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Gold has traded between $1,190 and $1,202 so far today on this final day of 2014…as of 7:30 am Pacific, bullion is down $9 an ounce at $1,191 after yesterday’s impressive move…Silver is off 46 cents at $15.81…Copper is off a penny at $2.88…Crude Oil hit a new 5-and-a-half year low this morning and is currently down 89 cents a barrel to $53.23, while the U.S. Dollar Index has gained one-tenth of a point to 90.07…

We will be posting tomorrow on New Year’s Day, even though markets are closed, so please check back here for updated Gold and Venture charts plus other information as 2015 begins…BMR will then be on a 3-day break between Friday and Sunday with Morning Musings resuming Monday, January 5 (no Morning Musings Friday)…

Gold prices have been relatively less volatile in 2014 compared to last year’s 28% sell-off and $500 trading range…bullion has traded in a range of just $260 this year and has shown resilience in the face of declining Oil prices and a strong greenback after briefly touching $1,130, a 4-and-a-half low, in early November…the U.S. Dollar Index is poised to make its biggest yearly gain since 2005, with more strength probable in 2015 given bullish technical and fundamental factors…

Holdings in the world’s largest Gold-backed ETF, the SPDR Gold Trust, have fallen by 140 tonnes this year to a 6-year low of 710.81 tonnes…redemptions, however, were far less than they were in 2013 when the fund saw a record outflow of 460 tonnes, or 39%, to around 850 tonnes… test

Gold has swung between $1,181 and $1,211 so far today as thin trading conditions near year-end continue to produce higher than usual volatility…as of 7:45 am Pacific, bullion is up $24 an ounce at $1,206…Silver is 58 cents higher at $16.40…Copper has rebounded sharply at $2.89…Crude Oil is up slightly at $53.78 while the U.S. Dollar Index has declined one-third of a point to 89.91…

General mistrust of the global economic and geopolitical situation appears to have given Gold tremendous support around the $1,180 area, despite falling Oil prices and a strong U.S. dollar, and could give bullion fresh momentum above $1,200 early in the New Year…steady physical buying out of China is also underpinning Gold – premiums in Shanghai were at about $4 an ounce today…

The Gold-to-Silver price ratio recently reached its highest level (76.04) since the beginning of 2009…it’s currently at 73.5…the ratio, which peaked at 83.73 during the financial crisis in 2008, has more than doubled since it bottomed in April 2011, primarily driven by a substantial decline in Silver…the recent peak could be a sign that Silver prices will start to gain some traction…typically, when the ratio is in decline, Gold and Silver usually both go up with Silver rising faster…the long-term ratio average is 60…

Today’s Equity Markets

Asia

Asian market were modestly lower overnight with the exception of China’s Shanghai Composite which finished relatively unchanged at 3167…

Japan’s Nikkei fell 279 points or 1.6% to close at a 2-and-a-half week low of 17451…

Europe

European markets are lower in late trading overseas with weak Oil prices and Greece topping the concerns…

North America

The Dow is down 60 points at 17978 as of 7:45 am Pacific…the December reading of the Conference Board’s consumer confidence index came in slightly lower-than-expected at 92.6.

the yearly growth in home prices across the U.S. continued to slow in October…the home price index covering the entire nation rose 4.6% in the 12 months ended in October, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index report released this morning…that’s down from 4.8% in September…curiously, housing demand has slowed significantly in recent months despite stronger job growth, a rebound in consumer confidence and falling gasoline prices…

The TSX is off 36 points while the Venture has added 2 points to 684…

Mining Companies Cringe As Chile Gives Boost To Unions 

In a move that mining companies warn could result in further investment delays in an industry already reeling from higher costs and weak prices, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet – a socialist – is boosting union power to help “redistribute” the Copper riches that have made Chile the wealthiest country in Latin America…whenever left-wing politicians go down this road, they typically kill the goose that laid the golden egg…

Seeking to redress the balance of power in industrial relations more than 30 years after dictator Augusto Pinochet introduced a new labor code, Bachelet presented a bill on Monday that would make union leaders the sole authorized negotiators in wage bargaining and outlaw a company’s right to replace striking workers…

The labor proposals, along with raising corporate taxes to fund free education, are part of Bachelet’s campaign to narrow the worst income inequality among the 34 members of the OECD…business leaders fear that the economic model that has helped propel growth – low taxes, low spending, limited regulations and high savings rates –  is being threatened…

Bachelet was President of Chile between 2006 and 2010, and was elected again in March of this year…

On the economic front, S&P/Case-Shiller house price index for October is scheduled to be released at 9 am ET. Economists expect the house price index to rise a seasonally adjusted 0.6% month-over-month.

At 10 am ET, the Conference Board is due to release the results of its consumer confidence survey for December. The consensus estimate calls for an increase in the consumer confidence index to 93 in December from 88.7 in November.

Oil Update

Oil prices continue their relentless slide on growing oversupply concerns…fueled by booming U.S. shale Oil production and reluctance from other major producers to cut output, the sell-off is now taking WTIC very close to the $50 support level which undoubtedly will be tested…even news of disruptions in Libya and an apparent scaling back of drilling rigs in the U.S. hasn’t been enough to allow Crude from falling to a 5-and-a-half year low…

Economics and politics are both at play here, with the Saudis very much the driving force (there may be disunity in OPEC but the cartel is far from dead with the Saudis firmly in control)…it seems they have a  multifaceted strategy aimed at increasing market share, slowing the growth of U.S. shale production, and destabilizing Shia controlled rival political regimes closer to home – most importantly Iran, and Iran as we know also draws significant support from Russia…

Diane Francis, in her Financial Post column over the weekend, made these astute observations:

“This price drop is simply economic war waged by the Arabs against Iran and a shot across the bow in the Shia versus Sunni religious war underway in the Middle East. Iran is “Shia” oil and Gulf or Saudi oil is “Sunni” oil.

“The Saudis and Gulf States have engineered this price crash as a tactic in their war against Iran, its potential nuclear bomb and its proclivity to export terrorism across their neighborhood. This collapse in prices is cheaper than what they face in terms of military and other costs down the road if Iran is not solved.

“This cartel’s days are far from over and the Saudis and their Gulf allies are in charge. The Saudis produce 13% of oil worldwide and the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Bahrain account for another 12.48% for a total of 25.48% (all of the oil cartel members represent 45% of all production and 81% of all reserves).

“The Gulf States’ control is absolute because the governments own the stuff; they can act unilaterally unlike free enterprise nations; they have more of it than anyone else; they have gotten very rich over the decades and can finance themselves at lower prices and they have the lowest costs in the world so lower prices don’t mean losses.

“Few realize that fear grips the Gulf States and has led to a massive military buildup, for political and religious reasons.

“Almost all Middle Eastern and North African states are evolving in the opposite direction of Europe, having doubled – or even tripled – their defense spending in recent years,” according to a 2014 report by the European Union Institute for Securities Studies. “Six of the world’s top ten military spenders are now located in the Middle East and North Africa: all of the Gulf States, for instance, have tripled their spending since 2003.”

WTIC 6-Month Daily Chart

John’s long-term charts suggest that WTIC probably won’t bottom out even at $50 a barrel – ultimately, likely in the coming months, it could certainly test the 2008 low in the mid-$30’s…markets normally go to extremes in situations like this – the technical picture certainly favors that scenario…

A recent minor rally could only take WTIC to $58.53, and the base support that was forming at $55 seems to have given way…

On a positive note, the new lows we’re now seeing in WTIC aren’t being confirmed by RSI(14), and the intensity of the sell pressure is declining…this suggests that the $50 support may hold for now, and that we could see a stabilization in prices for a period of time prior to another potential selling wave early next year that could crash the $50 level and take Oil into the mid-$30’s in a worst-case scenario…

This is not a situation where we’re going to see a quick and sustained rebound in prices, given the extent of technical damage that has occurred and the bearish fundamental factors at play…

Copper Updated Chart

As expected, Copper has found strong support at $2.80 at the bottom of a downsloping wedge…near-term resistance at $2.90 and $3.05 based on this 2.5-year weekly chart…

The key for Copper entering 2015 is whether it breaks above or below this downsloping wedge…

Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. (AEM, TSX) Update

The weak Canadian dollar and Oil prices at multi-year lows are a boon for certain Gold producers (Barrick will benefit less as it has hedged roughly half of its exposure to Oil for 2015 at significantly higher prices), but many investors haven’t seemed to pick up on that yet…

Agnico Eagle has taken a beating since its summer high of $45.71, but now appears to be on the rebound after holding strong support around $26.50…today it’s finally breaking above a downtrend line in place since August, and that has to be considered positive for the sector as a whole entering the New Year…

AEM is up $1.67 at $29.40 as of 7:45 am Pacific…

Richmont Mines (RIC, TSX) Update

Our favorite producer, offering exceptional leverage, continues to be Richmont Mines (RIC, TSX) which has had both earnings momentum and price momentum in its favor since the middle of last year…

This is an exceptionally rare chart in this industry at the moment, and Richmont remains well below overbought levels where it would make sense to lock in any short-term profits…this one’s a keeper, in our view, as it continues to climb an uptrend line toward the next Fib. resistance level which is $5…

RIC is up 19 cents at $3.67 through the first 75 minutes of trading today…

Probe Mines Ltd. (PRB, TSX-V) Update

Like Richmont, Probe Mines (PRB, TSX-V) is an excellent example of a stock that has consistently outperformed the price of bullion for an extended period…that has be one of the key factors in an investor’s stock selection – find a play that is outperforming the metal as well as its peers…Probe and Richmont both definitely fits within that description, and the other common denominator they have is properties in favorable jurisdictions (Ontario and Quebec)…

PRB is threatening to break out above resistance at $3…it’ll be interesting to see how that plays out over the next few trading days…buy pressure has replaced sell pressure, and PRB’s 50-day SMA is now rising decisively after reversing higher at the end of November as we pointed out at the time…

PRB is up 2 pennies at $2.99 as of 7:45 am Pacific…

Note:  Jon holds a share position in RIC.

Gold has traded between $1,185 and $1,197 so far today…as of 7:30 am Pacific, bullion is down $11 an ounce at $1,185 after Friday’s brisk advance…Silver is off 17 cents at $15.92 (updated Silver charts at the bottom of today’s Morning Musings)…China Silver imports rose to a 9-month high in November, reaching 244 million grams…China’s Silver imports are up 2.9% in the first 11 months of 2014 vs. a year earlier…Copper has lost 2 cents to $2.86…Crude Oil, which has fallen for 5 consecutive weeks, is up 47 cents at $55.20 amid reports of escalating clashes in Libya, a key producer…the U.S. Dollar Index has eased slightly to 90.02…

Just prior to Christmas, in what may have been due to some year-end investor portfolio juggling, holdings in the SPDR Gold Trust suffered their worst daily decline (11 tonnes) since July 2013…HSBC said the drop in holdings is a reminder that ETF redemptions are still a risk to the Gold market…

Copper prices are now at their lowest level since June 2010, a sign of investors’ skepticism about China’s efforts to kick-start its economy…last week, China’s central bank announced it was relaxing a major restraint on lenders’ ability to use deposits to make loans, a move aimed at spurring economic growth…a series of stimulus measures in recent months – more are expected – have so far failed to give the Chinese economy a significant bump…the country accounts for about 40% of the world’s Copper consumption…

Gold – Second Best Global Currency In 2014

With all the negativity surrounding Gold, especially in North America, it’s important to keep in mind that bullion has been the second best performing global currency in 2014…Frank Holmes, CEO of U.S. Global Investors, pointed this out in his latest weekly Investor Alert at www.usfunds.com.

“It is important to point out why investors hold Gold. Aside from the dollar, Gold has been the best performing currency in 2014. For those who hold most of their assets in dollars, the beauty of Gold may go unnoticed. However, for those in Russia who just saw half of their wealth disappear with the depreciation in the ruble, the benefits of Gold are clear. This year provided investors with the perfect case study for highlighting the importance of Gold.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today’s Equity Markets

Asia

Asian markets were mixed overnight…China’s Shanghai Composite briefly broke above resistance at 3200, hitting its highest level since December 2010, but backed off near the end of the day and closed up 12 points at 3169…

Japan’s Nikkei average surrendered early gains and finished down 89 points at 17730…

Europe

European markets are mostly modestly lower in late trading overseas, though Greek stocks took a pounding today – Athens was down more than 10% after politicians failed for a third time to elect Prime Minister Antonis Samaras’ preferred candidate…this means that early general elections will happen next year, opening door to a potential victory for the hard left Syriza Party which is currently leading in the polls…Syriza is appealing to Greeks angry at the ruling coalition for imposing years of austerity as a requirement to secure international aid…elected to a four-year term in mid-2012, Greece’s current coalition government – composed of the conservative New Democracy and the socialist Pasok parties- wasn’t due to face elections again until June 2016…Syriza’s agenda, if its is followed through on, is sure to screw up the economic progress made in Greece over the last year-and-a-half..

North America

The Dow is relatively unchanged as of 7:30 am Pacific…the TSX has added 71 points while the Venture is up 2 points at 676…

Venture Updated Chart

The Venture’s modest recovery from its December 16 all-time low continues…

John’s updated 9-month daily chart shows the intense oversold conditions that prevailed over much of the last 4 months after a breakdown in September of the symmetrical triangle, a drop below key support levels and a reversal to the downside in the 200-day moving average (SMA)…this was a classic technical collapse, and it mirrored what happened in Crude Oil though the Venture led the way…

What the Venture is telling us now is that it’s ready to test a band of resistance between 700 and 800…sell pressure is declining, and an RSI(14) divergence with price occurred this month which is consistent with normal type of rally that we would expect to see at this time of the year…some fresh catalysts will be needed for the Venture’s current momentum to continue through all of January into February…

Doubleview Capital Corp. (DBV, TSX-V) Update

As we pointed out Christmas Eve, Doubleview Capital Corp. (DBV, TSX-V) has just drilled the deepest hole ever in the Sheslay district…in a way, this has a similar feel to the situation a year ago when DBV quietly issued news before Christmas on the completion of 5 holes totaling 1,276 meters (just weeks later, on January 20, DBV commenced a breakout that would ultimately take it 40 cents on the announcement of discovery holes HAT-08 and HAT-11)…

In this case, DBV has drilled just 1 hole but to an impressive depth of 650 m (drilling was halted at 650 m in HAT-23 and possibly could be extended even deeper beginning in January)…the question is, what would compel the Doubleview geological team and management to drill such a deep hole, especially considering a tight budget?…

A total of 263 core samples were taken from HAT-23 and sent to the lab for analysis (results potentially could be available in time for the 20th anniversary of the Vancouver Resource Show January 18-19)…this compares with 386 samples from 1,276 meters of drilling in the 5 holes in late 2013…

According to the drill plan map on the Doubleview web site, HAT-23 was collared approximately 110 meters east of HAT-22 which delivered the highest grades yet at the Hat Project…it seems likely that HAT-23, drilled in a north to south direction, has significantly expanded the width of the Lisle Zone…the key will be if this hole can intersect even higher grades than HAT-22 which returned an interval of 118.4 m grading 0.55% Cu and 0.41 g/t Au (0.80 CuEq) within an overall mineralized section (between 43.4 and 447.6 m) of 404.2 m @ 0.25% Cu and 0.25 g/t Au…

Each round of drilling at the Hat has produced better results, so there’s reason for optimism with regard to HAT-23…

Below is an updated DBV chart…it’s strange that many investors would rather buy at overbought levels than oversold levels, but that’s part of the strange psychology of the market…

The secret to success in the market, of course, is buying low and selling high…DBV is trading near the bottom of its 12-month range, and Fib. support at 11 cents appears to have held…interestingly on this 2-year weekly chart, steady accumulation has been occurring in DBV over the last 3 months…

DBV is off a penny at 13 cents through the first hour of trading today…many may chase this again come January…

Amarc Resources Ltd. (AHR, TSX-V) Update

In British Columbia, besides the Sheslay district and the recently announced important discovery at Kemess East by AuRico Gold Inc. (AUQ, TSX), investors should keep a close eye on Amarc Resources (AHR, TSX-V) which should garner increased attention in the early part of 2014 following its announcement November 24 that was overshadowed by the overall market turmoil at the time…

Amarc reported highly encouraging results from an initial 9-hole drill program at the company’s IKE Project in the Cariboo region…AHR has an early-stage bulk-tonnage porphyry Copper-Molybdenum-Silver discovery on its hands in the heart of a producing area as all 9 holes intersected chalcopyrite and molybdenite mineralization from surface and over a broad area measuring 1,200 m east-west by 600 m north-south and to depths of approximately 500 m…

Interval highlights included 247 m grading 0.42% CuEq in IK-14-001; 234 m @ 0.43% CuEq in IK-14-002; and 308 m @ 0.41% CuEq in IK-14-006…these results, along with post-drilling geological, geochemical and geophysical surveys completed outward from the drilled area, indicate that the IKE porphyry system has the potential to host a significant resource…this is still early in the game and AHR can be expected to aggressively follow up on this discovery which should help underpin the share price…

As we stated when the results were announced November 24, December might be a great time for accumulation of AHR following this news given tax-loss selling pressures and overall market weakness…indeed, AHR dipped as low as 6.5 cents but has since firmed up again…

John’s 3-year weekly AHR chart shows a “big picture” bullish trend with buy pressure recently replacing a long period of sell pressure…expect the resistance at 10 cents to be overcome…

AHR is up a penny at 11 cents as of 7:30 am Pacific…

Calibre Mining Corp. (CXB, TSX-V) Update

Calibre Mining (CXB, TSX–V) has been a strong out-performer in 2014, a trend that seems likely to continue in the year ahead…

A healthy technical consolidation occurred in Calibre during October and early November after quite a dramatic run that began near the end of May…support held, as expected, between the 9 and 12-cent Fib. levels…

Results from a 5,000-meter Phase 1 drill program at the Eastern Borosi Gold-Silver Project, financed by IAMGOLD Corp. (IMG, TSX) have so far been very encouraging, and more assay results are pending…

Meanwhile, at the end of October, CXB announced commencement of a Phase 1 diamond drilling program (1,500 meters in up to 13 holes) on the Minnesota Gold Project within the B2Gold Corp. (BTO, TSX) joint venture on the Borosi concessions, northeast Nicaragua…Calibre controls a 49% interest in the JV while B2Gold has a 51% interest and is project operator…BTO has the right to earn an additional 19% per cent in Borosi by spending $6 million in additional project expenditures over 3 years…

CXB is unchanged at 15 cents (Fib. resistance) as of 7:30 am Pacific…RSI(14) is showing strong up momentum and the stock has broken above its 50-day SMA which is flattening out at 13 cents…

Silver Short-Term Chart

Silver has finally staged a definitive breakout above a downtrend line that was in place since the summer on this 9-month daily chart…the December 1 dramatic move from an intra-day low of $14.15 to a close above $16 was technically highly significant…as expected, superb support has been demonstrated around $15 and Silver made a recent run toward near-term resistance at $17.50 before backing off to current levels around $16…

Note how the downtrend line has become new support, while there’s also near-term support around $15.60…RSI(14) is moving up from a bullish “W”, a positive sign, so the immediate trend appears positive despite today’s weakness…

Silver Long-Term Chart

This 34-year monthly chart continues to give hope that Silver could be preparing for a powerful “Wave 5” move to the upside, though we caution that this could take some time to play out (if indeed this theory is correct)…

RSI(14) has bounced off previous long-term support which will need to hold along with key price support in the immediate vicinity of $15…

Fundamentally, Silver has been hurt by a slowdown in global economic growth…if economies in the euro zone, China and Japan can show some fresh strength in 2015 (and that’s a big “if”), Silver could begin to appreciate rapidly…

One note of concern on this chart is the sell pressure that has prevailed since the beginning of 2013, after a decade-long period of buy pressure…based on historical patterns, sell pressure could persist for a considerable time yet…

Note:  Jon holds a share position in DBV.

It’s impossible to ever experience true lasting joy if your joy is placed in the markets, especially given what we’ve all been through in recent months.  Your portfolio will frustrate you under any conditions, actually, and destroy your joy if it’s meshed with the markets, even during a rip-roaring period like 2010.

True lasting joy is found, however, in God and in the peace that only He can bring.  We pray this Christmas that as many people as possible around the world will discover this true lasting joy and the “Reason for the Season”.

Remember, happiness is different than joy.  Happiness rests on circumstances, and circumstances in our lives always change – every single day in fact, just like the markets.  You can be unhappy about something, however, but still have joy and peace in your heart.  Joy is rooted in God, and He never changes.  Nor does His love.

Every December, we celebrate the coming of God to Earth in the form of a baby named Jesus.  In His coming, God’s kingdom came to earth.  This is a season when gifts are wrapped and given out to friends and loved ones as a blessing from the giver to the receiver.  God gave His one and only Son to the world as a gift, that whoever shall receive Him shall have eternal life.  The gift has been given to all but one must receive Him.  My hope and prayer is that this Christmas is a restful, peaceful time when all can spend time resting in the love of Jesus.  Jesus came as a personal gift for each of us.  We just have to receive Him.

Luke 2:25-35

Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him.  It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah.  Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took Him in his arms and praised God, saying:  “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you may now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all nations:  a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.”

The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him.  Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, His mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul, too.”

From my home to yours, my wife and I wish all a very Merry Christmas.  May you be surrounded by the love of Jesus this Christmas season, and experience true lasting joy and peace.

Terry Dyer, Owner

BullMarketRun.com

Gold has traded between $1,172 and $1,182 so far today…as of 9:00 am Pacific, bullion is down $3 an ounce at $1,174 in quiet trading on this day before Christmas…Silver is off 2 cents at $15.77…Copper is off a penny at $2.88…Crude Oil has slipped $1.66 a barrel to $55.46 following some negative supply data from the Energy Information Administration, while the U.S. Dollar Index has eased one-tenth of a point to 89.97…

This is a slightly abbreviated version of Morning Musings on this Christmas Eve, a shortened trading session in both Canada and the United States…we’ll be posting Terry’s Christmas Message later in the day, with Morning Musings resuming next Monday (no weekend postings) when Canadian markets reopen…

We wish to take this opportunity to thank all of our readers for their continued strong support during this unprecedented period in the junior resource sector, and we wish each and every one of you a very Merry Christmas…may the reason for the reason resonate and shine in all of us…

We have some exciting new features we’ll be adding to BMR during the first half of next year as we’re always looking for ways to serve our readers better…

Gold At $2,000 By The End Of 2015?

Wouldn’t this be nice!…Rob McEwen, Chairman and chief owner of McEwen Mining Inc. (MUX, TSX and NYSE) told Kitco News that he expects Gold to reach $2,000 U.S. an ounce by the end of 2015, with that figure linked to less supply on the horizon…McEwen is a perennial optimist, so his price prediction might be overly bullish, but his comments regarding a tightening of supply are well grounded and echoed by others…

“We’ve seen a lot of Gold that went into the ETF’s and this hoarding that occurred form 2005 to 2011, a lot of it has come out,” McEwen said.  “ETF Gold was a multiple or two of annual production at certain points during that period, and that Gold has come out of the ETF’s and gone to Asia (our emphasis). 

“So, the next time Gold runs, there’s not as much Gold available,” he said.  “The supply of Gold has been curtailed both through cutbacks and development projects – so there’s going to be a gap in production that could be three to five years long before it’s properly addressed.”

Updated Gold Chart

Gold began to lose near-term momentum at the beginning of last week when it couldn’t hold $1,200 and RSI(14) fell below an up trendline as shown on our 6-month daily chart this morning…

However, what we could be seeing now is merely some healthy consolidation following the $110 advance from the early November multi-year low…a strong reversal signal occurred then, so there should be plenty of buying support within $10 or $20 of current levels…it would be encouraging if the $1,180 support were to hold on a weekly basis…

Physical buying from China could be strong leading up to that country’s Lunar New Year (February 19), and we already know that has been a recent pick-up in demand from India…

Today’s Equity Markets

Asia

Asian indices rose on the last day before Christmas with the exception of China’s Shanghai Composite which gave up 59 points or 1.9% to close at 2974…

Japan’s Nikkei touched a 2-week high, jumping 129 points or 1.2% to close at 17854…

Europe

European markets were mixed in a shortened session today…in Russia, the MICEX index was flat despite ratings agency Standard & Poor’s warning late Tuesday that it could soon downgrade Russia’s rating to “junk” status…

North America

The Dow, which closed above 18000 for the first time ever yesterday, continues its impressive run…it’s up another 56 points as of 9:00 am Pacific…in Toronto, the TSX is up 13 points while the Venture is down 5 points to 672…

Venture 4-Month Daily Chart

Don’t let this morning’s weakness fool you…technically, the Venture is looking much healthier and is well-positioned to continue an uptrend that started after the 637 December 16 intra-day low…a 10% advance from current levels over the short-term would put the Index near resistance at the upper dotted downtrend line and the 50-day moving average (SMA)…from there, some consolidation would be expected followed perhaps by a breakout to higher levels…

Doubleview Capital Corp. (DBV, TSX-V) Update

As we have discovered on several occasions over the past year, Doubleview Capital’s (DBV, TSX-V) Farshad Shirvani is never one to be underestimated, and given his tenacity and faith in the Hat Project and the Sheslay district as a whole, nothing would warm our hearts more than seeing DBV pull a monster new hole that sends the stock soaring and reignites interest in what we and others still firmly believe is an emerging world class Copper-Gold porphyry district in northwest British Columbia…

Last night, DBV delivered fresh hope for Sheslay followers (and the market as a whole) just in time for Christmas…based on our records, Doubleview has just drilled the deepest hole ever in the Sheslay district…H-23–14 (we assume this was drilled within the Lisle Zone) was halted at a depth of 650 m (halted, but not necessarily completed yet as drilling at the Hat is set to resume in January)…

Visual analysis is always very tricky, even with the best geologists and Doubleview is blessed with an outstanding team, but our thinking is that the DBV crew must have had good reason to continue to drill to this depth…it’s interesting to note that late last year, in December 2013, DBV reported that it had drilled 5 holes for a total of 1,276 m and collected 386 core samples for the lab…in this instance, they drilled 650 m and took 263 core samples…so they drilled half as much (but all on 1 hole) and took two-thirds of the samples they did on 1,276 m when they produced 2 discovery holes…needless to say, this latest drilling gives reason for optimism…

This is a speculative business and there are never any guarantees, but we’ll gladly take H-23-14 in our Christmas stocking over a bunch of lottery tickets…core samples are in the lab and results, we’re guessing, could arrive in time for the 20th anniversary of the Vancouver Resource Show January 18-19…

Garibaldi Resources Corp. (GGI, TSX-V) Update

Given core descriptions and photos, it’s reasonable to assume that Garibaldi Resources (GGI, TSX-V) is on track expanding the high-grade Silver Eagle discovery in central Sonora State…a progress update is expected soon…

Garibaldi has impressively bucked the overall market trend in 2014, thanks to an aggressive approach that has produced the discovery of a new mineral camp in Rodadero North which is surrounded in all directions by operating mines…the key for GGI in 2015 will be to push the drilling success at Silver Eagle east, north and south to other promising targets over this 50 sq. km property…the Tarichi target, in particular, could be a game-changer given the mineralogical package there that has been observed at surface – high-grade Gold, Silver and base metals, and important pathfinder elements…

Meanwhile, investors should not forget 2 other potential near-term catalysts for GGI – the La Patilla Property in Sinaloa State where drilling earlier this year hit high-grade Gold including a 30-m near-surface intercept grading 3.1 g/t Au (LP-14), and of course the Grizzly in northwest B.C. which covers more than half of the Sheslay mineralized corridor…

It may have been a stroke of genius that President and CEO Steve Regoci the other day armed the treasury with a $1.25 million financing at 21 cents specifically to advance the Grizzly, and some of the company’s other high priority B.C. projects…as reported Monday, Garibaldi is currently finalizing a comprehensive NI-43-101 technical report on the Grizzly based on work performed this year, and that document will be the most up-to-date 43-101 on any property in the district, and on the district itself…in addition, it appears that Doubleview may have another “hit” on its hands at the Hat Property…

Technically, the GGI chart is once again looking explosive with the possibility of a near-term breakout above a downsloping flag…the 50-day SMA has flattened out and is now reversing to the upside after being in decline since mid-September…

GGI is up half a penny at 20.5 cents as of 9:00 am Pacific…

Focus Graphite Inc. (FMS, TSX-V) Update

On December 16 we wrote that December bottom-fishers may wish to keep an eye on Focus Graphite (FMS, TSX-V) in the event of any additional weakness before this tax-loss selling period ends…FMS has shown strong support in the mid-30‘s since October, and in mid-December RSI(14) was in the low range and near support on John’s 1-year weekly chart…

Focus, which recently completed and filed an environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA) for its Lac Knife Graphite Project in northeastern Quebec, has made powerful moves during the last half of December in each of the past 4 years…it’s also worth noting that Focus has the attention of Dundee whose analysts this week wrote, “Focus is the most advanced Canadian graphite developer” with a “place among top tier assets when it comes to grade, flake distribution, recovery and purity.”

John’s updated 1-year weekly FMS chart shows a breakout above a downtrend line in place for the past few months…

FMS is unchanged at 45 cents as of 9:00 am Pacific…

Note:  John and Jon both hold share positions in GGI.  Jon also holds a position in DBV.

Gold has traded between $1,174 and $1,185 so far today after yesterday’s drop to a 3-week low…as of 8:00 am Pacific, bullion is up $2 an ounce at $1,179…Silver is 12 cents higher at $15.80…Copper is off a penny at $2.89…Crude Oil gained nearly $1 a barrel to $56.21 while the U.S. Dollar Index has climbed another one-third of a point to 90.02…

“The threat of even lower Oil prices is a clear negative for Gold,” according to HSBC.  They add that lower Gold prices should lead to more demand for physical Gold from emerging markets, most notably China. “Gold may be caught between the bearish influence of a sluggish EUR-USD and sliding Oil prices on the one hand and price sensitive EM demand on the other. We see Gold remaining on the defensive along with Silver, although low pre-holiday volume may lead to volatile price swings.”

The U.S. economy posted its strongest growth in more than a decade during the third quarter, supported by robust consumer spending and business investment…GDP grew at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.0% in the third quarter, the Commerce Department reported this morning…that was up from the second quarter’s growth rate of 4.6% and the strongest pace since the third quarter of 2003…the agency last month had estimated third-quarter GDP growth at 3.9%…economists were expecting a smaller upward revision…one would think that 4th quarter GDP should remain strong with American consumers, who represent about 70% of GDP, getting the equivalent of a significant tax cut with the steep drop in gas prices…this should more than offset any negatives from the energy sector…

Today’s Equity Markets

Asia

China’s Shanghai Composite was smacked down nearly 3% overnight on profit taking, closing at 3035 after testing resistance at 3200 yesterday…Japan’s Nikkei went the opposite direction overnight, posting a slight gain…

Europe

European markets are up modestly in late trading overseas…in Greece, financial markets resumed their rocky ride today, losing 2.5%, as lawmakers failed again to approve the prime minister’s choice of president – a result that could send the country back to the polls and into an uncertain future in the euro…

North America

The Dow has climbed another 243 points as of 8:00 am Pacific to top the 18000 level for the first time ever…

Equities are looking particularly bullish given this 4-year weekly chart of the Dow…note how the recent drop down to just above 17000 was to an area of exceptional support…while the Dow has since surged 1000 points, it still has plenty of upside potential over the short to medium term within the trading channel it’s traversing through…

Importantly, RSI(14) in this 4th quarter has also broken above a downtrend line in place since early 2013…the equity bulls are certainly in control on Wall Street…

In Toronto, the TSX is up 132 points as of 8:00 am Pacific while the Venture has edged 1 point higher to 669…first important resistance for the Venture is around 680…

Garibaldi Resources (GGI, TSX-V) is inching closer to another update out of Mexico where new core photos from Rodadero suggest a continued impressive consistency of mineralization in drilling at the high-grade Silver Eagle discovery…yesterday, GGI announced the closing of a $1.25 million financing to seize opportunities with regard to the Grizzly and some other attractive prospects in British Columbia…it appears GGI will be the first company in the Sheslay district to come out with a fresh NI-43–101 technical report since the staking rush erupted in that area just under a year ago…interestingly, GGI has also recently pushed out the western boundary of the Grizzly which now covers a total of 272 sq. km…GGI is a penny at 20 cents in early trading…

U.S. Dollar Index Updated Chart

It’s critical to keep a close eye on the Dollar Index as when it reverses and cools off, at least temporarily, the Venture should benefit along with commodities in general…

On this 34-year monthly chart, RSI(14) is now in overbought territory at 73% – a level last seen in late 2001 just prior to a correction…

Strong resistance exists between the Fib. 38.2% level (90.25) and the late 2005 high of 92.33 which could be tested soon…in short, the Dollar Index is poised to continue to move a little higher but this will be a set-up for a correction…

GoGold Resources Inc. (GGD, TSX) Update

We suggest investors check out the Preliminary Economic Assessment GoGold Resources (GGD, TSX) released September 10 for its Santa Gertrudis Gold mine in Sonora State, Mexico – quite robust numbers including a 1.7-year payback and an after-tax IRR of 58%…the proposed project is a 7,500-tonne-per-day heap leaching facility fed by several open pits, resulting in a projected 12-year mine life with total metal production of 671,000 ounces of Gold…start-up capital costs with a a 20% contingency are estimated at $32 million (U.S.)…this includes the development of a centrally located heap leach pad, CIL plant and ADR plant required for the start of mining operations…sustaining capital costs over the project’s life are projected to be an additional $16-million and total life-of-mine capital costs are estimated at $48-million…

Santa Gertrudis has an updated mineral resource of 23.3 million tonnes in the indicated category at 1.08 g/t Au, and 7.7 million tonnes of inferred at 1.02 g/t Au…production is estimated at an average of 56,000 ounces of Au per year (keep in mind that these are mineral resources and not mineral reserves)…

Below is a 3-year weekly chart for GGD that looks promising with strong buy pressure prevalent since September…rock-solid support exists around $1.40 which includes a Fib. level and the rising 300-day SMA (not shown on this chart)…

Earlier this month, GGD closed a bought deal offering at a price of $1.50 per share for gross proceeds to the company of $20 million…

North American Nickel (NAN, TSX-V) Update

North American Nickel (NAN, TSX-V) has been an attractive bottom-fishing opportunity this month, and sure enough the stock firmed up yesterday with a 3-cent gain to close at 25 cents…the Nickel story looks promising for 2015 and NAN continues to be blessed with exceptional opportunities at its 100%-owned Maniitsoq Nickel-Copper-Cobalt and PGM project in southwest Greenland…the company reported about $7 million in working capital at the end of September, and is well-positioned to go after new targets at Maniitsoq in 2015 after disappointing the market somewhat in 2014…

Strong Fib. support has held at 22 cents with NAN forming a nice base in the low 20‘s since late September…

Blackbird Energy Inc. (BBI, TSX-V) Update

Junior Oil stocks have taken a beating since September, so it’s not surprising that some are on the rebound – especially those, like Blackbird Energy Inc. (BBI, TSX-V) that were able to raise a bundle of money in time before the Oil price collapsed…

After hitting a low of 18 cents this month, BBI is now trading in the mid-20‘s – a couple pennies below its still-rising 200-day SMA…RSI(14) has bounced off previous support and we’re now starting to see a small pick-up in buy pressure…

Keep an eye on BBI‘s 100-day SMA – if it begins to roll over, that could spell trouble…in the meantime, BBI could easily challenge that SMA, currently at 32 cents, in the event we see a rally in Crude…

Note:  John and Jon both hold share positions in GGI.

Gold has traded between $1,193 and $1,204 so far today…as of 7:15 am Pacific, bullion is up $2 an ounce at $1,196…Silver is off 9 cents at $15.98…Copper is up a penny at $2.91…Crude Oil is off nearly $1 a barrel to $56.21 while the U.S. Dollar Index is down slightly at 89.56…

Gold exports out of Switzerland reportedly reached their highest level of the year last week…furthermore, in order to meet rising demand from Asia, Swiss refineries are working at full capacity…

Interesting…this was announced just recently and is effective beginning today…the COMEX has instituted a new rule for Gold and Silver trading (memorandum S-7258) whereby if prices ratchet up (or down as the case may be) $100 for Gold and $3 for Silver during a trading day, they will institute a 5-minute trading halt to allow some semblance of order in the markets…any reason why they might be anticipating that kind of volatility?…

Officials in the South American country of Guyana say this year’s Gold production is expected to be lower than originally forecast…Miners Association spokesman Colin Sparman said Friday that hundreds of miners have abandoned the industry after suffering losses amid fluctuating prices…he said Gold production likely will not surpass 400,000 troy ounces this year, which falls short of the target of 481,000 troy ounces set by Guyana’s government…Gold is Guyana’s main export…the industry there generated nearly $1 billion in revenue last year…

The drop in Crude Oil prices equates to a significant tax cut for North American consumers which has to have some stimulative effects…the average price of a gallon of gasoline in the U.S. fell 25 cents in the past 2 weeks, tumbling to its lowest level in more than 5-and-a-half years, according to the Lundberg survey released yesterday…prices for regular-grade gasoline fell to $2.47 a gallon in the survey dated Dec. 19, down 25 cents since the previous survey on Dec. 5…the recent drop has taken prices down more than $1.25 a gallon since a recent peak in May of this year…

Today’s Equity Markets

Asia

China’s Shanghai Composite continues to roar ahead with the Index briefly touching a near 4-year high of 3,189 in the morning session…it closed up 20 points at 3129…over the past 6 months, China’s market capitalization has surpassed the other BRIC nations’ (Brazil, Russia and India) market capitalizations combined…the Shanghai is aiming for its 7th straight weekly advance…

Japan’s Nikkei finished up slightly overnight at 17635…

Europe

European markets are up modestly in late trading overseas…a recovery in beaten-down Oil prices and the ruble and more calls for quantitative easing from the ECB helped lift sentiment…

An investor who owned all of Apple Inc. (AAPL, Nasdaq) would be able to sell it, purchase the entire stock market of Russia, and still have enough change to buy every Russian an iPhone 6 Plus…the market capitalization of Russia’s MICEX currently stands at 20.40 trillion rubles or $350.14 billion, which compares to Apple’s figure of $655.57 billion…

North America

The “Santa Rally” continues on Wall Street this morning…the Dow is up 82 points through the first 45 minutes of trading after climbing more than 700 points the previous 3 sessions…U.S. home resales tumbled to a 6-month low in November after 2 straight months of strong increases, underscoring the uneven nature of the housing market recovery…

Some profit-taking on the TSX this morning after 4 straight triple digit gains…the TSX is down 55 points as of 7:15 am Pacific…

Seabridge Gold Inc. (SEA, TSX) announced this morning that the Federal Minister of the Environment has issued her Environmental Assessment Decision Statement for Seabridge’s KSM Project in northwest British Columbia…the Statement endorses the conclusions of the KSM Comprehensive Study Report (CSR) prepared by the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (“CEAA”) which found that the KSM Project is not likely to result in significant adverse effects on the environment…the federal decision is consistent with B.C.’s approval of KSM which was received last summer…SEA is up 4 cents at $8.72 as of 7:15 am Pacific…

The Venture is off 4 points thru the first 45 minutes of trading after a 5% move to the upside Wednesday through Friday…

Venture 10-Year Monthly Chart Update

The Venture’s 10-year monthly chart gives us comfort that an important low was hit intra-day last Tuesday at 637 as this occurred as the -DI indicator reached its 2008 and 2013 peak levels…in addition, the %K is now beginning to bounce off an all-time low…

RSI(14) is crawling out of oversold territory…the Index can be expected to meet some minor resistance around the 680 level, the 2008 Crash low that was breached this month…

WTIC 6-Month Daily Chart

Extreme oversold levels have emerged in Crude Oil, so a significant near-term rally is an increasing possibility…however, severe technical damage has occurred in the long-term chart and this likely means that we’ll see new lows ($50 or less) in WTIC at some point during 2015…on the fundamental side, supply problems aren’t likely to be overcome anytime soon…demand will have to firm up significantly in order to stabilize prices and prevent a drop below support at $50…

Gold Bullion Development Corp. (GBB, TSX-V) Update 

A strong turnaround story is emerging in Gold Bullion Development Corp. (GBB, TSX-V) as the company inches closer to receiving its final permit to begin Gold extraction with a high-grade “rolling start” at the Granada Property near Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec…

We see substantial value in the multi-million ounce LONG Bars Zone resource, and the economics of the 3-year “rolling start” are robust with payback in approximately 6–8 months as indicated in the Pre-Feasibility Study…other factors are also in the project’s favor…the low Canadian dollar and weak Oil prices will have a positive impact on the bottom line…much of the LONG Bars Zone remains to be drill-tested, and Quebec is looking more favorable as a jurisdiction with the socialist/separatist PQ out of power…in addition, GBB’s Castle property across the border in northern Ontario has under-appreciated exploration upside to it…

We’ll explore the fundamentals of the Granada Project in further detail during an imminent return visit to the infamous Cadillac Trend…

On Friday, we posted a long-term chart that showed how GBB has broken above a long-term downtrend line which has become new support…this morning’s short-term chart clearly shows near-term momentum with rapidly declining sell pressure and a bullish +DI/-DI crossover…RSI(14) is approaching 60% (plenty of room to move higher) while the 50-day SMA is flattening out just under 4 cents…

GBB is unchanged at 4.5 cents as of 7:15 am Pacific…

Fission Uranium Corp. (FCU, TSX) Update

John’s last chart of a stock trading in the 80‘s (Paramount Gold & Silver Corp., PZG, TSX) gave readers an opportunity to make a short-term profit of nearly 50% as PZG closed at $1.18 Friday…Fission Uranium (FCU, TSX) could be poised to make the same kind of move…

Technically and fundamentally, Fission continues to look well-positioned for a potential breakout before year-end or very early in the New Year…the company is soon expected to release a maiden resource estimate for its PLS Property in Saskatchewan’s Athabasca Basin…Uranium mineralization at PLS has been traced by core drilling over 2.2 km of east-west strike length in 4 separate mineralized zones…mineralization remains open along strike both to the western and eastern extents…this is a world-class discovery, and FCU has been primed for a takeout…it’s also hard not to be bullish about Uranium as it moment given the price increase in recent months…

Fission should sparkle if and when there’s a breakout above the downsloping channel in this 2+ year weekly chart…the stock’s 50-day SMA is flattening out at 89 cents and may soon start to trend higher which would be a bullish sign…if FCU is able to push above both its 50-day and the downsloping channel around the Fib. $1.05 level, then this stock could gain serious momentum..

Fission is off a penny at 83 cents as of 7:15 am Pacific…

Silver Short-Term Chart

Silver has finally staged a definitive breakout above a downtrend line that was in place since the summer on this 9-month daily chart…the December 1 dramatic move from an intra-day low of $14.15 to a close above $16 was technically highly significant…as expected, superb support has been demonstrated around $15 and Silver made a run last week toward near-term resistance at $17.50…

Note how the downtrend line has become new support…

Silver Long-Term Chart

This 34-year monthly chart continues to give hope that Silver could be preparing for a powerful “Wave 5” move to the upside, though we caution that this could take some time to play out (if indeed this theory is correct)…

RSI(14) has bounced off previous long-term support which will need to hold along with key price support in the immediate vicinity of $15…

Fundamentally, Silver has been hurt by a slowdown in global economic growth…if economies in the euro zone, China and Japan can show some fresh strength in 2015 (and that’s a big “if”),  Silver could begin to appreciate rapidly…

Note:  John and Terry both hold share positions in GBB.

TSX Venture Exchange and Gold

The Venture’s December reversal kicked in pretty much on queue last week with Tuesday the 16th marking the infamous “low” (637) for this always volatile month which typically ends on a very bullish note.  This year’s reversal is met with particular jubilation given the intensity of the sell-off that started at the beginning of September.  After closing August at 1024, the Venture slipped on a few Oil slicks over the next few months with the junior market landing in critical condition.  Fortunately, the CDNX is now back on its feet recovering just in time for Christmas with the hope that 2015 will be a healthier year.  The first 8 months of 2014 certainly weren’t spectacular but they were solid with the Index posting a modest gain.  From September 1 to December 16, the Venture tumbled a whopping 38% – very much in line with Crude Oil’s 40%+ drop. 

After previous steep weekly losses of 6.8%, 5.4% and 6.0%, the Venture posted a gain last week of 20 points or 3% to finish at 674.  The prospect of an imminent turnaround was quite obvious given not only historical trading patterns for December, but the RSI(14) divergence with price (the RSI low last week was above its October bottom even though the Index plunged to 637 in December, about 140 points under its October low).

Historically, there have certainly been situations when we’ve seen powerful reversals after major Venture declines.  Over the next couple of weeks, it’ll be interesting to see what kind of strength comes into the Venture and how Gold and Oil also perform.  A 10% to 15% move to the upside by the Venture over the short-term would not be surprising, and in that environment some high quality individual stocks could climb much more than that.

Below is a 9-month daily chart showing the Venture resistance levels all the way up to 800.

The Venture’s December-January “Effect”

Going back to 2011, the December low has occurred on the 15th (2011), 13th (2012), 19th (2013) and 16th (2014) of the month.   Only once over the past 14 years has the December low been put in after December 19.   By picking away at the best opportunities during the weakness over the first half of this month, and seizing on some bargains that are still available in the days ahead, it’s almost impossible NOT to make money looking out over the next month if you’re inclined to be a trader.

Over the last 14 years, as you can see in the table below, the December/January “Effect” uptrend has lasted for 20 or more trading days on 6 occasions.  On only 5 occasions has the uptrend lasted less than 10 trading sessions.  The average duration of the bullish period is about 3 weeks – 14 trading days.

The Seeds Have Been Planted (And Continue To Be Planted) For The Next Big Run In Gold Stocks

There’s no better cure for low prices than low prices. The great benefit of the collapse in Gold prices in 2013 is that it forced producers (at least most of them) to start to become much more lean in terms of their cost structures. Producers, big and small, have started to make hard decisions in terms of costs, projects, and rationalizing their their overall operations. Exploration budgets among both producers and juniors have also been cut sharply. In addition, government policies across much of the globe are making it more difficult (sometimes impossible) for mining companies to carry out exploration or put Gold (or other) deposits into production, thanks to the ignorance of many politicians and the impact of radical and vocal environmentalists (technology has made it easier for groups opposing mining projects to organize and disseminate information, even in remote areas around the globe). Ultimately, all of these factors are going to eventually create a supply problem and therefore great opportunities in Gold and quality Gold stocks.  Think about it, where are the next major Gold deposits going to come from?  On top of that, grades have fallen significantly just over the past decade.

Gold

Gold lost some momentum last week, falling below an RSI(14) uptrend that was in place since early November after bullion briefly plunged to a new multi-year low around $1,130.  The key for Gold at the moment is to maintain support at the $1,180 level.  Resistance between $1,200 and $1,240 has been quite strong.  That $60 range ($1,180 to $1,240) could continue over the near to short-term, but we’ll probably see either a breakout or a breakdown sooner rather than later.

On an encouraging note, as you can see in the 6-month daily chart below, the general pattern since early November has been higher highs and higher lows.  However, some analysts argue that we haven’t yet had a true capitulation in the Gold market yet, and the $1,000 level could be tested at some point during 2015 given the bullish state of the greenback and other factors.

For the week, Gold settled down $28 an ounce at $1,194 after posting back-to-back strong weekly gains.

Gold 5-Year Weekly Chart

Up momentum remains evident on this 5-year weekly chart, following last month’s $1,130 low, but of concern is the RSI(14) trend line which is sloping down.  To put the bears on the defensive, Gold must push through this resistance.

Bullion is currently trading within a downsloping flag, and how that resolves itself during the first quarter of next year will be of great interest and importance.

Silver fell by just under $1 an ounce last week to close at $16.07.  Copper lost a nickel to $2.91.  Crude Oil (WTIC) finished down 70 cents for the week at $57.13 despite a jump of nearly $3 a barrel Friday.  The U.S. Dollar Index closed the week at 89.59, up more than a point over the previous Friday.

The “Big Picture” View Of Gold

As Frank Holmes so effectively illustrates at www.usfunds.com, the long-term bull market in Gold has been driven by both the Fear Trade and the Love Trade.  The transfer of wealth from west to east, and the accumulation of wealth particularly in China and India, has had a huge impact on bullion and will continue to support prices.   Despite Gold’s largest annual drop in three decades in 2013, the fundamental long-term case for the metal remains solidly intact based on the following factors:

• Growing geopolitical tensions, fueled in part by the ISIS terrorist group (air strikes won’t stop them) and a highly dangerous and expansionist Russia under Vladimir Putin, have put world security in the most precarious state since World War II;
• Weak leadership in the United States and Europe is emboldening enemies of the West;
• Currency instability and an overall lack of confidence in fiat currencies;
• Historically low interest rates;
• Continued strong accumulation of Gold by China which intends to back up its currency with bullion;
• Massive government debt from the United States to Europe – a “day of reckoning” will come;
• Continued net buying of Gold by central banks around the world;
• Flat mine supply and a sharp reduction in exploration and the number of major new discoveries – 2014 could be “Peak” Gold in terms of supply.