Precious Metals

Armed thieves steal planeload of Zurich-bound diamonds and gold

"Armed thieves stole diamonds and gold worth millions of francs on Monday night at Brussels airport as the valuables were being loaded onto a Helvetic Airways plane bound for Zurich, according to media reports. The gun-wielding thieves drove onto the airport tarmac in two vehicles which tore through a fence opening shortly before 8pm, the airport said. Several Belgian media outlets reported that a Brinks armoured truck was the target of the armed robbery by eight individuals. Employees of Brinks were in the process of loading the cargo of jewels and gold on the Helvetic Airways plane. The value of the booty was estimated at more than 430 million francs." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingArmed thieves steal planeload of Zurich-bound diamonds and gold

Major Disinformation Campaign about America’s Gold Begins

"An audit of the gold held at the New York Federal Reserve has been completed and the disinformation campaign has started. The problem is that the gold held at the New York Federal Reserve is not 'The U.S. government’s gold.' It is gold held, for the most part, by the Federal Reserve for foreign countries. Why wasn't an independent auditing firm brought in? And since the gold is held for countries like Germany, why didn't Germany and others who have gold on account get to pick the auditor? Of course, the full truth is this gold has never been audited and unlike the NY Fed, which provides tours, there are no tours of the Fort Knox gold." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMajor Disinformation Campaign about America’s Gold Begins

Ecuadorean Tribal Leaders Fight Government, Gold-Hungry Chinese

"The most famous case of Shuar 'insolence' occurred in 1599, when the Spanish governor of Maca demanded a gold tax from local Indians to fund a celebration of the coronation of Philip III. The night before the tax was due, Shuar armies slaughtered every adult male in the Spanish hamlets and surrounded the governor’s home. They tied the governor to his bed and used a bone to push freshly melted gold down his throat, laughing and demanding to know if he had finally sated his thirst. For the next 250 years, the Spanish mostly stayed away. Occasional attempts by Jesuit missionaries to reestablish contact were met with a welcome basket of skulls." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEcuadorean Tribal Leaders Fight Government, Gold-Hungry Chinese

Ecuadorean Tribal Leaders Fight Government, Gold-Hungry Chinese

"The most famous case of Shuar 'insolence' occurred in 1599, when the Spanish governor of Maca demanded a gold tax from local Indians to fund a celebration of the coronation of Philip III. The night before the tax was due, Shuar armies slaughtered every adult male in the Spanish hamlets and surrounded the governor’s home. They tied the governor to his bed and used a bone to push freshly melted gold down his throat, laughing and demanding to know if he had finally sated his thirst. For the next 250 years, the Spanish mostly stayed away. Occasional attempts by Jesuit missionaries to reestablish contact were met with a welcome basket of skulls." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEcuadorean Tribal Leaders Fight Government, Gold-Hungry Chinese

Western powers to offer easing gold sanctions at Iran nuclear talks

"Major powers plan to offer to ease sanctions barring trade in gold and other precious metals with Iran in return for Iranian steps to shut down the nation's newly expanded Fordow uranium enrichment plant, Western officials said on Friday." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWestern powers to offer easing gold sanctions at Iran nuclear talks

Western powers to offer easing gold sanctions at Iran nuclear talks

"Major powers plan to offer to ease sanctions barring trade in gold and other precious metals with Iran in return for Iranian steps to shut down the nation's newly expanded Fordow uranium enrichment plant, Western officials said on Friday." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWestern powers to offer easing gold sanctions at Iran nuclear talks

Anonymous gift of $250,000 in gold arrives in wrecked Japanese seaport ahead of tsunami anniversary

"A Japanese city devastated by the 2011 tsunami has received anonymous gifts of gold worth more than $250,000 in a phenomenon dubbed a 'goodwill gold rush' ahead of the second anniversary of the disaster. The president of the company which operates the port in the northeastern city of Ishinomaki last week received a parcel containing two slabs of gold each weighing one kilogram (2.2 pounds). The parcel had been sent anonymously from Nagano city northwest of Tokyo with no message. A non-profit group in Ishinomaki that has been supporting its revival had also received two kilograms of gold bullion and at least one more group got more than one kilogram." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAnonymous gift of $250,000 in gold arrives in wrecked Japanese seaport ahead of tsunami anniversary

Anonymous gift of $250,000 in gold arrives in wrecked Japanese seaport ahead of tsunami anniversary

"A Japanese city devastated by the 2011 tsunami has received anonymous gifts of gold worth more than $250,000 in a phenomenon dubbed a 'goodwill gold rush' ahead of the second anniversary of the disaster. The president of the company which operates the port in the northeastern city of Ishinomaki last week received a parcel containing two slabs of gold each weighing one kilogram (2.2 pounds). The parcel had been sent anonymously from Nagano city northwest of Tokyo with no message. A non-profit group in Ishinomaki that has been supporting its revival had also received two kilograms of gold bullion and at least one more group got more than one kilogram." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAnonymous gift of $250,000 in gold arrives in wrecked Japanese seaport ahead of tsunami anniversary

World Gold Council to teach central bankers how to trade gold

"Central bankers will be taught how to trade gold at a three-day seminar on 'gold reserves management' to be held in March at the University of California at Berkeley and co-sponsored by the World Gold Council. Apparently modern 'gold reserves management' involves a lot more than making sure that the metal is safe in a vault, even if whether and how a central bank should account to the public for its gold trading do not seem to be subjects for discussion at the seminar." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWorld Gold Council to teach central bankers how to trade gold

Central banks last year bought most gold since ’64

"The world's central banks last year bought 534.6 tons of gold in 2012, the most since 1964, as global gold demand hit a record value level, the World Gold Council said Thursday in a quarterly report. Purchases by central banks for the full year rose 17% compared with 2011, while fourth-quarter purchases of 145 tons marked a 29% rise from the same period a year earlier. In value terms, total gold demand in 2012 was $236.4 billion, an all-time high, the council said" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCentral banks last year bought most gold since ’64