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Gold Sellers in Houston Must Submit to Fingerprints and Mugshots
Instead of reducing crime, the new law will instead put a damper on the sale of gold, silver and other precious metals
Last week the Houston City Council passed an ordinance requiring people who sell precious metals to be fingerprinted and photographed.
According to KTRK-TV, the ordinance is “meant to help track down criminals who try to resell stolen valuables. Gold-buying businesses will now be required to photograph and fingerprint sellers as well as photograph the items that are being sold to the dealer.” In other words, citizens who sell gold will be considered criminals until they demonstrate otherwise.
“It’s going to allow us the tools necessary to combat a lot of the high-end jewelry thefts that’s going on in the city, whether it’s robberies or burglaries,” Houston Police Officer Rick Barajas told the news station last Wednesday.
Audi S8s, Shelby Mustangs, BMW M5s, Dodge Chargers and Honda S2000 roadsters are stolen thousands of times a year and yet people who own them are not required by government to be fingerprinted and photographed in Read more…
Gold and Silver Registration in Illinois
A bill to register gold and silver coins: It had to come. It has been introduced in Illinois, the most anti-gun state in the USA. … Creates the Precious Metal Purchasing Act. Provides that a person who is in the business of purchasing precious metal shall obtain a proof of ownership, create a record of the sale, and verify the identity of the seller. Provides that a person who is in the business of purchasing precious metal shall not pay for the precious metal in cash and shall record the method of payment. Requires the purchaser to keep a record of the sale for one year or, if the purchase amount is over $500, for 5 years. Provides that a person who violates the Act is guilty of a petty offense and subject to a fine not exceeding $500. Provides that the Attorney General may inspect records, investigate an alleged violation, and take action to collect civil penalties. − TeaPartyEconomist.com
Dominant Social Theme: This is to keep everyone safe.
Free-Market Analysis: Thanks to economist Gary North for this one. The bill, Illinois SB3144, passed the state senate in the spring and was handed off to the house this fall. With three Read more…
Silver at four-month high amid QE3 hopes
Silver prices touched their highest level in more than four months on Monday as the prospect of a fresh bout of quantitative easing from the US Federal Reserve rekindled interest in the precious metal.
Investors have largely shunned silver this year after being burnt by a year of wild price swings that saw it touch a 30-year high in April 2011 before plunging nearly 35 per cent in a fortnight.
But silver, whose primary use is industrial despite a recent surge in investor demand, has jumped 15.8 per cent in price in the past three weeks and on Monday peaked at $32.20 a troy ounce.
The gains have outpaced those of gold,
which has risen just 5.2 per cent over the same period.
The “mint ratio” between the two precious metals, a favorite trade of hedge funds and other investors, has moved 9 per cent in silver’s favour since mid-August – the first time silver has outperformed Read more…
Silver prices jump, playing catch-up to gold
Silver prices shot up 4.5 percent Tuesday, playing catch-up to gold.
Silver is both a precious and an industrial metal. Traders can buy it to hedge against a volatile stock market, as they do with gold. But it can also be used to make products like computer chips, meaning prices can rise when traders expect demand from manufacturers to go up.
In March contracts, silver rose $1.616 to $37.14 per ounce. It’s up roughly 10 percent from where it was a year ago.
Sterling Smith, senior market analyst at Country Hedging in St. Paul, Minn., said part of the reason silver is surging is that traders believe it’s Read more…
Silver may continue to outperform others
Silver has displayed a smart rally in the current year so far, rising 21.2 per cent from January onwards. And, there are indications it would continue to outperform other metals like gold and copper. This would be good news for India’s largest silver producer, Hindustan Zinc, as the metal is likely to contribute 14-20 per cent to its Ebitda (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) margins.
Barclays Capital’s commodity outlook says: “The current profile of our price forecast suggests precious metals would be the strongest sector in 2012. We expect silver to reach $38 and rise even further in the third quarter of 2012, before profit booking sets in. At present, it is in a consolidation mode.”
Barclays says physical demand has been driving silver for the past few weeks.(Click here for graphs)
Following record gains in silver in late 2010 and early 2011, prices crashed towards $25. Since then, they have rebounded to $33-36. Currently, silver is facing strong Read more…
Gold and Silver Are Headed for Record Highs
Gold and silver are on fire.
The yellow metal is finishing up the month of January with a gain of more than 10%.
But silver is the star… It’s going to double the performance of gold for the month.
In fact, silver is up 21.5% in January!
To put that into perspective, silver’s January gain has outperformed the Dow’s 2011 performance. It also outperformed last year’s gains in the NASDAQ and S&P 500.
You might think that since these metals are up so much for the first month of the year, they’re ripe for a pullback. And that may be correct.
However, the charts of both gold and silver — but especially gold — are insanely bullish…
This is a weekly chart of gold going back nearly three years:
As you can see clear as day, gold is forming an Read more…
Bernanke Lights a Fire Under Gold and Silver Prices
“Party on!” was Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s message to Wall Street yesterday, as he announced that the Fed will be keeping interest rates at “exceptionally low” levels until late 2014, owing to concerns about stubbornly-high unemployment and the sustainability of the current statistical recovery. Bernanke also confirmed that for the first time in the Fed’s 99-year history, the institution will explicitly target a 2% inflation rate, as measured on the Personal Consumption Index (PCI). Other central banks have long had explicit inflation targets, but not the Fed.
Unsurprisingly given their enthusiasm for easy money, the market response to this move was euphoric. The Dow gained 0.64% to settle at 12756.96, while the Nasdaq tacked on 1.14% to settle at 2818.31. Asian and European exchanges have also reported Read more…
Silver to Explode Upward … Regretfully, Most Will Miss out on This Next Great Wave of Wealth Creation
HOLLYWOOD, Fla., Jan. 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — At Smith McKenna, precious metals trading advisors, Steve Smith, CEO, has been accurately forecasting gold, silver, copper and other precious metals commodities trends for decades. “The latest movements in spot prices in copper and silver were totally predictable, considering the time of year and the projected demands. 2012 will be a huge wealth creating opportunity, if you’re positioned correctly,” exclaims Steve.
“All leading manufacturing Data calls for an end to the GLOBAL SLOWDOWN and a boom in CAPITAL INVESTMENTS thru-out the word,” explains Stephen Smith. Further, “Global consumption will empty all above ground supplies of Silver within the next 36 to 48 months.” The secret, when realized, will take prices to the stratosphere. Smith McKenna is calling for Silver to hit $50 oz. 1st Qtr. 2012, $75 mid 2012, and $150 by year end.
The precious metals sage warns, “Don’t be fooled into buying gold or silver ETF’s, Certificates, and Mining Stocks. You must own the physical asset. But, Don’t buy anything until you have all the information! You Must First Have Accurate Investing Information and Know How to Use It to be a Successful Gold, Silver and Other Precious Metals Investor.”
Steve Smith so much believes that knowledge is the key to profitable investing, that he is giving away a FREE Book, to the first 100 people that just ask for it. Go to www.smithmckenna.com/free-book/, and simply fill out the request form. He also makes available, free of charge, his weekly investing calendar to the public on the Smith McKenna website.
In The First Few Days Of 2012, US Mint Sells More Silver Than In Most Months Of 2011
In the first few days of 2012, the US mint has already sold 4.3 million ounces in silver coins. This is more than in all individual months of 2011 except for January and September, when the mint sold 6.4 million and 4.5 million ounces. Is the retail love affair with physical silver coming back with a vengeance?
2012:
![[Most Recent Quotes from www.kitco.com]](http://www.kitconet.com/charts/metals/gold/t24_au_en_usoz_2.gif)
![[Most Recent Quotes from www.kitco.com]](http://www.kitconet.com/charts/metals/silver/t24_ag_en_usoz_2.gif)
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