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Single Ounce Silver Market Price Benchmark
Money Daily has been providing business and financial market news, views, and coverage on a nearly continuous basis since 2006. Complete archives are available at moneydaily.blogspot.com.
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Friday, the day after Juneteenth (20), 2025, 9:05 am ET It's the first day of summer and on Thursday, otherwise known as "Juneteenth," U.S. government debt passed the $37 trillion mark and continues higher, Israel and Iran continue trading bombs and missile strikes, the U.S. mulls involvement, Russia continues to advance in the Ukraine, so it must stand to reason that gold and silver are down and stock futures are up. Honestly, how does anybody besides the shysters and crooks on Wall Street and the political whores in the "district" believe anything is not rigged in what used to be known as "markets?" It's enough to make one want to take the advice of the Ray Davies and the Kinks and live like an apeman.
BTW: Vince Lanci, or VBL, of GoldFix is pretty much a douche-bag and poorly-disguised plagiarist (in the ZeroHedge mold). He lives off revenue from his voluminous and scarcely cogent Substack, which is mostly regurgitated deep state garbled garbage from Bloomberg, or CNBC, or any of the various banks or newsletters to which he himself subscribes. His daily diatribes which are all over the financial map. He has no creed and is lacking in cred. Me, I don't need the money, especially if it's denominated in increasingly worthless FedBux, so I just say what I mean and mean what I say, so F off. Stack gold and silver and STFU. New highs? Hell, yeah. Our elected representatives need the money. Other than the idea that today's quad-witching, end-of-quarter options expiry might cause some additional volatility - probably not, because nobody exercises those options; Wall Street sharpies just cash them - that's all I can say for today. And that's a good thing, because what I might say could scare some people, and we can't have that.
At the Close, Wednesday, June 18, 2025:
Thursday, Juneteenth, 2025, 7:45 pm ET UPDATE: 9:07 pm EDT the U.S. hit $37 trillion in debt. Good luck, and good night. MONEY DAILY has been trying to predict when the U.S. debt would exceed $37 trillion, and, despite being dead wrong about it hitting the mark around the same time as Fed Chairman Jerome Powell's press conference Wednesday, perhaps it's fitting that the number will be hit on Juneteenth, the most racist national holiday ever concocted - commemorating the abolition of slavery, presumably in Galveston, Texas, on the 19th of June, 1865, nearly 2 1/2 years after the fact. Oddly enough, back in the 1860s, there was no internet or high-speed communications, and Texans being Texans, they didn't bother to tell their indentured servants about President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation. According to Wikipedia:
Lincoln issued the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation in the midst of the Civil War on September 22, 1862, declaring that if the rebels did not end the fighting and rejoin the Union, all enslaved people in the Confederacy would be freed on the first day of the year. On January 1, 1863, Lincoln issued the final Emancipation Proclamation, declaring that all enslaved people in the Confederate States of America in rebellion and not in Union hands were freed. Anyhow, there's some irony that the 19th of June is known in certain circles as "America's Second Independence Day," and that the U.S. government debt will exceed $37 trillion, keeping every American taxpayer in perpetual debt slavery. The U.S. Debt Clock notes that the debt per citizen is close to $108,000, so, anybody born today will immediately be $108,000 in debt. No wonder President Trump wants the Fed to lower rates. By the time people born this year reach the ripe earning age of 21, the interest alone ought to be enough to keep them under the government's thumb for the rest of their lives. Besides "37" being a prime number, indivisible by any previous whole digit, another irony is that the vault past $37 trillion will occur around halftime of the NBA Finals. Not to sound racist, but there is some hubris in the fact that it was mainly black people that were freed on Juneteeth, and this particular anniversary will be marked by athletes - many of them of color - making millions of dollars to play basketball. The worst of it is that these multi-millionaire athletes are taxed out the proverbial wazoo, even though the government collecting the loot hasn't been able to balance a budget in 25 years. So, OK. keep your eyes on the debt clock and the shot clock and do a few shots of your favorite adult beverage, comfortable in the knowledge that Juneteeth may be a fun - and well-deserved - day off, but, the federal government has now set the price of freedom at $37 trillion... and counting.
Wednesday, June 18, 2025, 9:15 am ET Israel and Iran continue trading bombs and missile strikes for a sixth straight day Wednesday, with the Federal Reserve set to issue a policy decision on the federal funds rate at 2:00 pm ET. While the Fed is not expected to raise or lower the key rate, the body counts and rhetoric continue to increase in the Middle East conflict, with the United States threatening to blow up Iran's nuclear facilities with bunker buster bombs delivered by stealth bombers. President Trump left the G7 meeting in Canada earlier than expected, allegedly to confer with advisors about the Iran-Israel conflict, which he did, Tuesday. While the President is reportedly considering entering the fray, Iran has responded, saying that U.S. bases and personnel in the region would be targeted if the U.S. military becomes involved. The American public - whose opinion is largely disregarded - is decidedly against U.S. involvement, having elected Trump on the promise to end foreign wars and not start new ones. There are efforts in both houses of congress to prevent U.S. involvement. Democrat senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) has introduced a resolution in the upper chamber to prevent U.S. involvement, while Vermont senator Bernie Sanders has put forward a bill - No War Against Iran Act - to require the president to seek authorization from congress. Senate majority leader John Thune has made no decision on whether or not to bring either Kaine's resolution or Sanders' bill to the floor for a vote. In the House, Kentucky Republican Thomas Massie joined California Democrat Ro Khanna to introduce a bipartisan War Powers resolution on Tuesday meant to ensure that Congress asserts its constitutional authority to declare war under 50 U.S. Code Ch. 33. The matter of U.S. involvement remains a moving target at present. With the kind of support Israel usually gets from the United States in terms of money, arms, and direct and indirect military assistance, there's a cohort of neocon types howling for U.S. action. On the other side of the debate, there is evidence that the American public would not support such a move, and that any action of that sort by President Trump would torpedo his presidency and cause him and the Republican party irreparable harm, especially in the 2026 midterm elections. Meanwhile, life goes on. Stocks got whacked on Tuesday and futures are relatively flat awaiting the Fed decision and any possible moves by U.S. military. Gold has rebounded over $3,400 Wednesday morning, while silver has managed to hold above $37/ounce after a nice jump higher Tuesday. WTI crude oil is trending over $73/barrel. The Fed's action today will be largely meaningless, keeping the federal funds target rate at 4.25-4.50%. The market is more keenly focused on the Middle East. There's a good likelihood that Trump will keep military options open while continuing to threaten Iran, which is in no mood to be bluffed into any kind of surrender or cessation of hostilities with Israel.
At the Close, Tuesday, June 17, 2025:
Tuesday, June 17, 2025, 9:15 am ET It's difficult to wrap one's head around the logic - if there even is any - of the trading the past few days. Unsuspecting retail maroons are supposed to believe in the end of the world as we know it (TEOTWAWKI) on Friday, but, after four days (now five) of back-and-forth fighting between Israel and Iran, everything's just fine (Monday). Tuesday morning sees stock futures down across the board after President Trump leaves the G7 meeting in Canada early so he can supposedly broker a peace deal or something like that while telling Iranians to evacuate Tehran (he's bluffing). Somehow, within the death and dying, bombings and missile strikes, something just doesn't seem right, but one can probably assume there are plenty of people in Washington D.C. and on Wall Street and thereabout that are making money hand over fist. The entire affair is disgusting - just like the situation in Ukraine - because people are being slaughtered with the aid of American weaponry. If President Trump really wanted to be remembered as a "peace president", as he expressed at his inauguration, he could at least try to limit the arms and money going to both Ukraine and Israel. He hasn't expressed any inclination to do so. Thus, he is losing his base, and here at Money Daily, he's not going to get any support until he begins acting rationally, responsibly, and in the best interests of the United States of America, and starts telling the truth, rather than pushing the agenda of Ukraine and Israel, especially the latter, and enriching certain people. That Trump is playing some kind of 3D, 4D, or 6D chess is not a reasonable explanation for his words and actions. Americans, and the rest of the world, deserve better from their "leaders." Continuing on a path that leads to destructive ends will result in Americans and people around the world distrusting these people and dissolving the social contract that has been voided by politicians of all stripes doing more harm than good, and whatever good they're doing benefits only themselves and their friends, allies, and supporters. This Tuesday morning, as stock futures were recovering leading up to the 8:30 am ET frame, precious metals investors are seeing silver advance smartly, vaulting over $37 per ounce while gold languishes around $3,400 on the COMEX, another den of thieves. For what it's worth, silver's move is long overdue. Even the shorts at the bullion banks understand that. When the Commerce Department said retail sales fell 0.9% in May, after a decline of 0.1% in April, stock futures began to decline again. For now. That is likely to change as the managers of the Wall Street confiscation mechanism continue the raping and pillaging of passive investors. Oil prices continue to rise and fall based on little more than naked speculation while there exists a glut of crude on world markets. Another fiction the rubes are supposed to believe is that Iran will close the Strait of Hormuz, choking off 20% of the world's supply. Pure fiction as the Iranians would only be cutting their own throats by doing so. Amidst the hoopla, the Senate managed to overwhelmingly pass the GENIUS Act, a boon for crypto and stablecoins, so soon, currency in the cloud will be tied to the failing fake currency of the Federal Reserve. The blockchain will bind you.
"If you love wealth more than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, depart from us in peace. We ask not your counsel nor your arms. Crouch down and lick the hand that feeds you. May your chains rest lightly upon you and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen." This is truly a sad state of affairs in which nobody can be trusted, least of which, politicians and investment advisors.
At the Close, Monday, June 16, 2024:
Sunday, June 15, 2025, 8:45 am ET Israel attacked Iran Thursday night, resulting in spikes in oil and gold and a Friday decline in stocks. Since then, Iran has responded with missile assaults and Israel has continued with subsequent waves of drone and bombing assaults on Tehran, energy infrastructure, and nuclear sites. Markets will be closed on Thursday in observance of Juneteenth, so latent reactions to any Fed noise or war drums will have to wait until Friday.
All of the indices were sporting moderate gains through Thursday, but, in response to the assault on Iran by Israel, stocks were hammered lower on Friday, wiping out those gains and putting the rally that began in earnest in late April into question. Stocks seemed to be overheating and volumes diminishing anyway, so the Mideast conflict served to quiet the bulls, activating some overdue selling. Nothing like a war to focus one's investment strategy. Friday's fire sale sent the Dow below its 200-day moving average, though the NASDAQ ad S&P remain well above theirs. Additionally, the moving averages have been inverted since mid-April, with the 50-day falling below the 200-day on all the major indices, so there is ample concern over a market downturn of which the Israel-Iran conflict plays a major role on top of concerns over the continued fighting in Ukraine, great discontent and protests over immigration conditions, and the stalled "big, beautiful bill" touted by the White House that currently doesn't have the votes needed to sail through the Senate. There are reasons to be optimistic as well, though not many. The U.S. economy seems to be gliding along, with unemployment remaining very low. Tariffs haven't caused any widespread inflation panic, and may not be as severe as many economists have suggested. Stocks remain near all-time highs, having recovered from the initial "liberation day" tariff shock. President Trump seems to be capable of pivoting on any issue, making concessions and changing his mind as often as Taylor Swift or Lady Gaga changes outfits, though that may amount to a pretty sharpened double-edged sword. Stocks could go any which way at this point, depending on the president's position regarding the immigration protests and what to do about Iran. His choice on the latter is to either accept Israel's pleadings to intervene and bunker-bust Iran's nuclear facilities or stand back and allow Israel to do its own dirty work. Choosing the "bombs away" approach to blow up the dreaded "potential" nukes in Iran would be an economic disaster for all parties in the West as it would trigger a wider war. Much depends on how Trump handles his own advisors, the assembled neocons in and out of congress, and other outside influences in favor of Israel. Standing back and keeping the U.S. out of direct military involvement, as he's done effectively in Ukraine, would seem to be the wisest choice, but Wall Street, European partners, and other strong influences could tip the scales and force Trump's hand. It's a critical issue that needs resolution. Even though the bulk of earnings season is well past, there are a number of interesting compaines reporting this week: Monday: (before open) Power Fleet (AIOT), ReNew Energy (RNW); (after close) Lennar (LEN), HighTide (HITI), PetMeds (PETS) Tuesday: (before open) Jabil (JBL), Wiley (WLY); (after close) La-Z-Boy (LZB) Wednesday: (before open) Korn Ferry (KFY), Aurora Cannabis (ACB); (after close) Smith & Wesson (SWBI) Friday: (before open) CarMax (KMX), Accenture (ACN), Kroger (KR), Darden Restaurants (DRI). Besides the FOMC meeting Tuesday, with the policy decision at 2:00 pm ET Wednesday, May U.S. retail sales reports on Tuesday with housing starts and building permits out Wednesday, before the bell.
There's a FOMC meeting this week (June 17-18), though it isn't likely to have much - if any - impact on markets. The Fed is doing what it and most other scholarly-type economists does best - nothing. They've been stuck on a federal funds rate of 4.25-4.50% since December 2024, after lowering the rate a full percentage point (50 basis points in September and 25 each in November and December). Besides the Fed's infamous dot-plots of pure guesses by Fed officials of future federal funds rates, most of the attention will be on President Trump's belly-aching about Fed Chairman Jerome Powell's reluctance to lower rates. Of course, Trump will use the bully pulpit of his Truth platform to rail on about Iran and Israel as well. Trump's people will be busy tweeting and truthing most of the week. Powell has countered Trump's bellows, contending that the president's own policies on immigration, tariffs, and taxes - and, now, potential involvement in another war (Iran-Israel) - are causing the Fed to remain on pause, awaiting more clarity. Powell's press conference after the policy announcement Wednesday might raise an eyebrow or two, but most likely the response from the market will be more focused on the Mideast and oil prices than an unchanging federal funds rate. Spreads remain wide and may actually widen over the course of the week if there's no control over traders of long-maturities. With so much tension in the world presently, a spike on the 30-year back above five percent and the 10-year note yield surpassing 4.5% is in play. Spreads:
2s-10s
Full Spectrum (30-days - 30-years) Oil/Gas $64.77 was the closing price of WTI crude oil in New York last Friday (6/6). This Friday, WTI crude closed at $71.53, after reaching a high of $73.53 Thursday night as Israeli bombs and missiles rained down on military and personnel targets in Iran. Since then, Iran has retaliated with missile assaults on Tel Aviv and elsewhere, targeting "supposedly" Israel's oil and gas infrastructure, just as Israel did to Iran in second and third waves of attacks. Oil is probably going to be volatile as long as the two parties are flinging munitions at each other. Gas prices are likely to follow any sustained price hike in crude, so the dreams of summer driving at discounted prices may not last long after the coming week, just in time for the 4th of July. Gasbuddy.com is reporting the national average for a gallon of unleaded regular gas at the pump at $3.12, up three cents from last week, even as the price of crude oil is rising, so expect prices to have hit bottom and probably rise to levels at which ExxonMobil, Chevron, and their fellow gas-pumpers can make large profits. $3.25-3.40 within a few weeks is probably not out of the question. After that, the price at the pump will be largely a reflection of available supply and how much said supply is crimped by the conflict in the Middle East. The highest prices in the country remained California's, at $4.61, down another four cents on the week. Mississippi is still the low spot at $2.65, though that is six cents higher than a week ago. Tennessee plays second fiddle, at $2.66. Oklahoma comes in at $2.69, also higher by five cents, followed by Texas ($2.71), Louisiana ($2.73), and Alabama ($2.75). South Carolina and Georgia are both at $2.82, as Florida saw a 16-cent decline over the week, to $2.90. The Northeast continues to be led by Pennsylvania ($3.28), up eight cents on the week. all other New England and East coast states range between $2.89 (New Hampshire) and $3.06 (New York). Prices remained relatively stable throughout the region. Midwest states are led by Illinois ($3.43), the price 11 cents higher than last week. Kansas is the lowest in the region, at $2.83, followed by Kentucky and Missouri ($2.85). Indiana drivers are paying $3.17, second-highest in the region after Illinois. Michigan's price fell a dime to $3.06. The rest of the Midwest ranges from $2.86 (South Dakota) to $3.05 (Ohio). Along with California, Washington is the only state above $4.00, same as last week, at $4.35. Oregon ($3.95) was higher this week, while Nevada ($3.74) was down two cents. Arizona ($3.23), even though it's down another three cents, is still priced at a premium to neighboring New Mexico, a relative bargain, at $2.83. Idaho and neighboring Utah were the most stable, at $3.26 and $3.24, respectively. Sub-$3.00 gas is found in five fewer states this week than last, with 25 under the line. Lower gas prices for American drivers was becoming a reality, but appears to have bottomed as the price of oil is spiking again.
This week: $105,037.50 Bitcoin was fairly flat Sunday to Sunday, though it did spike to near $110,000 just before the Israeli's launched their attack on Iran. Who knew there were pacifists amongst the hodlers? The highly-touted GENIUS Act will receive an up-or-gown vote in the Senate on June 17 (Tuesday) after a compromise was reached to allow the bill to move to a floor vote without amendments. An additional 82 amendments had been thrown onto the bill from both sides, leaving it in a legislative tug-of-war, but expediency - and some deft arm-twisting by party leaders - prevailed, passing a cloture vote Wednesday by a healthy margin, 68-30. Looks like President Trump and Republicans are going to get a win on this. One wonders what they gave up for their stablecoin bonanza.
Gold:Silver Ratio: 94.93; last week: 92.19 Per COMEX continuous contracts:
Gold price 5/16: $3,205.30
Silver price 5/16: $32.43 Gold got a big boost on Friday, gaining $50 on top of the $70 it had already advanced during the week. Silver wasn't as affected, it's big week being the one prior, when it gained more than $3 and shattered the previously-impenatrable $35 barrier. With gold becoming so pricey that smaller investors may be shunning it for the time being, silver still offers the allure of precious metal at what still appears to be a discount. The gold:silver ratio, which had bounced past 100 recently, has been brought down to more pedestrian levels, though at 94.93, it remains extreme. So long as countries are content to lob bombs, missiles, and drones at each other for whatever purposes and BRICS continue to trade amongst themselves, shutting out the hegemony of the US dollar, gold will continue to rise, and, presumably, so will silver. Here are the most recent prices for common one ounce gold and silver items sold on eBay (numismatics excluded, free shipping):
The Single Ounce Silver Market Price Benchmark (SOSMPB) fell slightly through the week, to $44.14, a 56-cent decline from the June 8 price of $44.70 per troy ounce. Prices in the Sunday eBay survey indicate that buying is still very brisk with premia remaining enhanced, due to the impression that the price of silver still has significant upside ahead and to the prospect of a wider war in the Middle East. Buying of finished silver in small denominations above $40 and even $45 per ounce has become commonplace, while gold bars and coins have advanced in price to an average above $3,580. WEEKEND WRAP War. What is it good for? Gets the price of oil and gold higher, anyhow.
At the Close, Friday, June 13, 2025:
For the Week:
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