Swiss Franc No Longer a Safe Haven and a Possible Bottom for Gold

Peter Schiff responds to the results of the "Save Our Swiss Gold" initiative this past weekend. He explains why he thinks it is bullish for gold and might have even marked gold's bottom.










0:17 – “Save Our Swiss Franc” would have been a more accurate description of the Swiss gold initiative.



0:59 – Switzerland used to have more than 40% of its reserves in gold and was very prosperous.



1:47 – The Swiss gold initiative was a threat to the powers-that-be, because it limited the ability of the Swiss National Bank (SNB) to create inflation



2:35 – If the initiative had passed, Switzerland would have been an example of a strong economy in a sea of European inflation.



3:34 – How is it crazy to have only 20% of your assets in gold, but sensible to have 100% of your assets in fiat currencies?



4:30 – The Swiss originally didn’t want to adopt the euro, but now they’ve embraced a de facto euro standard.



5:30 – Gold and silver dropped dramatically after the vote, which was surprising since no one had really expected the initiative to pass.



6:23 – Gold and silver recovered their losses quickly once the United States started trading.



7:10 – Peter believes the “no” vote is more bullish for the long-term price of gold.



7:43 – If the Swiss had adopted the referendum, it would have slowed down Swiss money printing and Swiss inflation.



8:28 – When the world realizes the United States is going to return to quantitative easing, the Swiss franc will no longer be a safe-haven option. This would mean greater demand for gold.



9:36 – If the SNB won’t be buying gold on behalf of its people, the Swiss will buy gold individually to protect their purchasing power.



10:49 – Looking at historical actions of central banks, there’s a chance that gold’s low price on Sunday could end up being gold’s bottom.

2015 Chinese Panda Silver and Gold Coins No Longer Display Weight

Commencing from 2015, according to the People’s Republic of China national’s “Measurement Law” and the People’s Bank of China’s requirement, the gold and silver coins will be issued under the legal measurement of Metric System, i.e. grams, Kilogram and etc. 

The issuance of the gold and silver coins under the measurement of the Imperial System “Ounce” will be discontinued. Furthermore, from 2015 onward, the weight of the Chinese Panda Gold coins will no longer be stated on the coins. 

This has made the 2014 Chinese Panda Gold Coins with “Ounce” to be even more significant for collection.

Since Bank of China (Malaysia) Berhad’s announcement for the pre-booking on 21 May 2014, the Chinese Panda Gold Coins was overwhelmed by the market, registration has been increased rapidly. 

In order to fulfill customers’ needs, Bank of China (Malaysia) Berhad has made a soft launching on 6 June 2014 for the registered customers. And now, the Bank is proud to announce the official launch for the 2014 Chinese Panda Gold Coins to the public. 

 

The Chinese Panda Gold Coin is a legal tender Coin issued by the People’s Bank of China for 33 years continuously. It has the investment and memorable value, and potentially high collectible value. 

Being very unique in the coins mintage world, it has been awarded both locally and overseas recurrently and appreciated by the collectors from all the countries. The theme of the Chinese Panda Gold Coins is the national treasure of the People’s Republic of China, setting the bamboo as the background well demonstrated the harmonious and happy life.

2015 Panda Changes - Summary:

2015 Gold / Silver Pandas will no longer have the weight stamped on the reverse. It will be Panda motive as it is currently but without stating its weight.

The China Mint will be marketing the Panda Bullion Coins in grams and kilos (Kilograms) instead of ounces. 

At this stage it is unknown if they will introduce new sizes such as 25/50/100/1000 gram or stay with the current 3.1, 31.1g, 155.5g, 311g 

In order to better reveal the lively and playful character and the black and white colour of the panda, designers using the white and black effects that generated from the glossy and dark appearance of the gold refraction and reflection to invent the intaglio refraction method, at the same time using the drum opposite sandblasting technology to make the black and white colour of the panda become more three-dimensional.

Welcome all to visit any of Bank of China (Malaysia) Berhad branches to place your order.

2013 LUNAR SNAKE SILVER 1oz 999 Gainesville Coins Bullion Round

2013 LUNAR SNAKE SILVER 1oz 999 Gainesville Coins Bullion Round - Brilliant proof like strike

The 2013 1 oz Silver Year of the Snake Round is made of .999 fine silver and is 1 troy oz in weight. The silver Year of the Snake bullion round is one of the many privately minted products we offer here at Gainesville Coins. 

This silver round is Made in the U.S.A. and has a proof-like finish. Although this is not a legal tender coin, it is made of one troy ounce of 99.9% pure silver. Buy silver rounds for their unique design and their low premium over spot compared to nationally minted coins.

This round was created to celebrate the Chinese Zodiac 2013 Year of the Snake, as each year associated with the snake has a different symbol. 

The Years of the Snake include: 1929, 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, and 2013. Those born in the Year of the Snake have a strong sense of morality and wisdom, and are considered exceptionally mysterious.

The obverse of the round depicts the image of a coiled snake amidst a forest of bamboo, as well as the Chinese symbol for "snake." 

The reverse of the coin bears a centered inscription of, "2013 Year of the Snake," along with the weight and fineness of the silver round, "One Troy Ounce, .999 Fine Silver," and once again the Chinese symbol for "snake."

1993 PANDA CHINA SILVER 1oz 999 Bullion Round

A 1993 PANDA CHINA SILVER 1oz 999 Bullion Round with crimson toning around the rims.

2014 Chinese Panda 1oz Silver 999 10 Yuan Legal Tender Coin

China first introduced the Silver Panda coin series in 1983, and every year since, a new variation of the Panda series has been introduced.

Shown on the the reverse of the 2014 Chinese Panda silver coins is a Panda grappling with a tree brnch. Incorporated into the design is the face value of the strike with the coin's weight and fineness shown beneath.

On the obverse of each coin, the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests (The Temple of Heaven) of Beijing is depicted. Obverse inscriptions include the Chinese characters for People's Republic of China and the year. 

The 1 oz coin has a nominal face value of 10 yuan, and has a silver purity of .999. Each coin is 40 millimeters in diameter, and a weight of 31.1 grams.

2014 Silver Chinese Pandas are also available in 5oz and 1Kilogram (1kg)

Chinese Gold: China To Buy $344 Billion Worth of Gold?

As economic conditions in the U.S. and the global economy deteriorate, and as central banks around the world print more money in their misguided attempts to spur growth, more and more analysts are saying that gold bullion’s best days are behind it.

Their reasoning: the economy is improving, the Fed will cut back on its monetary stimulus, the worst is behind us, and there’s no more crisis, so there’s no more reason for gold to rise—this is the exact opposite of what I’m saying!

The gold bears fail to realize there are fundamental forces at play behind the gold bullion bull market.
Central banks around the world are looking at gold bullion as an alternative to the currencies they hold in their reserves. It is well documented in these pages how major central banks like the ones from Russia and Turkey continue to buy gold bullion.

Then there is the central bank of China. Its official reserve reached a value of $3.44 trillion in the first quarter of 2013—similar to the size of Germany’s economy. China increased its reserve by $128 billion in the first quarter, making it the biggest increase in reserve since the second quarter of 2011. (Source:Financial Times, April 11, 2013.) My bet is that most of that reserve is in U.S. dollars, which China would desperately like to get rid of.

With that said, China doesn’t have as much gold bullion to back its reserves as countries like the U.S., Germany, and France have. As a matter of fact, the Chinese central bank only holds 1.6% of its reserves in gold bullion, compared to 75.6% for the U.S. and 72.0% for Germany. (Source: World Gold Council, May 2013.)

To bring its total gold bullion holdings to 10% of its reserves, the central bank of China would need to allocate about $344 billion of its reserves to buy gold bullion.

Add strong demand from countries like India to the fact that China needs to increase its gold reserves, and the fundamental demand behind gold bullion is clear. According to the World Gold Council’s estimates, demand for gold bullion in India is expected to jump 150% by the end of June as compared to last year. (Source: Wall Street Journal, June 3, 2013.)

The amount of gold bullion and silver imported in India reached $7.5 billion in April—more than double the amount from a year earlier. The Indian government has increased its import tax from two percent to six percent in a matter of just 1.5 years to curb demand. (Source: Wall Street Journal, May 20, 2013.)

The demand for gold bullion is as strong as ever.

What He Said:

“Home-building in the U.S. will enter a quasi depression state in 2008 and the construction industry will make 2008 a record year for pink slips. I predict a major homebuilder will go bankrupt in 2008.” Michael Lombardi in Profit Confidential, January 10, 2008. WCI Communities, the largest U.S. luxury home builder, filed for Chapter 11 protection on August 4, 2008.

2013 Panda Coins to Be Released on November 20th, 2012

The 2013 gold and silver panda commemorative coins are to be released by People’s Republic of China on November 20^th, 2012, which include 10 coins, 7 gold and 3 silver.

Patterns 

 

The front side pattern is the Qinian Palace of the Temple of Heaven, Beijing, the country name, and the year; the reverse pattern is the pandas drinking water, face value, weight, and fineness.

Specification and mintage 

 

(1)   The 1/20 oz round gold commemorative coins are bullion coins, containing 1/20 oz pure gold, with diameter of 14mm, face value of RMB20 Yuan, fineness of 99.9%, and max. mintage of 800000.

(2) The 1/10 oz round gold commemorative coins are bullion coins, containing 1/10 oz pure gold, with diameter of 18mm, face value of RMB50 Yuan, fineness of 99.9%, max mintage of 800000.

(3) The 1/4 oz round gold commemorative coins are bullion coins, containing 1/4 oz pure gold, with diameter of 22 mm, face value of RMB100 Yuan, fineness of 99.9%, max. mintage of 600000　

(4) The 1/2 oz round gold commemorative coins are bullion coins, containing 1/2 oz pure gold, with diameter of 27mm, face value of RMB200 Yuan, fineness of 99.9%, max. mintage of 600000.　

(5) The 1 oz round gold commemorative coins are bullion coins, containing 1 oz pure gold, with diameter of 32 mm, face value of RMB500 Yuan, fineness of 99.9%, max. mintage of 600000.

(6) The 5 oz round gold commemorative coins are bullion coins, containing 5 oz pure gold, with diameter of 60 mm, face value of RMB2000 Yuan, fineness of 99.9%, max. mintage of 5000.

(7) The 1 kg round commemorative coins are bullion coins, containing 1 kg pure gold, with diameter of 90mm, face value of RMB10000 Yuan, fineness of 99.9%, max. mintage of 500.

 (8) The 1 oz round commemorative coins are bullion coins, containing 1 oz pure silver, with diameter of 40mm, face value of RMB10 Yuan, fineness of 99.9%, max. mintage of 8000000.

 (9) The 5 oz round silver commemorative coins are proof coins, containing 5 oz pure silver, with diameter of 70mm, face value of RMB50 Yuan, fineness of 99.9%, max. mintage of 50000. 　

 (10) The 1 kg round silver commemorative coins are proof coins, containing 1 kg pure silver, with diameter of 100mm, face value of RMB300 Yuan, fineness of 99.9%, max. mintage of 20000. 

The gold and silver commemorative coins referred above are minted by Shenzhen Guobao Mint, Shenyang Mint, and Shanghai Mint.