Thursday, June 28, 2012

China is buying up more Gold..


Gold-investment demand in China may gain more than 10 percent this year as buyers seek a haven from Europe’s debt crisis and the prospect of weakening currencies, according to the country’s largest bullion bank.
“Investors here want to hold part of their assets in gold to hedge for the risks, especially now that the financial crisis has evolved into a sovereign crisis,” Zheng Zhiguang, general manager of the precious-metals department at Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd., said in an interview in Shanghai.
China will topple India this year as the largest bullion market as rising incomes bolster demand, the World Gold Council forecasts. Photographer: Jerome Favre/Bloomberg
June 4 (Bloomberg) -- Juerg Kiener, chief investment officer at Swiss Asia Capital Ltd. in Singapore, talks about the outlook for commodity markets. Gold declined after rising the most in more than three years as some investors sold the metal to raise cash following losses in equities and other commodities. Kiener speaks with Rishaad Salamat on Bloomberg Television's "On the Move Asia." (Source: Bloomberg)
May 31 (Bloomberg) -- Dominic Schnider, Singapore-based global head of commodity research at UBS AG's wealth management unit, talks about the outlook for gold prices and demand. Schnider speaks with Zeb Eckert on Bloomberg Television's "On the Move Asia." (Source: Bloomberg)
May 28 (Bloomberg) -- Norman Chan, head of investment at Calibre Asset Management Ltd. in Hong Kong, talks about global financial markets and his investment strategy. He also discusses Europe's sovereign debt crisis and China's economy. He speaks with John Dawson on Bloomberg Television's "On the Move Asia." (Source: Bloomberg)
China will topple India this year as the largest bullion market as rising incomes bolster demand, the World Gold Council forecasts. Gold may gain for a 12th year in 2012 as European policy makers strive to avoid a breakup of the euro zone and the U.S. Federal Reserve weighs more stimulus to aid the recovery. Investors in China, facing lackluster equity markets and property curbs, are looking more to the metal, Zheng said June 6.
“It’s necessary for individual, institutional or even government investors to hold gold when the value of money is decreasing at a time of possible quantitative easing or excessive money-printing practices,” said Zheng.
Investment demand in China was a record 98.6 metric tons in the first quarter, 13 percent higher the same period in 2011, according to figures from the producer-funded council. Last year, it climbed 38 percent to 258.9 tons compared with 2010, as overall demand gained 20 percent to 769.8 tons. China’s total gold demand may reach 1,000 tons this year, the WGC has said.
Debt Crisis
Gold for immediate delivery traded at $1,598.02 an ounce at 4:03 p.m. in Shanghai, 2.2 percent higher this year. The price touched $1,526.97 on May 16, the lowest level since December, as Europe’s debt crisis weakened the euro and investors favored increased dollar holdings.
While a stronger dollar may pressure bullion, “I’m optimistic on the gold prices in the long term because of the China demand,” said Zheng. “There are too many uncertainties now in the global economy, politics and the financial sector.”
ICBC represents more than 20 percent of the turnover on the Shanghai Gold Exchange, China’s largest spot market for precious metals, and more than 30 percent of the gold-leasing business in China, according to Zheng. The lender accounted for about 16 percent of nationwide bullion sales last year.
Gold imports by mainland China from Hong Kong climbed 65 percent to a record 103.6 tons in April, according to data from the Census and Statistics Department of the Hong Kong government released on June 5. The increase came even as Lao Feng Xiang Co. (900905), the mainland’s biggest gold-jewelry maker, said in May that gold-demand growth in China may stagnate this year as falling prices put off investors and an economic slowdown crimps sales.
Hurt Exports
The second-largest economy expanded 8.1 percent in the first quarter, the slowest pace in almost three years as Europe’s crisis hurt exports. Should Greece exit the euro, the expansion may slow to 6.4 percent in 2012 without stimulus, China International Capital Corp. said on May 23.
China, which on June 7 announced the first cut in borrowing costs since 2008, has curbed property investments to avoid a bubble. The Shanghai Composite Index (SHCOMP) declined 15 percent in the past year, while spot bullion gained 5.4 percent.
On a three-month basis, gold demand in China eclipsed India’s over the past two quarters, according to the World Gold Council. The increased wealth of China’s middle class is helping to drive consumption, Albert Cheng, the council’s Far East managing director, said in an interview in May.
Last Resort
Greek voters are set to go the polls for the second time in two months on June 17 in a vote that may determine whether the country stays in the 17-nation euro. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) said gold remains the so-called currency of last resort, forecasting a rally by year-end, according to a May 9 report.
Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos said on June 9 that he would request as much as 100 billion euros ($126 billion) in emergency loans from the euro area to shore up the country’s banking system. That, coupled with weekend trade data from China, helped to boost stocks and commodities today.
As China allowed investors to buy and hold gold only in recent years, “there’s explosive, pent-up demand because the Chinese have an attachment to gold,” said Zheng, predicting that growth in investment demand will beat the expansion in jewelry sales. “There’s great potential for expanding China’s physical-gold investment market.” 

Call us for all of your precious metals needs at 801.889.7200 or online at valleygoldminesaltlake.com

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Gold Party Specail in Utah

For those considering doing a gold party here in Utah, give us a call so we can go over how fun it can be.  Until August 1st, we will be paying an additional 5% to anyone who hosts a gold party with us.  That means the host will get 15% of all of the gold we purchase.  Contact us at 801.889.7200 or visit us online at valleygoldminesaltlake.com

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Want to find some Gold in Utah? Take up this hobby.

Here is a story of someone who purchased a gold detector.  He has had some great success.

Couldn't be Happier

metal detector find - gold nuggets - usa

I've had a very good Minelab Month of May with my GPX 5000. I found 3 BIG nuggets .55oz, 1.27oz &.9oz totaling 2.72 oz and a 1902s barber Quarter in a new patch. All were found with the Commander coils. What a deadly combination.... the nuggets didn't have a chance!! I couldn't be happier!!!!


Give us a call when you find those nuggets.  We will take them off your hands for some cold hard cash!  809.889.7200 or online at valleygoldminesaltlake.com

Monday, June 18, 2012

Which evil would you prefer? Gold is being sought out by all types of people.

This is an interesting article about how criminals will always find a way.  In choosing the better of two evils, selling gold is better than drugs...


A decade ago, the Colombian region of Putumayo was the main production centre for coca, the raw material for cocaine.
And the guerrillas from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) were well placed to profit from the illegal drugs trade.
Today, there are still small fields of bright green coca cut from the virgin jungle, but the rebels have found a more lucrative, and far safer, source of income: gold.
It was here the US military aid package, known as Plan Colombia, which has amounted to some $8bn (£5bn) since 1999, was concentrated.
Since 2000, fleets of spray planes have dropped glyphosate chemicals over the coca bushes, managing to reduce, but never eradicate, drug production.
What the chemicals have done is push local farmers into the new, informal industry of gold mining.
"We estimate that the Farc here make 800m pesos ($450,000) a week from illegal gold mining," said Jhimmy Calvache, the acting mayor of Mocoa in Putumayo province.
Without massive army support, police cannot check up on the Farc's activities
Colombia has vast gold deposits, especially along the rivers that wash down from the Andes Mountains.
It was gold that drew the Spanish conquistadors here in the 16th Century, and now, with prices high for precious metal, gold fever has returned.
Mechanical diggers operate along the riverbeds and banks in Putumayo, protected by heavily armed rebels who allow no access to the sites and impose huge "taxes" on production.
In March, police sought to send in investigators to find out how much gold was being extracted.
They ran into trigger-happy guerrillas and it was decided that, without massive army support, there was no chance of making any meaningful inquiries. The operation was abandoned.
Mine operators
While the illegal exploitation of gold in Putumayo is still in its infancy, it is well developed in other parts of the country.
In the northern department of Antioquia, the Farc have established a series of extortion schemes on the gold miners, legal and illegal.
For every mechanical digger that enters their territory, the rebels charge an initial "tax" of up to $3,000 and another $2,000 per piece of heavy machinery for every month of operation.
In the gold-rich municipality of Anori in Antioquia, authorities believe there are up to 120 diggers operating, earning the local Farc unit a monthly income of at least $240,000. There are 125 municipalities in Antioquia.
"Gold is now more lucrative than coca," says Antioquia Governor Sergio Fajardo.
The guerrillas are not just extorting money but running some mining operations themselves or demanding a percentage of all production.
The advantage of gold is that it is perfectly legal to transport and sell, unlike cocaine.
Indeed, legally registered mines have become a favourite acquisition for drug traffickers as well, as they are perfect vehicles for laundering money.
The mining companies can claim any amount of gold is being extracted and then traffickers put all their money from cocaine sales through the books.
On condition of anonymity, a mine worker in Anori played the recording on his telephone of a call he said was from the Farc demanding payment.
"Don't try my patience this month," growled a low voice, "don't make me look for you, or the machines will be burnt and you may become a military objective [this is guerrilla speak for becoming a target for assassination]."
He paid, and continues paying, even during the rainy season when the rising water levels make extracting gold from the river bed almost impossible.
Recruitment drive
In Putumayo, there is clear evidence that the rebels are strengthening themselves thanks to the cash from gold.
In the remote municipality of Puerto Guzman, 400 people were called in April by the rebels to attend a political meeting, where they said they were forced to listen to Marxist doctrine.
These meetings are increasingly common.
In Piamonte, accessible only by canoe, the rebels run football tournaments for the young people, to hook them in and prepare them for recruitment.
The police station in Piamonte, a series of bunkers connected by trenches, operates as if under siege
"We had a rebel incursion last month," said Piamonte local councillor Carlos Martinez, who moved his children away for fear of Farc recruitment.
"The guerrillas came into the town, to within 30 metres of the police station. The policemen did nothing, they never left their base."
The police station is a series of bunkers connected by trenches. Resupply is done by US-supplied Blackhawk helicopters.
Their landing is covered by a helicopter gunship hovering over the town, the gunner's finger never leaving the trigger of his machine gun that is capable of firing 800 rounds a minute.
A young policeman offered a few words from the barrier to the base, refusing to come out or let me in.
"We don't get much co-operation from the local community here. We never leave the town," he said, glancing nervously at the high ground within sniper range.
Putumayo used to produce up to 100 tonnes of cocaine a year. Now it produces around 40 tonnes.
But the shortfall in Farc revenue has been more than made up with illegal mining of gold.
As Colombia's conflict enters its 49th year, the 9,000-strong rebels are looking to gold to fund new offensives against the state.
Contact us for all of your precious metals needs at 801.889.7200 or at valleygoldminesaltlake.com

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Interesting Gold Ruling..


A federal appeals court ruling Friday makes it tougher for small-time gold miners to work their claims on federal lands across the West.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco ruled in a split decision that the U.S. Forest Service has to consult biologists from other agencies before allowing miners to do anything that might harm salmon protected by the Endangered Species Act. The ruling overturned a District Court decision.
The case was brought by the Karuk Tribe in Northern California as part of a longstanding battle to protect struggling salmon from mining on the Klamath River. The tribe traditionally depended upon the salmon for food.
“The Forest Service’s decision to place the search for minuscule flakes of gold above the needs of people who rely on clean water, and especially wild salmon, was unconscionable,” Leaf Hillman, director of natural resources for the Karuk Tribe, said in a statement.
A mining group said the ruling makes it virtually impossible for people to use suction dredges on rivers through federal lands with protected species. The dredges are gasoline-powered vacuums that suck the gravel from river bottoms and concentrate the gold.
Jerry Hobbs, president of Public Lands for the People in San Bernardino, Calif., said most miners will not be able to afford the high cost of environmental reviews required to get approval. He predicted about 100 miners would go ahead and use their dredges illegally, because state and federal authorities are not likely to enforce any ban.
The ruling comes on top of a moratorium issued by the California Legislature against using suction dredges to mine for gold. The moratorium, which expires in 2016, grew out of another lawsuit brought by the tribe demanding tougher state controls over suction dredges.
The Forest Service had no comment.
The Klamath Tribe’s lawsuit came after a district ranger on the Klamath National Forest in 2004 approved plans by the New 49ers gold mining club and three miners to use dredges to mine for gold.

Have Gold?  Contact us at 801.889.7200 or online at www.valleygoldminesaltlake.com

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Father's Day Gold Special in Utah!

Father's Day Special! We are buying all gold men's jewelry for an additional 20% from today through June 20th. Get a bit extra for any unwanted jewelry. Take the money and do something extra special for dad!!

Contact us at 801.889.7200 or at www.valleygoldminesaltlake.com

Friday, June 8, 2012

The Fed's take on Gold Prices

The Fed's take on Gold Prices:

LESS THAN a week after they climbed back above $1600, Gold Prices fell back below that level on Thursday, as Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke appeared before Congress at the Joint Economic Committee. This is not the first time we have seen this, notes Ben Traynor at BullionVault.
Back on February 29, gold fell $100 an ounce while Bernanke was testifying before the House Financial Services Committee. What on earth is the man saying to have such an adverse impact on Gold Prices?
Well, on the two occasions cited above, it wasn't what he said, but what he failed to say that did the damage. In short, Bernanke failed to make any explicit promises of further Fed quantitative easing.
Last Friday, gold shot up 5% in Dollar terms, following disappointing jobs and manufacturing data. Clearly, some traders were betting that the Fed would respond by announcing further stimulus, a bet that failed to pay off. Bernanke's reticence in this regard is hardly surprising, though. It's what central bankers do: they say as little as they can get away with to keep as many options open as they can.
They also talk to each other, and it seems the major central bankers have agreed a common script, one which has as its central theme a focus on the failings of fiscal policymakers (i.e. politicians). Here is European Central Bank president Mario Draghi speaking on Wednesday:
"Some of these problems in the Euro area have nothing to do with monetary policy. That is what we have to be aware of and I do not think it would be right for monetary policy to compensate for other institutions' lack of action."
And here is Bernanke a day later:
"...under current policies and reasonable economic assumptions, the [Congressional Budget Office] projects that the structural budget gap and the ratio of federal debt to GDP will trend upward thereafter, in large part reflecting rapidly escalating health expenditures and the aging of the population. This dynamic is clearly unsustainable...fiscal policy must be placed on a sustainable path that eventually results in a stable or declining ratio of federal debt to GDP."
In other words: don't look at us.
Central bankers are trying to put pressure on their political masters to deal with problems that are beyond the scope of monetary policy. It is these problems, they argue, that are at the root of the current crisis.
It was put to Bernanke by JEC vice chairman Kevin Brady that the Fed itself is encouraging political inaction by keeping QE3, a potential third round of quantitative easing, on the table. In other words, the belief that the Fed is on standby to combat any crisis makes a crisis more likely, reducing as it does the incentive to take difficult preventative action.
The trouble is, the Fed and other central banks daren't row too far back from talk of stimulus for fear that this will provoke a crisis. This is why Bernanke made it clear the option was on the table, while also saying "Look over there" and pointing at the so-called fiscal cliff – the combination of tax cut expiries and mandated spending cuts that await the US should lawmakers fail to reach agreements to prevent them (a genuine risk in an election year).
So we are at an impasse, meaning Gold Prices are susceptible to marginal sentiment and bets on what monetary policymakers will do next. This has been the case all year. For example, Gold Prices rallied after the Fed published projections showing its policymakers expected near-zero interest rates until late 2014. Gold also saw a jump in March as Bernanke reiterated the need for accommodative policies.
The truth is, though, that there has been little rhyme or reason to these moves. If you look at what Bernanke actually said on each occasion, it is pretty much a rehash of what he's said before. Fed statements since the start of the year have all broadly said this: "We're not out of the woods, we'll keep an eye on things, and we'll do as we see fit."
Details have changed, depending on the newsflow, but that's all. Here's an extract from Thursday's testimony:
"...the situation in Europe poses significant risks to the US financial system and economy and must be monitored closely. As always, the Federal Reserve remains prepared to take action as needed to protect the US financial system and economy in the event that financial stresses escalate."
Later on, Bernanke said there is "no justification" for fears that QE could spark inflation. Taking these comments together, one could make a case that the Fed are about to push the button marked 'More Stimulus'. But of course, traders had already jumped to that conclusion last Friday, and so were forced to 'unjump'.
The truth is, we don't know when or if we will see more QE, and we doubt anyone at the Fed does either. QE is not about economic stimulus. Not really. It may be packaged as a way of boosting growth, but in our view its real aim is to fight crises in the banking sector.
This is where it gets difficult for gold investors. It may be that the Fed, along with other central banks, are holding fire until the banking stresses in Europe become really acute. As we saw last November and December, a banking crisis can be accompanied by sharp falls in Gold Prices, as gold is sold or leased to raise Dollars, increasing its immediate supply and putting downward pressure on prices. Indeed, along with the disappointment that Bernanke was not more dovish following last week's economic news, another possible explanation for gold's fall this week is that uncertainty over QE raises the risk of a sudden funding crunch.
Another factor to bear in mind is inflation expectations. Bernanke said on Thursday that these are "quite well anchored". But some argue that they are still too high to make QE an immediate prospect, with 5-Year breakeven rates – the difference in yield between inflation-linked and nominal debt – still too high:

Contact us at Valley Goldmine Salt Lake for your precious metals needs.  801.889.7200 or at valleygoldminesaltlake.com

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Gold Party in Utah? Should I do it?

One of the new things for people to do with the precious metals market being high is hosting a Gold Party.  Here is a simple definition of what it is:

A gold party is similar to a Tupperware party in that a small group gathers at a host's home to sell their gold jewelry to a gold buyer. They are becoming increasingly popular as people look for ways to raise money during the current recession. The buyer, generally, weighs and tests jewelry and other items for party guests. The testing includes a variety of means, including acid tests, magnet tests, and other methods to determine gold content. If a guest decides to sell the items, the buyer pays her at the party, and the item is sent to a refinery to be melted down. The host receives a commission for each sale, usually around 10%

This is something fun to do where everyone leaves with money instead of spending any.  If you are interested in learning more about Gold Parties in Utah, contact us at 801.889.7200 or on the web at www.goldminesaltlake.com.