 billion for a decline of $500 million, a serious loss even for a billionaire.

Seasoned stock traders know that “cutting your losses short”  is the most important rule of investing and often the toughest rule to follow.  Does Paulson know something about the gold market that no one else knows or will he wind up closing his gold positions to avoid further losses?   Since Paulson is the largest investor in the SPDR Gold Trust with an ownership position of 6.5%, liquidation of such a large position is almost certain to put additional downward pressure on the price of gold.

Maybe gold investors should hope that Paulson dumps his entire position in the SPDR Gold Trust.  Even brilliant investors like John Paulson can pull the trigger at exactly the wrong time.  After holding a massive position in both Bank of America and Citigroup for almost two years, Paulson liquidate his entire position in the stocks at the end of 2011 right before both stocks soared.  Since the end of 2011 Bank of America is up almost 300% and Citigroup is up around 100%.  Bottoms are made when the last seller capitulates.  Since gold is incredibly oversold at this point, a Paulson capitulation could be the trigger for an explosive move up in the SPDR Gold Trust.

gld

Courtesy yahoo finance

Filed Under: Featured, Gold Tagged With: , , , , ,

Gold Demand Drops By 13% In First Quarter Due to ETF Outflows

May 16, 2013 by Leave a Comment

tenth oz gold-eaglesLarge scale liquidation of gold backed exchange-traded products (ETP) sent gold prices into a tailspin during April.  Billionaire investor George Soros, who had sold 55% of his holdings in the SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) during the last quarter of 2012, further reduced his gold positions during the first quarter.  Soros is a legendary trader and investor who has made billions moving ahead of the crowd.

In an interview published by the South China Morning Post on April 8, Soros said that gold was no longer a safe haven after the metal failed to rally last year despite fears of a euro collapse.  Shortly after Soros made his comments, other investors  began to sell and within days gold had tumbled by $200 per ounce.  Northern Trust Corp and BlackRock Inc also made large cuts in their holdings of ETPs, while John Paulson lost about $165 million by maintaining his stake in the GLD.

According to Bloomberg, assets held by ETPs declined in value by $42 billion as gold prices tumbled.

Global ETP holdings have tumbled 16 percent in 2013 after rising every year since the first product was listed in 2003, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Assets in SPDR have plunged 22 percent, and they will probably drop by an additional 2 million to 4 million ounces after slumping 9.7 million ounces since mid-December, Deutsche Bank AG said in a report on May 14.

Further Drop

While the selloff has been faster than expected, a further drop in ETP holdings will probably mean more price declines, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. analysts including Jeffrey Currie wrote in a report dated May 14.

Northern Trust cut its SPDR stake by 57 percent to 6.9 million shares, according to a filing dated May 1. The asset-management company, as a custodian, holds assets without discretion over how they are invested, Doug Holt, the head of global corporate communications, said yesterday in an e-mail.

“We made one change to our global tactical asset allocation policy this month: eliminating our tactical position in gold,” Jim McDonald, chief investment strategist in Chicago at Northern Trust, which oversees about $810 billion, said in a report on March 13.

BlackRock, the world’s biggest money manager, trimmed its holdings by half to 4.1 million shares, a filing dated April 12 showed. On May 9, Robert Kapito, president of the New York-based company, said that he would still buy the metal.

The large scale liquidation of gold exchange traded funds was confirmed today in the latest quarterly demand and supply statistics published by the World Gold Council.  Overall gold demand for the first quarter declined by a considerable 13% with outflows from gold ETFs accounting for the bulk of the decline.  During the first quarter there were outflows of 177 tonnes from global gold ETF holdings.

The sale by large speculators of the gold ETPs seem to be the trigger that set off last month’s decline in gold prices.  The drop in gold could turn out to be a temporary factor as other buyers eagerly absorb supply by adding to their gold holdings at lower prices.

Aside from the sale of gold by holders of exchange traded products, demand for gold in the first quarter remained robust.  The World Gold Council noted that almost every other category of gold demand increased even as supplies are being constrained by lower mine output.

  • Mine production of 1,052 tonnes during the first quarter showed no growth and supply from scrap gold declined due to the drop in gold prices.
  • Jewelry demand surpassed the previous quarter and hit a new record with sales of $28.9 billion.
  • Demand from India and China, who collectively consume 62% of global gold jewelry sales, increased by 15% and 19% respectively.
  • Physical bar and coin demand during the first quarter increased by 8% and 18% respectively.  Demand for gold bar and coins in China exploded to 110 tonnes, double the average of the last five year quarterly sales.
  • Central banks added 109 tonnes of gold to their reserves in the first quarter, accounting for 11% of total gold demand.  Central banks have increased their purchases of gold for nine consecutive quarters.

Wholesale liquidation of gold positions by very large and wealthy speculators adversely impacted gold prices this year.  As gold demand from virtually every other sector continues to grow, the increased gold outflows from ETFs will eventually be absorbed.  In addition, as central banks continue to print money on an unprecedented scale, it would not be surprising to see large investors once again pour money into the gold ETFs.

Filed Under: Featured, Gold Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Gold and Silver Bearish Sentiment Is At Extreme Levels

May 10, 2013 by 3 Comments

By:  John Townsend at The TSI Trader.

The usefulness of sentiment’s stealth crystal ball is about to be revealed to the litany of unsuspecting precious metal bears and skeptics who have convinced themselves that gold’s bull market is either over or, at the minimum, in need of lengthy ongoing retesting, restructuring and consolidation.

This article will bring us up to date as to the degree of current bearish sentiment regarding both gold and silver using no fewer than 5 sentiment indicators (with 9 illustrative charts), as well as provide the reader with an opportunity to observe the price outcome of previous bearish extremes using these sentiment indicators.

But first, let’s briefly consider the concept of investor sentiment.

Sentiment extremes, simply put, tell us that there are too many traders at one end of the boat and therefore the boat is about to tip over. Sentiment can strongly suggest that the trade, as some say, has become “crowded”. When someone finally yells “fire” in the “crowded” room there are so many of the market’s participants motivated to get out the same door and in the same direction that most get trampled – unable to reverse their trade fast enough.

Another way of characterizing a sentiment extreme is to say that the trade simply runs out of buyers or sellers, as the case may be. The extreme price momentum in one direction “exhausts” itself of all available ammunition to continue the trend and is sometimes signaled when someone yells “fire” in the “crowded” room, but often comes to a conclusion unrecognized by most traders as price reverses direction in an unassuming manner.

You may have heard comments when a particular market bottoms and then begins to trade higher and then continues to trade even higher yet, despite “bad” news, the assertion that the bullish price movement seems to make no sense – that it cannot possibly be sustained. At this time it appears to nearly everyone the common sense question to ask is how “bad” news that used to cause a market to go into free fall now seems to have absolutely no negative effect? And to observe that as this market continues higher, it always leaves behind those traders stuck in pessimism to declare that the market is “climbing a wall of worry”. That is, the “bad” news continues in the media, yet this particular market’s price reversal continues upwards.

We will begin with the put / call volume ratio of the options trade of the Silver Trust ETF (SLV) and the SPDR Gold Trust (GLD). Charts courtesy of Schaeffer’s Investment Research.

Click on image to enlarge.

The red line in the charts are the ETF’s price movement over the recent 2 years (GLD above, SLV below). The blue line is the put / call volume ratio. This considers the trading day’s volume of puts traded and is divided by the volume of calls traded. Generally, the higher the put / call ratio, the more bearish traders are about the ETF’s likely price movement, while the lower the put / call ratio, the more traders believe the ETF is bullish and going to rally higher.

Click on image to enlarge.

Undoubtedly you have noticed that both charts reveal that the put / call ratio is at the highs of the past two years; meanwhile price is at the lows of the past two years. I will leave it to you to observe the repetitively flip flop relationship between this sentiment indicator and price movement. For me, anyway, this indicator leaves little doubt as to the upcoming direction of GLD and SLV.

Next up is the Hulbert Gold Sentiment Index. This chart courtesy of Mark Hulbert’s Newsletters.

Click on image to enlarge.

This first Hulbert Gold Sentiment Index chart shows us that gold sentiment at present is even more depressed than at gold’s infamous 2008 low.

So there you have it. Sentiment on GLD and SLV options is crazy extreme, Hulbert’s Gold Sentiment Index reveals sentiment is not only more bearish than the 2008 bottom – it’s more bearish than anytime in the past 17 years (at least).

Read complete article here.

Filed Under: Featured, Gold, Silver Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Will John Paulson Dump His Gold Holdings?

April 15, 2013 by Leave a Comment

John Paulson, famed for making billions ahead of the financial crash, is taking heavy losses on his gold holdings. According to Bloomberg, Paulson’s gold fund is down 28% as of March 31st.

As of the latest reporting period, Paulson hedge funds hold 21.8 million shares in the SPDR Gold Shares ETF (GLD), worth a massive $3.1 billion as of Friday’s closing price of $143.95. Whether or not Paulson decides to cut his losses or double down could have a major impact on the future price of gold.

 

Filed Under: Featured, Gold Tagged With: , , ,

Panic Selling Crushes Gold and Silver Prices – Bearish Sentiment Reaches Extreme Levels

April 12, 2013 by 4 Comments

goldThe precious metal markets, which have been under a constant drumbeat of negative news and bearish price forecasts for months, sold off sharply today.   Bearish investors seemed to reach the “give up” stage as gold and silver fell below key technical levels.  Panic selling continued to cascade throughout the day as precious metal investors hit the sell button and buyers stepped aside.

By the end of the trading day, gold dropped an astonishing $84 per ounce to close at $1,478, down over 5% on the day and below $1,500 per ounce for the first time since July 5, 2011.   Silver had an even worse day with a price decline of 6.5%, closing down $1.81 per ounce at $25.95.

Analysts had multiple reasons for the huge decline in gold and silver prices including the belief that inflation will remain subdued and the Federal Reserve would begin to slow the pace of monetary stimulus later this year.  In addition, many trend following investors are repositioning out of precious metals into other investment opportunities such as stocks which have appreciated by over 100% since the depths of the financial crisis.  By contrast, gold and silver  have been unable to breach highs reached in mid 2011.

Also weighing on investor’s mind was the fear that the proposed sale of over $500 million of Cyprus gold reserves would further pressure gold prices.  Comments in the Wall Street Journal suggested that other countries may also be forced to sell their gold reserves.

The news about Cyprus “gets people to wonder: Will there be central-bank liquidation of gold when other countries get into trouble?” said Adam Klopfenstein, senior market strategist with Archer Financial Services in Chicago. “Selling gold might be the new caveat for any future [bailout] deals.”

The match that ignited the explosive move to the downside was struck on Wednesday when Bloomberg reported that Goldman Sachs predicted sharply lower gold prices and suggested that investors actually short the gold market.

The turn in the gold price cycle is accelerating after a 12-year rally as the recovery in the U.S. economy gains momentum, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc., which reduced forecasts for the metal through 2014.

The bank cut its three-month target to $1,530 an ounce from $1,615 and lowered the six- and 12-month predictions to $1,490 and $1,390 from $1,600 and $1,550. Goldman recommended closing a long Comex gold position initiated on Oct. 11, 2010 for a potential gain of $219 an ounce, analysts Damien Courvalin and Jeffrey Currie wrote in a report today.

“Despite resurgence in euro-area risk aversion and disappointing U.S. economic data, gold prices are unchanged over the past month, highlighting how conviction in holding gold is quickly waning,” the Goldman analysts wrote in the report. “While higher inflation may be the catalyst for the next gold cycle, this is likely several years away.”

Goldman cut its 2013 gold estimate to $1,545 an ounce from $1,610, trimmed its 2014 forecast to $1,350 from $1,490, and set year-end targets of $1,450 in 2013 and $1,270 in 2014. Goldman recommended starting a short Comex gold position, targeting $1,450 with a stop at $1,650, the analysts wrote.

Ironically, the biggest worry for gold and silver investors now comes from the precious metal ETFs, which greatly contributed to the precious metals bull market as investors poured billions of dollars in the SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) and the iShares Silver Trust (SLV).  If investors in the GLD and SLV initiate panic liquidations, a sharp rebound in gold prices may be wishful thinking despite today’s huge sell off.  According to Goldman Sachs,  “The fall in prices could end up being faster and larger than our forecast, as aggregate speculative net long positions across Comex futures and gold ETFs remain near record highs.”

COURTESY: STOCKCHARTS.COM

COURTESY: STOCKCHARTS.COM

COURTESY: STOCKCHARTS.COM

COURTESY: STOCKCHARTS.COM

The bearish sentiment and price action on gold and silver seemed to have reached extreme levels.  Does anyone hear a contrarian bell ringing?

Filed Under: Featured, Gold, Silver Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

How To Buy, Store and Sell Gold and Silver

March 20, 2013 by Leave a Comment

By: GE Christenson

You want to buy silver and gold. There is much to consider!

safe

  • Physical metal or paper promises?
  • From which supplier will you buy it? Price is not the only consideration.
  • Where do you store it? Your sock drawer, a safe, insured and secure vault, or in another country?
  • How do you sell it and when?
  • IRS Rules

 

Physical, ETF, or Paper?

Do you want actual physical silver and gold that you can hold in your hand? If you do, then buy coins or bars and skip ahead.

If you want to buy and sell easily without taking delivery of actual metal, then perhaps you should invest in an ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) for gold and silver. The fees are minimal; ETFs are convenient and good for frequent trading. The two most popular are GLD and SLV. They are also criticized by many analysts, so I encourage you to also consider PHYS, PSLV, GTU, and others.

If you want paper, then buy options or futures contracts and be careful. When elephants fight, the grass gets trampled – and most of us are merely grass in the world of futures trading.

You Want to Buy Physical Gold and Silver Coins and Bars. Good! Where?

There are many dealers who will sell over the internet and ship to your home or to a secure storage vault. Their prices will vary slightly and so will their terms for payment and delivery. See the partial list and brief comments at the end of this article to get started. There are many other fine dealers in addition to the few examples I have listed.

Storage

More important than where you buy is whether you will buy for delivery to your home, delivery to a secure domestic storage facility, or for delivery to a vault outside of the United States.

Your home – Convenient and close but vulnerable to fire and theft. Your sock drawer is not recommended – buy a safe, hide it, and tell very few.

Safe deposit box at local bank – Secure, less convenient, probably not insured, and vulnerable to a search warrant, court order, and banking shutdown. Use a local bank, not a branch of a huge mega-bank.

Secure storage in the USA – Very secure and safe but may not be close or convenient. Are you comfortable with such storage? If so, then this is an excellent choice. Choose a vault OUTSIDE the banking system.

International Storage – You can store in commercial vaults in London, Canada, Switzerland, Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, and other locations. The IRS MAY want to be told what you are storing and its value if you are an American citizen and storing internationally. See IRS Rules.

How Do you Sell Your Gold and Silver?

If you are buying for insurance against devaluing paper currencies, perhaps you intend to hold it for a long time or expect to will it to your family. In either case, don’t sell it.

If your gold and silver coins are in your possession, then you can sell via the internet or take them to a local coin store. Most companies that will sell to you via the Internet or a phone call will also buy back at a slight discount to sales price (they have to sell at a mark-up to stay in business). You can also sell on eBay or to private individuals. There probably will be tax implications, so consult with your tax advisor.

When to Sell Gold and Silver?

Again, there is no right answer for everyone. Some will argue that gold and silver are essential insurance against unbacked paper currencies and so should never be sold. Investors may want to hold until they see some large price, say $150 silver and $4,000 gold. Others wish to trade in and out, buying low and selling high. Your choice will help determine if you want paper silver, an ETF, coins, or bars, stored domestically or offshore. It is easy to sell paper or an ETF. It may be less convenient to sell coins and bars that you have stored in a safe deposit box. It probably will be easy to sell gold stored in Switzerland.

Jim Sinclair, legendary gold trader and investor, says buy “fish lines” and sell “rhino horns.” What he means is that markets, especially gold and silver markets, often move too far, too fast, both up and down. The down moves – the fish lines – scare out leveraged speculators and “weak hands” and usually indicate good buy points for long-term investors. When leveraged speculators, hot money, and the public drive the market higher in a parabolic spike upward, the chart looks like a rhino horn, and that often indicates a good time to sell. There will be many more signals, but most of us are overwhelmed by greed and fear, especially panic, and we often miss the signals. In 1929 the “signal” was to sell when shoeshine boys were giving stock tips. Something similar will happen at the next panic high in gold and silver, but that may be years away.

IRS Rules

The IRS has instituted new rules for United States taxpayers. We are now required to report holdings of foreign assets on form 8938 (Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets) and form TD F 90-22.1. Consult with your tax attorney and financial advisor, but the simple interpretation is this:

If you own financial assets in another country worth more than certain amounts, usually you must report these assets on form 8938 with your federal tax return and on form TD F 90-22.1 due June 30 of each year. It is wise to comply with IRS requirements as the penalties can be severe. There may be exceptions that your professional advisor can discuss, but these relatively new requirements may influence your choice of investments and their storage locations.

Alphabetical (partial) list of gold and silver vendors with brief comments on each.

Please do your own research before making a purchase.

APMEX – Large gold and silver bullion and coins dealer operating out of Oklahoma. They maintain a sizeable inventory and will buy and sell online in several currencies with reasonable commissions. Apmex will “lock-in” a purchase price online and accept a personal check in payment (with delayed delivery). If you wish, they will also arrange for secure storage with a subsidiary company and ship directly to that insured storage facility. Apmex will assist with the purchase of silver and gold for investment in your qualified IRA.

Bullion Vault – Secure insured vault storage in London, Zurich, and New York for both gold and silver. Purchases can be arranged quickly and online in different currencies with low costs for storage and insurance. It is easy to sell or take delivery of your metals.

Global Gold – Secure insured vault storage in Switzerland, Hong Kong, and Singapore for both gold, silver, platinum, and palladium. Purchases can be arranged quickly and online with low costs for storage and insurance. It is easy to sell or take delivery of your metals. Ownership is physical and fully allocated.

GoldMoney – Secure insured storage in the UK, Switzerland, Hong Kong, Canada, and Singapore for both gold and silver. Purchases can be arranged quickly and online in different currencies with low costs for storage and insurance. It is easy to sell or take delivery of your metals.

GoldSilver.com – Large gold and silver coin and bullion dealer operating out of California. They maintain a sizeable inventory and will buy and sell online with reasonable commissions. GoldSilver.com will arrange storage in Singapore, Hong Kong, Canada, or the USA. You can easily sell your gold and silver holdings or take delivery. They also will assist with purchasing gold and silver coins and bullion for your retirement accounts. If you have time, watch their instructional videos.

Hard Assets Alliance – This is a relatively new company that attempts to meet many needs including convenient gold and silver purchases with secure insured and allocated storage for gold and silver. Silver can be stored in the US but currently only gold can be stored offshore in several countries. Their downloadable information booklet states:

“Exempt from US reporting requirements. As a domestic institution, GBI’s US customers are exempt from both the FBAR and Form 8938 filing requirements if offshore metal storage is elected.”

In some circumstances, this exemption from US reporting requirements may be important in your decision-making process.

Lear Capital – Large gold and silver coin and bullion dealer operating out of California. They maintain a sizeable inventory and will buy and sell online with reasonable commissions. Lear Capital will assist with purchasing gold and silver coins and bullion for IRA and 401k retirement accounts.

Liberty Gold and Silver – A smaller gold, silver, and platinum coin and bullion dealer operating out of Oregon. Liberty Gold and Silver will assist with purchasing gold and silver coins and bullion for IRA accounts and can arrange secure allocated storage in the USA, Canada, Germany, Switzerland, and Singapore.

Perth Mint – Located in Australia, the Perth Mint has been in business for over 100 years and is owned by the Government of Western Australia. The mint refines and produces a variety of products, special coins, and commemoratives in gold, silver, and platinum. The Mint receives over 70,000 visitors each year. You can purchase coins and bullion for delivery and arrange for allocated or pooled storage of your metals.

SilverSaver – Secure insured storage in the USA for gold and silver. You can make convenient periodic purchases by direct withdrawal from your checking account. This allows for a signup and forget “dollar-cost averaging” purchase plan. You can also take delivery of your gold and silver or easily sell it back to SilverSaver.

The Ultimate Gold Trust – Gold can be purchased and held in Switzerland. This storage solution is recommended by Julian D. W. Phillips, a frequent commentator on gold and gold storage options. Read his latest article on the safety of offshore storage.

GE Christenson
aka Deviant Investor

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