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Weekly Survey of Gold and Silver Prices
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.
PRIOR COVERAGE:
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Friday, August 1, 2025, 9:23 am ET Welcome to Liberation Day, Part II. As President Donald J. Trump unveils newer, updated tariff policies directed against exporters to the U.S., stocks, and the traders who program the algorithms, are expressing discontent by sending stock futures sharply lower in the hours and minutes before the opening bell in New York. Not only are U.S. stocks being sold down, markets around the world are reacting in highly negative manners, with a major selloff in Europe after indices in India (slapped with 25% tariffs just a day ago), Japan, Hong Kong, China, and South Korea all closed to the downside overnight. South Korea's Kospi was especially hard-hit, down nearly four percent on the day. European bourses are all lower, led to the red by France's CAC-40, down 2.20%, and Germany's DAX, losing 400 points, or nearly two percent in mid-afternoon trading. At 8:30 am ET, the BLS released July Non-farm employment figures, showing the U.S. gained just 73,000 jobs. Further, revisions for May and June were larger than normal. The change in total non-farm payroll employment for May was revised down by 125,000, from +144,000 to +19,000, and the change for June was revised down by 133,000, from +147,000 to +14,000. With these revisions, employment in May and June combined is 258,000 lower than previously reported. Instead of the rosy outlook initially presented, the revised figures suggest the U.S. hiring had stalled out. Expect today's number to be revised next month as well. The BLS should rightly be renamed the "Bunch of Lying Sleazebags." Friday's pessimistic beginning comes on the heels of a scary session from the final day of July. On Thursday, after an early bout of euphoria over earnings results from two "Magnificent 7" stocks, Meta Platforms (META) and Microsoft (MSFT), profits were taken off the table through the remainder of the session, as the NASDAQ saw an early gain of nearly 300 points disappear, the index ending marginally on the downside. For the week, through Thursday's close, the Dow 770 points, the NASDAQ up just 14 points, and the S&P off 49. On the earnings front, Apple (AAPL), Amazon (AMZN), Coinbase (COIN), Roku (ROKU), Reddit (RDDT), Cloudfare (NET), MicroStrategy (MSTR) reported after the close and on Friday, before the open Chevron (CVX), ExxonMobil (XOM), Regeneron (REGN) and Colgate-Palmolive (CL) posted second quarter results. Amazon was sent lower in post-market trading Thursday, as the company beat on most metrics but showed slowing growth in its cloud service, AWS. Oil giants, ExxonMobil (XOM) and Chevron (CVX) were flat heading toward the opening bell. If stock futures are to be believed, U.S. stocks are headed toward a scary close to the week and inauspicious start to August. At least both houses of congress are out of session for the month, a redeeming factor.
At the Close, Thursday, July 31, 2025:
Thursday, July 31, 2025, 9:22 am ET If there's anybody out there who can explain Wednesday's market action, please email Money Daily at confused@wtf?.com, because it just didn't add up and appears to have been staged. The set-up was 2nd quarter GDP's initial estimate of the economy expanding by 3.0% and a bunch of OK earnings reports announced before the cash market opened, followed by fairly dull trading, though slightly positive across all the major indices until 2:00 pm ET, when the Fed delivered its policy statement, holding the federal funds target rate at 4.25-4.50%. No change. Stocks went up a little bit, but as soon as Chairman Jerome Powell stepped up to the microphone at his 2:30 press conference, massive selling ensued, sending all of the indices into the red, the Dow dropping 460 points in a matter of half an hour. Once Powell moved on, stocks recovered into the close, with the NASDAQ actually finishing the session in positive territory. Meanwhile, over at the completely fake commodity exchange known as the COMEX or CME, gold and silver got whacked, and hard. One trader mentioned that 400 million ounces of (paper) silver were moved between 8:00 am and 4:00 pm ET. Gold dropped $60 over that time span, and silver fell from $38.05 to $36.94, after it had been pushing $40 an ounce late last week. It's obvious that there are some people who desire to see gold and silver at lower prices, but there is simply no explanation for Wednesday's extreme action in either stocks or PMs. Nothing really changed. No Fed rate cut, no surprising GDP data, no nuttin' honey! Gold is recovering this morning, but silver remains at three-week lows. One has to appreciate the concept that keeping gold and silver cheap serves to boost the perceived popularity of the might U.S. dollar as the reserve currency par excellance. What it also does is lower pricing power of those countries that produce PMs, such as Russia, China, Peru, Mexico, Ghana, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Indonesia, Chile, Argentina, India, and South Africa. Five of those are full BRICS members. The rest are all affiliated, so, no, there is no coincidence that the COMEX, LBMA, and the London gold and silver daily fixes all endeavor to price PMs lower whenever they can. The blatant price-fixing by Western powers in the face of the Global South, BRICS and pretty much the rest of the world (ROW) is soon to be ending. Russia has announced that gold and silver will begin trading on their exchange at St. Petersburg (SPIMEX) later this year. China already has their own metals bourse, the Shanghai Futures Exchange, and is fitting out precious metals vaults in countries around the world for central bank storage and facilitation of trade settlements. The main focus, for now, are vauting facilities in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Saudi Arabia, with more to follow. After the market closed Wednesday, Meta Platforms (META) and Microsoft (MSFT) released second quarter results and people must like what they saw, because in pre-market trading, META is up 11% and Mister Softie is up eight percent. Mastercard (MA) also posted positive results, citing a "resilient" consumer, which, in reality should be an "in-debt-up-to-the-eyeballs" consumer. Visa (V) reported earlier this week, mouthing the same sentiment. The way some American companies make money - charging 23-35% interest - is becoming morally repugnant. New all-time highs are straight ahead, the perfect gift-wrapping for those end-of-month account statements. Futures are soaring. Dow, +94 points; NASDAQ, +315; S&P, +56 at 9:00 am ET. The choices are becoming clear: buy stocks priced in Fedbux or precious metals priced in yuan, rubles, or other foreign currencies.
At the Close, Wednesday, July 30, 2024:
Wednesday, July 30, 2025, 9:20 am ET Following a series of second quarter earnings reports that were either short of expectations or came with lowered forward guidance, stocks slumped Tuesday, as investors measured the recent rally against the reality of corporate earnings. Some of the companies that reported poor results Monday night and Tuesday morning included Whirlpool (WHR), which finished Tuesday's session down 13 percent; Boeing (BA, -4.37%); Merck (MRK, -1.70%); Spotify (SPOT, -11.55%); United Health (UNH, -7.46%); and UPS (UPS, -10.57%). The major indices - Dow, NASDAQ, S&P, NYSE Composite - all ended Tuesday's session on the downside. Leading into Wednesday, the CME FedWatch shows a 97.9% probability of the FOMC keeping the federal funds target rate unchanged at 4.25-4.50% when the policy decision is announced at 2:00 pm ET later today. Prior to that (non) event, the BEA released the initial estimate of second quarter GDP, which showed the U.S. economy expanding at a rate of three percent (3.0%). The increase in real GDP in the second quarter primarily reflected a decrease in imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP. Thus, slowing imports, due to tariff issues, actually skewed the numbers in a positive direction. In the first quarter, higher imports, as companies rushed to beat expected tariffs, caused GDP to decline by 0.5%. Essentially, GDP has become an almost useless tool for measuring the strength of the economy, as it can be pushed in various directions by extraneous factors. Additionally, earnings reports from Visa (V), Caesars Entertainment (CZR), Teradyne (TER), Cheesecake Factory (CAKE), Seagate (STX), Booking Holdings (BKNG) Wednesday (7/30): (before open) Altria (MO), Teva Pharmaceuticals (TEVA), Harley Davidson (HOG), Etsy (ETSY) Generac (GNRC), Humana (HUM), KraftHeinz (KHC), Hershey (HSY). Visa (V) beat estimates but issued flat guidance, sending shares down a little more than one percent in the pre-market. Caesars Entertainment (CZR) showed declining Las Vegas revenue and has shares slipping more than three percent leading into the open. Teradyne (TER) beat top and bottom, but guided cautiously. Nonetheless, shares have powered ahead by more than seven percent pre-market. Cheesecake Factory (CAKE) beat earnings forecasts, but is trading down four percent early Wednesday. Seagate (STX) issued a forecast that cooled investors, sending the stock down nearly six percent in pre-market trading. Booking Holdings (BKNG) was another that issued a less-than-enthusiastic forward outlook. The stock was down mroe than three percent, but is seen as opening flat to slightly higher. Harley Davidson (HOG) shares are rallying on a potential deal for their finance unit, overshadowing downbeat Q2 results. The stock is up some 15 percent in the pre-market. Humana (HUM) showed improving results and strong revenue, plans to offer early retirement to some workers and issued positive guidance, sending share higher by more than 10 percent. KraftHeinz (KHC) topped second quarter estimates and reaffirmed forward guidance on steady U.S. demand. Shares are mostly flat before the opening bell. Hershey (HSY) topped Q2 results, but lowered EPS forecast citing tariff pressures and is raising the price on chocolate products as cocoa prices have soared. Apparently, expensive candy bars are just what Americans want, as the stock is being bid higher by 4.5% pre-market. With the GDP estimate based almost entirely on declining imports and the Fed almost certain to keep interest rates on hold, Wednesday's trading might not be as volatile as some had expected. Of course, a rip-your-face-off short squeeze melt-up is always a possibility.
At the Close, Tuesday, July 29, 2025:
Tuesday, July 29, 2025, 9:51 am ET On Sunday - just in time to affect markets opening Monday - U.S. President Trump and European Commission President doofus Ursula von der Leyen proudly announced, according to Trump, “the greatest trade deal ever” between the U.S. and European Union. Markets reacted to the news with subdued enthusiasm. There are some issues with this deal, as with a few of the other tariff negotiations over the past few months. The framework agreement is still pending ratification by EU member states and the European Parliament, which could take months and may find opposition and debate. The deal imposes a 15% tariff on most EU exports to the United States, half the originally threatened 30%, but still well beyond historic norms. In the framework of the deal, the EU commits to energy imports worth $750 billion over the next three years, which includes copious amounts of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and petroleum products. Trump's "America First" agenda apparently favors selling high-priced fuel to Europe rather than keeping costs down for U.S. consumers. Besides, there's nothing written in stone, nor are there penalties for deviating from the outline of the deal. The EU, being an amalgamation of independent countries, might find disagreement among its members, especially if cheaper fuel can be purchased elsewhere. The MAGA component includes investment in the American heartland of $600 billion, to be mobilized from European industries and invested in the United States, with a focus on defense manufacturing. Trump supposes that Europe will continue fighting its proxy war in Ukraine and will be willing to pay for American weapons, over three years, which is quite a long time for events on the ground to change. Thus, U.S. markets were not exactly enthralled over the prospects, bearing in mind that the U.S. and Europe have perfected the practice of breaking contracts at their leisure. In a related development, American appliance manufacturer, Whirlpool (WHR), was trading down as much as 17% in the pre-market after missing EPS estimates badly when it announced second quarter results after the close Monday. Earnings per share for the second quarter came in at $1.34 vs. $1.74 consensus and $2.39 a year ago.
"As expected, the second quarter continued to be impacted by competitors stockpiling Asian imports into the U.S. Despite this, we are well positioned in North America with a robust pipeline of new products, the industry's leading U.S. manufacturing footprint, and favorable housing demand fundamentals," On the forward front, Whirlpool (WHR) expects full-year EPS of $6.00 to $8.00 (AKA $7.00) versus a consensus of $9.06. Whoops! The market surely didn't like that. The company also made the stunning announcement of recommending a new quarterly dividend rate of $0.90 per share, basically cutting the current $1.75 per share payout rate in half. This is nothing short of complete capitulation from an American-based company. The problem, despite corporate protestation to the contrary, isn't other companies stocking up on foreign inventory, it's the beginning of blowback from tariff threats and imposition in foreign markets. Whirlpool's sales were down materially in Latin American and Asian markets. Potential customers in countries from Thailand to Peru, Chile and Brazil are balking at "buying American." This is a problem the promoters of Trump tariff policy have clearly not adequately anticipated. Trump's plan to bring foreign manufacturing back to the United States may have a fatal flaw if consumers in markets around the world consider the U.S. to be bullying the rest of the world - taking their jobs, for instance, and making their home-grown products pricier in the U.S. - they're likely to opt for products produced in their own countries or more friendly, neighboring, non-tariffing countries. Beyond that, in the absence of tariffs on goods and services not affected by U.S. tariff policy - say between Vietnam and Australia, or Brazil and Mexico, or, any of hundreds of other combinations - competition will be fierce and buying U.S. products may be considered toxic, unpatriotic, and not in the host nation's best interests. The U.S. does not have a monopoly on patriotism. Most people in the world support their own countries first. While the bumper-sticker slogan, "America First", may support a degree of patriotism in North America and consumers supporting U.S. businesses, it translates to "Europe First", "Japan First" or even "BRICS First" to the rest of the world. There are a multitude of issues that could arise from Trump's tariff proposals and their implementation, some of which cannot fully be appreciated until data from a few quarters is evident. While the stock market remains largely gung-ho on future prospects - the Shiller PE hit 38.96 yesterday, the second-highest ever - stocks are getting to a point of ridiculousness in valuation terms. Any deviation from the agenda set by the White House and congress could lead to unexpected results, such as Whirlpool demonstrated as a potential canary in the tariff coal mine. In the meantime, the S&P and NASDAQ look to continue their streak of all-time highs while the Dow Industrials and Dow Transports flounder around, just below record levels, an indication that America's industrial might may be less-than-almighty. Gold and silver are beginning to rebound after three days of relentless short-selling on the COMEX. They supply an existential backdrop to the world's debt-fueled euphoria, reminding the planet about what really constitutes money and wealth. The FOMC begins a two-day meeting today which will culminate in a policy announcement at 2:00 pm ET Wednesday. Until then, trading is likely to be wait-and-see mode, with the Fed stuck at a fed funds target rate of 4.25-4.50%, and prospects for Trump getting his rate cut slim. US 2nd quarter GDP will be released prior to the policy statement, so that number will almost surely be in play. Everything will be fine until it's not. So far, so good, but the future is largely unpredictable.
At the Close, Monday, July 28, 2025:
Sunday, July 27, 2025, 10:54 am ET The Shiller PE finished the week at 38.97, clearly the second-highest ever, closing in on the October, 1999, all-time high of 43.21. Stocks are undeniably in super-bubble territory. Another gauge of market value, the Buffett Indicator, used by legendary investor Warren Buffett to time market moves, measures the total price of listed stocks against current GDP. It is a valuation multiple used to assess how expensive or cheap the aggregate stock market is at a given point in time. Total market cap for U.S. listed stocks is currently at $ 63,834.2 billion ($63.834 trillion) while GDP is running at an annual rate of $29,955 billion ($29.955 trillion), making the ratio 213.1%, an all-time high, according to the website, gurufocus.com, which also provides other measures of stock market valuation. Fortune magazine has the ratio - using the Wilshire 5000 for stock valuation - at 212% of GDP. It's worth bearing in mind that GDP, according to the government, is likely to be grossly inflated, meaning that these indicators are not just flashing red lights, they've got sirens blaring, and smoke billowing, like a four-alarm fire. But, keep buying. Stocks, like real estate in the mid-2000s, always go up. Other factors to keep in mind are the deeply ingrained Plunge Protection Team (PPT), otherwise known as the President's Working Group on Financial Markets, which has routinely stepped in to keep stock prices from falling out of bed. They're usually resolute about their function and may be on top of markets constantly as the U.S. is challenged by BRICS, skeptics, current events and even itself to deliver a narrative of green lights and all's well. The New York Fed's trading desk and other market insiders like the Exchange Stabilization Fund are also probably hard at work keeping the plates spinning. There's a certain kind of sadness to all of this, as the president, his administration, and Republicans in congress are loathe to show any kind of weakness, be it military, moral, or, in this case, financial. President Trump has once again chosen to use the stock market as a yardstick for American greatness, and, with all-time highs occurring regularly now, his use of the bully pulpit to further the "America First" and "Golden Age" narrative will be a major force in the constantly-evolving political/social media spin apparatus. One more thing. This line from George Orwell's 1984 may be of some significance:
“The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.”
Stocks made minor advances during the week, with the NASDAQ and S&P making new highs on a daily basis. The Dow continued to fall short of its own record and the transportation average, despite a solid advance, remains well below its records. There are three big events this week which should impact markets. The FOMC meeting, Tuesday and Wednesday, July 29 and 30, will be closely watched. There is rampant speculation that the Fed will cut the federal funds target interest rate by either 25 or 50 basis points, though it's difficult to ascertain what would be the Fed's rationale, given the latest inflation readings were hardly dovish. Additionally, Trump's tariffs aren't supposed to take effect until August 1, so there's got to be some weight assigned to that. The initial estimate of second quarter GDP will be announced prior to the Fed's policy statement on Wednesday. The GDP figures come out before the opening bell, at 8:30 am ET, and the Fed policy decision at 2:00 pm ET. Surely, the Fed will have advance knowledge of the GDP estimate, so whatever decision they make will be at least partially guided by that, so they can start off their statement with the usual garble, "Recent data showed the general economy grew at a blah, blah, blah..." If GDP is anywhere above two percent, the Fed would be more inclined to keep rates steady at the current 4.25-4.50%. Should it come in at somewhere under one percent, that might supply cover for a rate cut. They're going to do whatever suits their best interests, and whether or not Chairman Powell is in a mood to appease the president by cutting will be present in the directive. Cutting interest rates when stocks are at all-rime highs and the money supply is increasing would be nothing short of throwing gasoline onto an already-raging fire, which is why the Fed shouldn't do it. As with everything and anything coming out of Washington, D.C. these days, making irrational or improper decisions (what used to be known as policy mistakes) cannot be ruled out. On Friday, the Employment Situation (Non-farm Payrolls via the BLS) for July 2025 is scheduled to be released on August 1, 2025, at 8:30 am Eastern Time. That's the third leg of this week's economic data stool. Jobs haven't been cut to any degree, so a solid number is likely. With illegal immigrants either already deported, hiding from ICE, or self-deporting, there is an abundance of low-to-medium-skill jobs available across the country. It's difficult to imagine the unemployment rate going up under those conditions. The most acceptable scenario would be GDP around 2.2%, no rate cut, and job gains of between 150,000 and 200,000. Americans and the rest of the world will find out what's up in broad terms this week. Second quarter earnings calendar this week is absolutely jam-packed. Here's a sampling of some of the most important: Monday (7/28): (before open) NewGold (NGD), Alliance Resource Partners (ARLP), Provident Bank (PROV); (after close) Waste Management (WM), Rambus (RMBS), Nucor (NUE), Whirlpool (WHR), Celestica (CLS) Tuesday (7/29): (before open) Boeing (BA), SoFi (SOFI), Merck (MRK) Proctor & Gamble (PG), Spotify (SPOT), PayPal (PYPL), United Health Group (UNH), UPS (UPS) ; (after close) Stabucks (SBUX), Visa (V), Caesars Entertainment (CZR), Teradyne (TER), Cheesecake Factory (CAKE), Seagate (STX), Booking Holdings (BKNG) Wednesday (7/30): (before open) Altria (MO), Teva Pharmaceuticals (TEVA), Harley Davidson (HOG), Etsy (ETSY) Generac (GNRC), Humana (HUM), KraftHeinz (KHC), Hershey (HSY); (after close) Robinhood (HOOD), Microsoft (MSFT), Meta Platforms (META), Carvana (CVNA), Ford (F), Kinross (KGC), Lam Research (LRCX), Qualcomm (QCOM) Thursday (7/31): (before open) Mastercard (MA), Bristol Myers Squibb (BMY), Abbvie (ABBV), CVS Health (CVS), Cigna Financial (CI), Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCLS), Roblox (RBLX); (after close) Apple (AAPL), Amazon (AMZN), Coinbase (COIN), Roku (ROKU), Reddit (RDDT), Cloudfare (NET), MicroStrategy (MSTR), Enovix (ENVX) Friday (8/1): (before open) Chevron (CVX), ExxonMobil (XOM), Dominion Energy (D), T. Rowe Price (TROW), Regeneron (REGN), Colgate-Palmolive (CL). To say the least, this is going to be a busy week for anybody involved in policy or finance.
Yields on long term maturities got spanked down pretty well this week, suggesting that not everybody in investment-land was buying the stock market rally. Though the movement was not substantial week over week, the interim in 10-year notes and 30-year bonds was, shown rather clearly by the eight basis point drop on the 30 year, robust. Also, the "kink" of the 20-year bond being higher than the 30, has disappeared. They've been equal or even properly adjusted for a couple of weeks now. Full spectrum spreads from 30 days out to 30 years were slashed from +65 down to +55. 2s-10s, last wek at the highest of Money Daily's records, +56, got squished back to +49. Order is being restored. Some wild yield swings may occur around the FOMC meeting Tuesday and Wednesday, and again on Friday with the NFP report for July. Or not. It all depends on the data and what the Fed conjures up for it's policy decision and follow-up press conference. Spreads:
2s-10s
Full Spectrum (30-days - 30-years)
WTI crude oil closed out the week at $65.07, a drop of nearly a dollar from last Friday's closeout at $66.03. WTI crude has been stuck in a range between $65 and $67 since the ed of June, with no real direction being suggested by charts or geo-politics. Like everything other than stocks, the summer doldrums have serious interests sidelined, with prices fairly stable, awaiting the next round of tariff trauma, resolution to conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, the upcoming FOMC meeting or some exogenous "black swan" event, which by definition, cannot be predicted with any degree of accuracy. With economies worldwide subdued by slack demand and stagnation, the next move in oil is more likely to be lower rather than to a higher level. There's simply no impetus for a move to higher ground. That assumes none of the major players goes "off the farm", which is always possible. Like oil, gas prices have simply leveled off over the past month. This week, Gasbuddy.com reports the national average for a gallon of unleaded regular gas at the pump at $3.13, one penny higher than last week. As usual, California has the highest prices in the country, $4.45, down three cents on the week. Prices at the low end are led by Mississippi and Oklahoma (both $2.69). Louisiana ($2.73) and Texas ($2.75) are next, followed by Alabama ($2.77), Tennessee and South Carolina ($2.78) and Arkansas ($2.79). North Carolina ($2.86) and Georgia ($2.89) round out he sub-$3 southeast, with Florida ($3.09) bucking the trend. Pennsylvania ($3.18) sits atop the Northeast states, down three cents on the week. Other than New Hampshire, all other New England and East coast states remained at or above $3.00, ranging from New York at $3.13 to New Jersey and Virginia right at an even $3.00. Midwest states were led by Illinois ($3.37), the price down another five cents on the week. Kansas ($2.84) is the lowest in the region, followed by North Dakota ($2.87), Missouri ($2.88), and Wisconsin ($2.89). Along with Illinois, only Michigan ($3.23), Ohio ($3.09), and Indiana (3.06) are over $3.00. Colorado remained below $3 for a second straight week ($2.98). Along with California, Washington ($4.35) is the only other one above $4, as Oregon remained down a few cents below, at $3.94. Nevada ($3.66) dropped two cents. Arizona ($3.15) continues to come down, but is still priced at a premium to neighboring New Mexico, a comparative bargain, at $2.91, though that is up 16 cents from last week. Idaho ($3.46) and Utah ($3.32) were unchanged. Sub-$3.00 gas can be found in 22 states, the same number as last week.
This week: $118,275.80 Bitcoin was flat and has been since making new highs about two weeks ago (July 14). A day will come when all the Wall Street types that have been pushing the crypto myth - Goldman Sachs, BlackRock, even grifters like Anthony Scaramuchi (the Mooch) - will liquidate their holdings, sell down their ETFs and leave the remains to bag-holders. Crypto is a massive scam. There's just no other way to put it. It was created to condition the human mind to digital currencies, in advance of government/central bank-controlled CBDCs, and it's working. There are millions of rubes captivated by the allure of money which has no intrinsic value, no basis, that cannot be seen or touched, which is as the banking cartel would have it. As it is, the global reserve currency, the mighty U.S. dollar ($US), is backed by "the full faith and credit" of the United States government, over which people have lost faith because the government is comprised of spendthrifts who shouldn't be allowed credit. The proof is in the $37 trillion pile of debt that continues to grow. It's sad to think that people are led to believe that moving their money out of one fiat currency - the dollar, or euros or yen or what have you - to another entity that is completely unbacked is some form of financial genius and eventual economic salvation. Bitcoin, memecoins, altcoins, stablecoins and all of the shitcan derivatives are pure nonsense, which, in today's environment, is acceptable. Good luck, all you "coiners" and "hodlers."
Gold:Silver Ratio: 87.10; last week: 87.34 Per COMEX continuous contracts:
Gold price 6/27: $3,286.10
Silver price 6/27: $36.17 Here are the most recent prices for common one ounce gold and silver items sold on eBay (numismatics excluded, free shipping):
Gold and silver prices were much higher early in the week than the closing price on Friday afternoon in New York, at least that's what the usual suspects at the CME and COMEX would have one believe. Gold was as high as $3445.70, a five week high, and silver hit a 14-year high at $39.90 early Wednesday morning. What occurred from that point forward was nothing short of desperation on the part of the Western economies' suppression teams. The net result was smack in the paper markets with physical moving further away from the obviously-rigged derivative market. One can call it premia, premiums or simply retail markup, but the trend is clearly away from COMEX and LBMA price fixes toward a more level-headed environment based, not on pretentious paper pushing, but on real world experience. If miners are willing to continue to accept the global monetary cartel's insistence on keeping the prices of 1000-ounce silver bars, 100 troy ounce gold futures contracts (CME) and 400-troy-ounce (438.9-ounce; 27.4-pound; 12.4-kilogram) Good Delivery gold bars at prices below what the physical market demands, then the shame is on them for being so controlled by financiers rather than pursuing sound business practices. Having paper derivatives set the price is pure folly, "putting the wagon before the horses," so to speak. It's only by ceding control of all monetary aspects of life to bankers' rules and fiat controls that the price of real money is "what we say it is," and nobody can say otherwise. Those days - of dollar dominance, money conjured out of thin air - are coming to a rapid end. Refusal in physical markets to adhere to the regimen devised some 50-odd years ago is becoming more and more evident with every paper smackdown, this latest one so grossly obvious as to make it laughable. Clearly, judging by what is being offered and sold on eBay and at online retail merchants is not fully accepting the COMEX price. Even 10 ounce gold bars are priced well above $3,400 at retail. On eBay, even higher. One ounce gold coins and bars maintained their pricing power through the week. Silver is another case altogether. Being a much smaller market than gold, it is much easier to manipulate, as evidenced by the drop from $39.90 to $38.33 on the COMEX this week (Wednesday through Friday) and the lack of effect on physical bullion on eBay, a real market with competitive prices and robust demand, which was off merely by pennies from the prior week, not the $1.57 the COMEX would prefer. There are those in this world who will not part with their gold or silver at these prices. As Western economies implode there will be more of them until the numbers reach what some people call "critical mass", a point at which gold and silver will be seen as what they really are, money, and paper as merely credit. There was a time, when governments were honest, that one could redeem paper credits for gold and/or silver. Those days were not that long ago in historical terms, a century or so removed. What is happening behind the scenes, in BRICS countries and those associated with them, is a movement towards honest money and an end to the tyrannical rule of central banks. While it may seem like an eternity to wait out the purveyors of credit as substitutes for real money, the time is well spent stacking up one's future fortune. The Single Ounce Silver Market Price Benchmark (SOSMPB) fell marginally this week, to $44.84, a drop of 20 cents from the July 20 price of $45.04 per troy ounce.
Last week’s WEEKEND WRAP closed with this comment:
The recent flak over the "Epstein Files" gives support to the theory that leaders of most Western nations - possibly excluding Japan - are fully compromised and wholly incompetent. With such a backdrop, free (for now) citizens should treat their governments with all the disrespect they so richly deserve, disregarding any ill consequences while working towards a future devoid of sick, twisted sociopaths in powerful positions. We’ll stick with that and add that the sheer volume and importance of data and earnings announcements this week is sure to be overwhelming for some people. It might make the most sense to just stand back and watch, awestruck, as the wheels of economic turn at a quickened pace. For a mid-summer week, this one promises to be jumpy and bumpy.
At the Close, Friday, July 25, 2025:
For the Week:
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