My name is Shawn Ozbun, and our goal is to keep you up to date with what’s going on in the world of Gold and Silver by providing you with current news and precious metals pricing.
The Silvertowne Vault Cast is brought to you by www.Silvertowne.com
Thanks for joining me for another episode of the SilverTowne Vault Cast, today we are going to go over a list of the top 10 countries that are sitting on the most gold, we are going to discuss a renewed interest in gold as an investment and our nations growing debt crisis.
Before I get into all that, I want to remind you that you can find the vault cast on iTunes and on YouTube. Feel free to leave a comment or some feedback. You can also email me your feedback at vaultcast@silvertowne.com.
Now lets get into today's precious metals pricing!
Gold - $1690.97 down $4.08
Silver - $32.16 down $0.06
Platinum - $1599 down $15.00
Palladium - $690.00 down $4.50
Financial News:
10 Countries Sitting On Enormous Piles Of Gold
In an uncertain global economic environment, central banks have been purchasing gold.
Some have argued that euro zone members should use gold as collateral for sovereign debt issuance to keep bond yields low.
The World Gold Council estimates that central banks will have purchased 500 tons of gold in 2012, up from 465 tons last year. And gold prices have also been supported by central bank gold purchases.
Global gold reserves total 31,491 tons as of December 2012. We highlighted the ten countries with the biggest official gold holdings as reported by the World Gold Council. We also included the percent of foreign reserves they possess in gold.
10 - India
Official gold holdings:
557.7 tonnes
9 - Netherlands
Official gold holdings:
612.5 tonnes
8 – Japan
Official gold holdings:
765.2 tonnes
7- Russia
Official gold holdings:
934.9 tonnes
6- Switzerland
Official gold holdings:
1,040.1 tonnes
5 - China
Official gold holdings:
1,054.1 tonnes
4 - France
Official gold holdings:
2,435.4 tonnes
3 - Italy
Official gold holdings:
2,451.8 tonnes
2 - Germany
Official gold holdings:
3,391.3 tonnes
1 - United States
Official gold holdings:
8,133.5 tonnes
Read More...
U.S. government posts historic November budget deficit of $172 billion
The United States government spent $334 billion in the month of November, while only receiving $162 billion in revenue, according to theTreasury Department’s monthly statement. In total, the federal government ran a $172 billion budget deficit and increased the shortfall for the first two months of the fiscal year to $292 billion.
This is the highest budget deficit for the month of November in history, while last November’s was in second place with $137.3 billion. November’s outlays grew from $290 billion the month before, while revenues increased from $152 billion in October, which was the month of the fourth highest deficit ever.
The growth in spending occurred because Medicare healthcare payments were paid out in November instead of Dec. 1 because the day fell on a Sunday.
Compared to the first two months of the fiscal year 2012, the budget deficit is up 24 percent. The budget figures come as the Treasury Department is set to hit the $16.4 trillion national debt limit by the end of the month. At the time of this writing, the Treasury was approximately $30 billion away from hitting its debt ceiling. Read More...
Renewed Interest in Gold as a Financial Asset
You may be among those investors who had the opportunity, but did not seize it, to buy gold cheap in the early 2000s. You may also be willing, but hesitant, to do so at current prices, while still desiring the "anti-crash insurance" it represents.
However, you should be aware that the yellow metal is increasingly valued as a reserve asset, which will tend to push the price up, independently of all other factors. Due to new regulations, you may also have to bid in the future alongside financial institutions, including several banks, to acquire it.
First, physical gold is increasingly accepted – and therefore sought – as collateral in cases, for instance, of margin calls or securities loans. A growing number of clearing houses – such as CME Group (including its branch in Europe), ICE Europe, or LCH Clearnet Group - or of banks, like JP Morgan, now accept physical gold as collateral on their own.
Second, commercial banks could also be a source of additional demand for the yellow metal due to the intricate regulation trying to transpose the so-called "Basel III" regulatory framework. Among other things, this framework introduces new criteria such as liquidity coverage ratios, requiring banks to hold certain assets considered highly liquid to serve, presumably, as a buffer in case of a liquidity crisis. Read More...
Thanks for listening to the Silvertowne vault cast. You can find our show on YouTube and I would love it if you would subscribe and as always our show can also be found in the iTunes store.
For the best source for acquiring gold and silver please contact Silvertowne at 1-877-477- coin, that’s 1-877-477-2646 or you can visit us at www.silvertowne.com. Silvertowne has been a trusted precious metals and numismatics dealer since 1949.
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[Disclaimer] Shawn Ozbun is not a licensed financial adviser, there is risk associated with all investment including gold and silver. You should seek advise from a licensed financial expert before making a purchase.
