by Dave Kranzler
Sprott Money
“The gold standard did not collapse. Governments abolished it in order to pave the way for inflation. The whole grim apparatus of oppression and coercion — policemen, customs guards, penal courts, prisons, in some countries even executioners — had to be put into action in order to destroy the gold standard. Solemn pledges were broken, retroactive laws were promulgated, provisions of constitutions and bills of rights were openly defied. And hosts of servile writers praised what the governments had done and hailed the dawn of the fiat-money millennium.” – Ludwig Von Mises
The sharp sell-off in gold and silver these past two weeks has taken many by surprise, including me, especially given the growing shortage of physical gold and silver. Make no mistake, the majority of the price decline in both metals has taken place in the paper derivative trading in London and NYC. We subscribe to John Brimelow’s Gold Jottings report. It’s expensive but contains valuable data on the Indian, Chinese, Turkish, Vietnamese gold market activity on a daily basis. India has been a voracious buyer since November/ December and China has slowly woken up after being dormant since February 2020. Those are two key eastern markets though Turkey and Viet Nam can be significant buyers as well.