Don't understand the fuss over gold

[Mike]

Here is another article that goes with the possible Basel III changes. Over the years, there were a number of such possible changes and "this is going to change the gold market and/or end the manipulation" things that came and went without any real change. Or if there were some changes, 'the gold cartel' just changed what they were doing and the manipulation continued. So we will see what happens. Figure it is at least worth following. Basel III and the New Role For Gold - Gold Goats 'n Guns

Also, apologies for my poor grammar in the previous post.

 

[Gwenllian]

SOTT Editors, this really deserves a link to the wider audience. I know the gold bug crowd have been wrong about their predictions for the past couple of decades, but this time really may be different (from my discernment).

If you wish you could send the article to sott at sott.net directly or post it in the SOTT section on the forum. We have many dedicated SOTT editors, but unfortunately they don't have the time to follow every thread on the forum. Thank you!

 

[SubnetUnMask]

So apparently on June 28th the Basel 3 Accords go into effect, which changes the way European banks account for their gold. Is this going to be the beginning of the end of the gold market manipulation? Or just another head fake?

Why Basel III regulations are poised to shake up the gold market

Allocated gold, in tangible form, will essentially be classified as a zero-risk asset under the new rules, but unallocated or “paper” gold, which banks typically deal with the most, won’t — meaning banks holding paper gold must also hold extra reserves against it, said Brien Lundin, editor of Gold Newsletter. The new liquidity requirements aim to “prevent dealers and banks from simply saying they have the gold, or having more than one owner for the gold they have” on the balance sheet.

 

[Seppo Ilmarinen]

So apparently on June 28th the Basel 3 Accords go into effect, which changes the way European banks account for their gold. Is this going to be the beginning of the end of the gold market manipulation? Or just another head fake?

I have limited understanding of how paper gold and gold future markets really work when large financial institutions operate, but I would guess that basel 3 won't stop the the price manipulation, because it's highly unlikely that big banks will be regulated efficiently enough. I mean it may look good on paper (no pun intented) but banks have already got caught many times doing illegal activities, such as gold price manipulation, and as long as it stays profitable, they'll happily pay whatever fines they get and just continue their MO.

In that article shared above it says:

In response to the global financial crisis of 2007 to 2009, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, which sets standards for regulation of banks, developed what is called Basel III. It’s defined by the Bank for International Settlements as an internationally agreed set of measures that aim to strengthen bank regulation, supervision and risk management.

According to investopedia:

The Basel Committee for Banking Supervision (BCBS), while technically separate from the BIS, is a closely associated international forum for financial regulation that is housed in the BIS' offices in Basel, Switzerland.

This article gives some background of Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and it's influence on the gold market:

Also consider the comments made by Agustín Carstens, general manager of the Bank of International Settlements (BIS). The BIS, in case you’re unfamiliar, is often called the “central bank of central banks.” That’s because it provides banking services to as many as 60 financial institutions from all over the world, including heavyweights such as the Federal Reserve, Bank of England (BoE), European Central Bank (ECB) and Bank of Japan (BoJ). Its influence on global monetary and financial policy, in other words, is monolithic. [...]

As you can see in the chart below, gold rallied between November 2018 and February, when it peaked at around $1,343 an ounce. Ordinarily, you could expect inventory in the bullion-backed SPDR Gold Shares ETF (GLD) to continue to climb at least until then. But that’s not at all what happened. Three weeks before the price of gold peaked, the holdings in the GLD curiously began to fall, and by March 4, the ETF had lost approximately 57.8 metric tonnes. And because the GLD is the largest gold ETF in the world—its value stands at $30.2 billion, as of this week—such selling will naturally impact the price of gold. Sure enough, the yellow metal soon fell below $1,300. What gives?

The answer to that question may lie in the BIS’ monthly statement of account for February. According to Robert’s reporting, the BIS was still actively trading gold swaps, which it uses to gain access to the metal held by commercial banks. Specifically, the bank placed as much as 56 metric tonnes of gold swaps into the market in February.

If you ask me, that amount is remarkably close to the 57.8 tonnes that fled the GLD in the first quarter of this year.

So as these banking regulators have been established by the central banks and the PTB themselves (fox guarding the hen house), they would not implement any real changes that would limit the power of key banks to manipulate gold prices, since it could then undermine fiat currencies (unless it's part of the plan to implement Great Reset and roll out the CBDC's).

And/or maybe these new regulations could be used against some banks, to put them under scrutiny, while others get free pass. Or wishful thinking by people with Keynesian and MMT background, who may think constricting paper gold will push down demand also for physical gold and its price. Just some thoughts.

 

[cinnamon]

So apparently on June 28th the Basel 3 Accords go into effect, which changes the way European banks account for their gold. Is this going to be the beginning of the end of the gold market manipulation? Or just another head fake?

Why Basel III regulations are poised to shake up the gold market

I have limited understanding of how paper gold and gold future markets really work when large financial institutions operate, but I would guess that basel 3 won't stop the the price manipulation, because it's highly unlikely that big banks will be regulated efficiently enough. I mean it may look good on paper (no pun intented) but banks have already got caught many times doing illegal activities, such as gold price manipulation, and as long as it stays profitable, they'll happily pay whatever fines they get and just continue their MO.

With respect to physical gold, all Basel 3 does is make it so that physical gold is considered a 'cash equivalent', like Treasuries, Gilts, or Bunds. In the current age of "quantitative easing forever" - banks are actually stuffed to the gills with reserves that they are not lending against, this is part of why we see massive usage of the Fed's 'reverse repo' facility, so they can at least make a few pennies off of reserves. This in no way stops any of the usual gold market manipulations (done with derivatives markets) and I can't imagine gold becoming in more demand because of this anytime soon, not unless there's a shortage of sovereign debt or certain forms of sovereign debt are reclassified as 'risky'.

 

[Wandering Star]

I had this idea the other day.

Suppose there are some "beings" that use gold for their technology.

Although they can make it, they "take" it where it is.

Now ... You have a planet where you "program" people to make gold the most desired.

What happens "at the end of time"?

You have all the available gold collected and stored in comfortable rooms in every country on the planet.

You just have to pick it up quietly.

 

[Ca.]

Here is another article that goes with the possible Basel III changes. Over the years, there were a number of such possible changes and "this is going to change the gold market and/or end the manipulation" things that came and went without any real change. Or if there were some changes, 'the gold cartel' just changed what they were doing and the manipulation continued. So we will see what happens. Figure it is at least worth following. Basel III and the New Role For Gold - Gold Goats 'n Guns

With respect to physical gold, all Basel 3 does is make it so that physical gold is considered a 'cash equivalent', like Treasuries, Gilts, or Bunds. In the current age of "quantitative easing forever" - banks are actually stuffed to the gills with reserves that they are not lending against, this is part of why we see massive usage of the Fed's 'reverse repo' facility, so they can at least make a few pennies off of reserves. This in no way stops any of the usual gold market manipulations (done with derivatives markets) and I can't imagine gold becoming in more demand because of this anytime soon, not unless there's a shortage of sovereign debt or certain forms of sovereign debt are reclassified as 'risky'.

European banks account for their gold

Crush The Street reiterates your discussions with exposing the good, the bad, and the truly greedy!
In the end it's the destruction of the middle class, which I am of one of many.
And like the C's said at one point even metals will lose there value to paraphrase in short.

It’s All About Interest Rates: Metals Are Setting Up! -Andy Schectman

GC00 | Gold Continuous Contract Overview | MarketWatch

GC00 | A complete Gold Continuous Contract futures overview by MarketWatch. View the futures and commodity market news, futures pricing and futures trading.

www.marketwatch.com

SI00 | Silver Continuous Contract Overview | MarketWatch

SI00 | A complete Silver Continuous Contract futures overview by MarketWatch. View the futures and commodity market news, futures pricing and futures trading.

www.marketwatch.com

https://twitter.com/x/status/1455333362227372041

https://twitter.com/x/status/1455319478317694977

Oct 22, 2021

Quoth the Raven | Quoth the Raven

Financial pundit Quoth the Raven (Christopher Irons) of QTR Research talks finance and social commentary without the bullshit or long bias spin of the cable news networks.

quoththeraven.podbean.com

October 28, 2021

 

[Ina]

I had this idea the other day.

Suppose there are some "beings" that use gold for their technology.

Although they can make it, they "take" it where it is.

Now ... You have a planet where you "program" people to make gold the most desired.

What happens "at the end of time"?

You have all the available gold collected and stored in comfortable rooms in every country on the planet.

You just have to pick it up quietly.

Indeed.

 

[Vulcan59]

Found a Keith Weiner from Monetary Metals who seems to contradict mainstream thoughts about gold, silver, money, credit, etc. Three part series of Q&A with transcripts can be found here.

The Different Theories on What Moves Gold and Silver Prices​

For example, the Quantity Theory school attempts to relate the quantity (or change in quantity) of dollars, to each commodity. Generally, this theory predicts rising prices based on the reasoning of “more dollars chasing the same or fewer ounces of gold and silver.” The problem is that the new holders of these new dollars are not necessarily bidding up gold and silver (our thorough rebuttal to this is here).

The Conspiracy School thinks that there is a shadowy cabal, a price-manipulation cartel that decides what the gold and silver prices will be (our thorough rebuttal to this is in our Thoughtful Disagreement with Ted Butler).

Other schools attempt to compare mine production with industrial and jewelry demand. Or attempt to hold up a famous buyer of metal, while ignoring the thousands of not-famous sellers who sold the metal to said famous buyer. We should not make too much ado over a move of metal from one corner of the market to another (as we’ll discuss below).

We believe that everyone should hold some gold coins as insurance against unexpected events or expenses (similar to holding physical cash). However, gold does not grow. It is not a long-term wealth accumulation strategy. Gold is money, and you cannot become rich by merely holding money. - Source

 

[BHelmet]

When the fiat system detonates, we’ll find out who was right.

 

[cinnamon]

Found a Keith Weiner from Monetary Metals who seems to contradict mainstream thoughts about gold, silver, money, credit, etc. Three part series of Q&A with transcripts can be found here.

Bluntly, yes, 'price manipulation' and 'financialization' of commodities are one and the same - no need to conjure up notions of a cabal when market manipulation hasn't been news on Wall Street in a very long time - the gold bugs have been screeching about how the price of gold is manipulated for, what, a decade now? Financialization holds - until it doesn't - as we observed with Nickel and the LME. Buying gold amounts to both speculation on price direction and a bet against the stability of the gold markets - and I say this as someone who does own a little physical gold.

 

[Menna]

Store of value that can be easily transferred (unlike a house) money laundering, tangible asset....

 

[cinnamon]

So, more fuss over gold, albeit in the form of speculation about how Russia might respond to the latest energy market provocations.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1599936367932231680

(Report is also here: ShortUrlPDF)