BUBBLES door de geschiedenis heen.

Hieronder een filmpje met daarin een presentatie die Grant Williams gaf op de Metals & Mining Conference in Sydney. Hij beschrijft hoe bubbels altijd hetzelfde patroon hebben (waaronder de tulpenmania van 1637), waarom de massa altijd meegaat in de gekte en waarom er achteraf altijd zoveel ‘specialisten’ zijn die het hoe en waarom van een bubbel gemakkelijk kunnen verklaren. Tegelijk beschrijft hij waarom er nu een enorme bubbel op knappen staat en waarom een andere bubbel op het punt staat om te beginnen. Als u heelhuids door de huidige crisis (die nog nauwelijks is begonnen) wilt geraken, dan raad ik u met klem aan om deze 29 minuten durende presentatie aandachtig te bekijken.

Word het WESTEN een puinhoop?

De schuldencrisis in de Verenigde Staten en in andere westerse landen zal in omvang blijven toenemen. Dat is de mening van Marc Faber, bekend van zijn Gloom, Boom and Doom rapport. Hij gelooft dat de situatie zo zal escaleren dat het westen binnen 5 tot 10 jaar een enorme puinhoop zal worden. In de ogen van Faber zullen de overheden het systeem zo lang mogelijk overeind proberen te houden, kost wat kost. Maar in de verte wacht iets wat geen ‘fiscal cliff’ is, maar wel een ‘fiscal grand canyon’. Een val in die diepte zal een uiterst pijnlijke ervaring worden. Het financieel systeem zal op een dag breken De politieke systemen zoals we die kennen laten het westen toe grote tekorten op te bouwen om de economische groei te stimuleren. Het scenario van het opstapelen van alsmaar grotere tekorten zal ons uiteindelijk opzadelen met een enorme schuldenberg. Op een onzalige dag zal die schuldenberg zo hoog zijn opgelopen dat het financieel systeem er onder bezwijkt, vreest Faber. De bereidheid om iets te doen aan de huidige situatie via hervormingen lijkt beperkt, zodat het scenario voor een revolutie aan geloofwaardigheid wint. Zo’n revolutie zal de wereld zoals we die kennen op haar grondvesten doen daveren.

Duitsland word wantrouwig en telt zijn goudstaven na.

De Duitse centrale bank gaat al haar goudstaven zorgvuldig controleren en deels repatriëren. De Duitse Rekenkamer heeft de Bundesbank dat opgedragen omdat de goudreserve nooit nageteld, op echtheid gecontroleerd of gewogen is. De 3.396 ton fysiek goud van de Bundesbank (waarde: 144 miljard euro) wordt bewaard op vier locaties. Iets minder dan de helft van de goudbaren ligt in de kelder bij de Federal Reserve in New York. De Bank of England in Londen en de Banque de France in Parijs beheren eveneens een deel van het Duitse goud (respectievelijk 450 en 374 ton). De rest ligt in Frankfurt. Vanwege de internationale financiële crisis is in Duitsland enige nervositeit ontstaan over het feit dat zoveel Duits goud in het buitenland ligt opgeslagen. Mede omdat geen Duitser die goudbaren ooit heeft gezien. De Bundesbank neemt al decennia genoegen met schriftelijke verklaringen van de drie andere centrale banken dat het Duitse goud daar veilig en wel in de kluis ligt. Niemand die het controleert. Onacceptabel Dat Duitsland niet bij zijn eigen goud kan, is onacceptabel, vindt de in maart opgerichte actiegroep 'Holt unser Gold heim!' (Haal ons goud naar huis!). Want wie garandeert dat de Amerikanen niet stiekem van het Duitse goud hebben gesnoept? Dat veel buitenlandse overheden met hoge staatsschulden kampen, maakt de Duitsers extra wantrouwig. Een Duitse parlementariër die in New York de Duitse goudstaven kwam inspecteren, werd door de Fed beleefd de deur gewezen. Een verbolgen Bondsdag droeg de Rekenkamer vervolgens op de veiligheid van de Duitse goudreserve te onderzoeken. De accountants presenteerden deze week een zeer kritisch rapport. De Bundesbank moet de goudvoorraad voortaan vaker controleren. 150 ton uit New York De Duitse centrale bank haalt daarom 150 ton goud uit New York terug naar Frankfurt. Die goudbaren zullen bij wijze van steekproef allemaal worden geteld, gewogen en op echtheid gecontroleerd. Ook wil de Bundesbank bij de andere centrale banken het recht bedingen periodieke inspecties van de daar gestalde Duitse goudstaven uit te voeren. HLN.be-nieuws in je facebook nieuwsfeed?

Wanneer is het tijd om goud te verkopen?

Ik heb hier al vaker over geschreven (zie hier), maar we ontvangen de laatste tijd steeds vaker mails van lezers die ons deze vraag stellen. Het wordt wat ons betreft pas tijd om goud en zilver te verkopen als: 1.Centrale banken hun beleid met 180 graden draaien. Als ze de rente verhogen tot boven het inflatieniveau en als ze daarbij verklaren onder geen beding geld te zullen printen. 2.Er een zodanige goud- en zilverhype uitbreekt dat de reguliere financiële media u vertellen dat goud alleen nog maar verder omhoog kan. En u op uw werk, verjaardagen etc. merkt dat iedereen goud aan het kopen is. Op dit moment zijn we nog mijlenver van die situatie. Centrale banken hebben vorige maand aangekondigd dat ze zelfs ongelimiteerd geld gaan printen en dat de rente nog minimaal een jaar of drie zo laag blijft als nu. In de reguliere media wordt vaker negatief dan positief over goud bericht. En het grote, onwetende publiek verkoopt haar goud (juwelen) aan slimme ondernemers, die overal goudshops uit de grond hebben gestampt. De voorwaarden voor een langjarige bull-markt zijn nog sterker aanwezig dan twee jaar geleden. Voorlopig is het daarom juist verstandig om goud en zilver te kopen. Iedere maand een portie. Deze aanbieders vinden wij de meest betrouwbare. Geplaatst op 12 oktober 2012 door Jack Hoogland

De Duitse hyperinflatie van 1923

Hoe kon deze hyperinflatie indertijd ontstaan? Meestal wordt verwezen naar het feit dat Duitsland de Eerste Wereldoorlog verloor, maar in mijn ogen was dit slechts een vervelende bijkomstigheid die het proces wat versnelde… Wat er namelijk al veel eerder gebeurde, en wel op 4 augustus 1914, was dat Duitsland op dat moment de dekking van de munt door goud losliet. De oorlog was nog maar net begonnen en één van de eerste daden was in feite de munt uithollen om zo ‘meer geld’ te kunnen drukken. Direct na het loskoppelen van goud werd de Duitse regering een ongedekt krediet van 5 miljard toegekend. De basis voor de hyperinflatie was gelegd. De verloren oorlog maakte dat het proces van geldontwaarding alleen maar sneller verliep. Als we nu snel doorschakelen naar nu, dan zien we dat de Westerse regeringen ook een (honderden)miljarden krediet hebben opgenomen. Niet zo zeer voor alleen maar een oorlog, maar ook om de banken en om (in Amerika) enkele grote autofabrikanten te redden. Het proces is gelijk. De uitkomst is dat ook, alleen zal het wat langer kunnen duren omdat Duitsland niet alleen de oorlog verloor, maar ook tot herstelbetalingen gedwongen werd. In de huidige situatie zou alleen de betaling van rente op de schulden vergeleken kunnen worden met indertijd de herstelbetalingen van Duitsland. Zou de rente dus oplopen, dan staat dat wat mij betreft gelijk aan de herstelbetalingen die Duitsland moest doen. Het punt is namelijk, geld is niet van ons. Geld is van de grote bankiers. Wij mogen het, tegen rente, van ze gebruiken. Dát is het grote onrecht van tegenwoordig. Dát is waarom hyperinflatie onontkoombaar is. Het enige dat ik niet weet, is hoe lang we nog hebben voor het zich zal manifesteren.

De nieuwe wereldorde?

In 1944 werd in Bretton Woods de nieuwe wereldorde vastgelegd. De dollar zou de basis van alle munten gaan vormen. Het was niet zo’n vreemde beslissing. Al een halve eeuw lang was Amerika het land van de techniek, van de vernieuwing, van de investeringen. Daarbij had Amerika de Tweede Wereldoorlog al bijna gewonnen, dus de vaststelling dat de dollar de belangrijkste munt ter wereld was, was slechts een bevestiging van een feit. Toch was het slechts een handtekening onder een papiertje en niet veel meer dan dat. Al voor de Eerste Wereldoorlog was de dollar in feite de belangrijkste munt in de wereld. Na de boerenoorlog in Zuid-Afrika was de macht van Engeland al fors teruggelopen. Engeland was oud nieuws. Er ging geen vernieuwing meer van Engeland uit. Alle vernieuwing kwam vanuit Amerika. Ik mag zo’n situatie van toen graag verplaatsen naar nu. Waar vindt nu de vernieuwing plaats? Waar is nu alles het grootst, het duurst? Niet in Amerika. Amerika is op heel veel gebieden oud nieuws. China en de landen om haar heen is de plaats waar het grote geld naar toe gaat. Amerika was in 1912 ook niet onomstreden. Bijna niemand geloofde toen dat Amerika serieus Engeland voorbij kon streven. Immers was Engeland al eeuwen een macht die enorm was. Toch was Amerika wel onafhankelijk geworden. Alle macht van Engeland had dat niet kunnen voorkomen. We zien nu dat China in feite Japan aan het dicteren is wat het moet doen. Japan heeft geen keuze. Het heeft zich totaal afhankelijk gemaakt van China. Immers staan de grote fabrieken van Japan tegenwoordig in China. Ook Amerika kan niets zonder China. Een bedrijf als Apple heeft alleen haar ontwerpafdeling en marketing nog in Amerika zitten. Alle productie zit in China. Amerika is niet verslagen, net zoals Engeland zonder militair verslagen te zijn pas in 1944 officieel afstand deed van haar wereldleiderschap. Onofficieel was die plaats al in 1916 verloren gegaan.

De opmars van Azie: Gangnam Style.

De opkomst van Azie: aan de gezichten van de mensen merk je genoeg.

De terugkeer naar de GOUD STANDARD ?

The Secret Return to
the Gold Standard

A silent conspiracy will make gold a new currency on January 1, 2013. Central banks and governments
are buying gold by the metric ton...

If you hold any dollars, here's what you must do now to prepare — and earn a 670% windfall as gold soars to historic highs.

Dear Reader,
Four times a year, a secret cabal of powerful well-dressed men quietly streams into a small city on the border of Switzerland and Germany.
Carrying overnight bags and attaché cases, they discreetly check into a round high-security tower in this sleepy European city.
They're the world's only elite ring of financial rule-makers who come from places as disparate as Tokyo, London, and Washington, D.C., for the irregular meeting of the most exclusive, secretive, and powerful supranational club in the world.
This secret syndicate rarely pops upon the "grid" — once every decade or so.
Yet their sole purpose is to coordinate and, if possible, control all monetary activities in the industrialized world by creating financial rules and regulations that silently change our financial landscape...
So secretive and eerie, the names of its members are not published anywhere. But you can bet the U.S. has a representative appointed by the Fed. So does China, England, and other influential countries.
This powerful group has long been considered the most exquisite and private money clubs in the world, according to Time Magazine.
The Economist calls them "the club of bank supervisors."
But the New York Times said it best when it labeled them as "the secretive panel that establishes global banking standards."
Now they've met and hatched a new set of financial rules. One new rule, in particular, is about to set off the most profound change to your finances in 42 years...
So historical, this new financial rule demands gold be brought back into our financial system as money.
A massive, inevitable gold-buying operation is already under way as central banks and governments prepare for this secret return to the gold standard...
Because even though this is the most significant news for banks — and gold prices — in over 40 years, only the most connected insiders are positioning themselves for the dramatic changes that are coming.
I firmly believe this is the biggest story of my career.
It's also the best opportunity you will ever have to strike it rich.
This isn't guesswork. The new "gold standard" rule is in place. Gold prices are already moving higher...
Gold will easily soar beyond $2,000, even $3,000 an ounce... and it has the potential to hand you an easy 670% profit on a golden platter.
And all of this is due to this secret cabal's machinations that will set off a series of events starting January 1, 2013.
But if you think you've missed out on the current gold bull market, you haven't — not by a long shot.
My name is Brian Hicks.
I've put together this short presentation to tell you this fascinating story... why this is a unique and historical situation... who's behind it — and why...
And most importantly, how it will increase your net worth over the next 12 months.
No one else will tell you about this profitable opportunity, and there's nothing anyone can do to stop the imminent sixfold gold profits you're about to see by early next year.
In short, everybody knows gold is a safe investment — but few Americans realize it's about to become even safer and more important than paper currency in the next three months.

History in the Making
It's Official: Gold is Money

While this secret gold standard story is barely making news, it stands to be the most significant and lucrative gold story in our lifetime.
John Butler, Managing Director at Deutsche Bank in London, agrees: "In what might be the most underreported financial story of the year... will be an important step in the re-monetisation of gold and this should be strongly supportive of the gold price. Stay tuned."
Thing is, few Americans even realize there's this powerful secret club that silently cooks up financial rules, like the one that brings gold back in our money system...
But on June 18, the Federal Reserve (and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency) through its website already issued firm warnings to all banks to implement the new rules that make gold a legal currency.
I'm prepared to tell you right here all I know about this powerful central banking cabal's inner workings — and how their actions will lead to the most profitable gold opportunity for investors like you.
But first there a few things you need to know...
This powerful banking cartel is simply known in deep financial circles as the "Basel Committee on Banking," because their closed-door meetings are held not in Washington, or London, or Beijing, or some renowned city...
But in Basel, a little quiet city in Switzerland near the German border.
As the highest authority in banking supervision, it's the committee's role to define capital requirements and banking standards through a set of rules adhered to by all banks on the planet.
Yet, through their quiet existence, this banking cabal has only issued three sets of banking rules that become the "banking mantra."
It's the third and newest set of rules that puts gold back in our money system.
And according to Bloomberg, this historic ruling will take effect January 1, 2013 — just about three months from now.
Now, to understand the magnitude of the new banking rules and gold's reentry as money, I must take you back a bit...

How Gold Regains "Money" Status
in the Next 4 Months

You see, their first set of banking and financial rules issued in 1988 was called Basel I.
The second, issued in June 2004, was called Basel II.

Basel's Effect on Gold Price

Both sets of rules were issued to help banks maintain a certain level of capital to safeguard against financial meltdowns.
Yet these same rules encouraged banks to hoard toxic mortgage-back securities and government bonds as money.
As you and I know, both sets of rules backfired due to the number of crises we've seen since over the last decade alone.
These rules created a gaping hole that allowed the entire system to collapse right through it.
Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies released a recent study to show how both previous Basel rules failed miserably.
Let me show you how...
Banks have always used government-backed securities, like bonds created from real estate loans or Treasury bonds, as collateral to finance loans and lend people money.
These securities have always been rated First-Class Assets, according to the old banking rules.
In other words, U.S. Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities were considered as good as cash.
In fact, government bonds and mortgage bonds were better than cash for the banks — because banks could hold interest-paying bonds and then make loans that were backed by those bonds.
Banks were making money both ways!
But as we learned in 2008, there was a fatal flaw in this arrangement...
Bonds are basically promissory notes: They are just promises to pay back money that's been lent. And when people stop paying those loans, bonds can lose value quickly... like when mortgage holders started defaulting in 2008.
That's why, after the collapse of Lehman Brothers in September 2008, banks suddenly lost faith in the value of securities tied to the United States real estate market and government. Without this collateral for lending, the market seized up and the financial crisis erupted.
If you understand the debt situation in Europe — that these countries have so much debt that they may not be able to pay off their bonds — it's easy to see that another financial crisis could happen all over again, bigger than any meltdown we've seen.
So, the secret banking cartel stepped in to "cancel" the old banking rules and derail this life-threatening fiasco.

Gold: The Last Asset Standing

Bottom line: Gov't bonds and mortgage-backed securities — the darlings for the last 40 years of banking security — are toxic!
And it's all because bonds are tied to fiat currency and "bad debt."
Just consider this: The value of German bonds, seen as a shelter from Europe's debt storm during the last two years, has started to tank, according to the New York Times...
"It's hard to see why a banker would want to tie up money in sovereign bonds," adds Phillip L. Swagel at the University of Maryland's School of Public Policy.
To fix this problem, the high-level Basel banking cartel secretly met recently and issued a third and new set of rules that historically brings gold back in our money system as the new backdrop of banking security.
But what's so historic about this new banking rule?
Let me show you so you understand how rewarding this will be for your pocket...
As I said before, mortgage and sovereign bonds were always First-Class Assets for banking security.
But here's what most people don't know...
Gold had always been disrespectfully rated a Third-Class Asset.
What this means is means banks can use only 50% of its value as capital. So if a bank has $10,000 worth of gold, when it comes time for lending, the gold would be worth just $5,000 as collateral.
In other words, the "old" banking rules cut the value of gold by half of its actual market value.
So, the more Third-Class Asset a bank holds, the less money it can lend.
Banks were discouraged to hold gold as an asset. That's why they flocked to government bonds and mortgage-backed securities.
But all that's about to change — and gold will easily double in value because of this new rule.

New Gold Banking Rules that Can Fund Your Retirement

In the next three months, things will change completely and gold will be rerated a First-Class Asset, thanks to the influence and financial power of this banking mafia ring.
For the first time, banks will be allowed to hold bullion in their vaults and rate it among their First-Class Assets.
In other words, gold will be just as good as money.
Banks are already preparing for the full implementation of gold's dominance as the new First-Class security for banking, Reuters quietly reported.
This means from now on, PHYSICAL gold will carry its full weight alongside cash in the global banking system.
It will be considered "money" in virtually the same way as cash or government bonds, or even better.
And according to the Federal Reserve, all U.S. banks must adhere to this new banking rule.
It's pretty easy to see that gold is about to get a lot more valuable.
But that's just half of this historical story...
You see, under the new rules, a bank's First-Class Asset must rise from 4% to 6% of its total assets, which means banks will have to replace a huge chunk of their existing paper currency with gold.
This move will push gold prices even higher and create staggering profits for early investors like you...

"No asset is safe now," adds Zhang Jianhua of the People's Bank of China. "The only choice to hedge against risks is to hold hard currency — gold."

For one thing, gold performs a major job that no fiat currency — or any other financial instrument, for that matter — can do.
Gold is a safe haven and better collateral than government bonds or cash-based assets tied to devaluing currencies.
Here's the thing: In 1913, the U.S. dollar was, well, a dollar. And gold was U.S. $20 an ounce.
Today, almost 100 years later, the dollar has lost 95% of its purchasing power — while gold has soared 8,000%.
The biggest gold-buying spree we've seen over the last four decades is going on right now, as banks have begun to stockpile more of it.
In fact, the World Gold Council revealed net central bank purchases in 2011 exceeded 455 tonnes (14.5 million ounces), the largest purchases since 1965.
And it reported banks will purchase 700 tonnes (22 million ounces) of gold for this year alone...
All in preparation for gold's reentry into our financial system as "real money" — a covert operation instigated by the most powerful financial alliance in the world.
Let me tell you more about this powerful little-known banking cartel... who they really are... and how on earth it's possible for them to take such a historic stance on gold's reentry in our money system.

"The Club of Bank Supervisors" — The Economist

You see, membership to this club is restricted to a handful of powerful men who determine the daily interest rates, the availability of credit, and the money supply of the banks in their own countries.
Let me be clear: This group has nothing to do with the yearly and well publicized meetings of CEOs, billionaires, politicians, and journalists who gather at the Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland...
In fact politicians are not welcomed into this club. No surprise Fritz Leutwiler, former head of this secret alliance once said, "I have no use for politicians, they lack the judgment of central bankers."
The Basel banking syndicate I'm referring to — secretly established by the central-bank governors of the G-10 Countries at the end of 1974 to regulate banking activity — is far more exclusive.
That's why former IMF Managing Director Pierre-Paul Schweitzer called them the "best club in the world."
But Time Magazine puts it this way: "Among the world's temples of high finance, no other organization has risen to such authority and influence in such an unpretentious way..."
According to Edward Jay Epstein, investigative journalist and former political scientist professor at Harvard, who researched the dark corners of this secret club and toured its headquarters...

“…They sought complete anonymity for their activities. At first their headquarters were in an abandoned six-storey hotel, The “Grand et Savoy Hotel Universe”, with an annex above the adjacent Frey's Chocolate Shop in a little Swiss city on the French and German border.
There purposely was no sign over the door identifying them, so visiting central bankers and gold dealers used Frey's, which is across the street from the railroad station, as a convenient landmark.
It was in the wood-paneled rooms above the shop and the hotel that decisions were reached to devalue or defend currencies, to fix the price of gold, to regulate offshore banking, and to raise or lower short-term interest rates.
And though they shaped "a new world economic order" through these deliberations (as Guido Carli, then the governor of the Italian central bank, put it), the public, remained almost totally unaware of the club and its activities…”

Edward Jay Epstein
Copyright © 1983 by Harpers Magazine.
All rights reserved.

Today they're based in this high-security, 18-story tower in Basel, Switzerland, in what is considered the World's Central Bank.
As Epstein reveals: "The tower is completely air-conditioned and self-contained, with its own nuclear-bomb shelter in the sub-basement... a triply redundant fire-extinguishing system (so outside firemen never have to be called in)... a private hospital, and some twenty miles of subterranean archives."
There are suites of offices reserved for the central bankers, each with coded speed-dial telephones that, at a push of a button, directly connect the club members to their offices in their central banks back home.
Some insiders call it "the central bank for central banks."
And all member countries within this group — like Canada, the United States, England, China, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Brazil, Singapore, South Africa, Japan, Korea, France, Italy, Spain, Australia, and Argentina, to name a few — are bound to implement its banking recommendations.
Which means as a new First-Class Asset, gold would be the new backstop for debt, currencies, and bank equity capital from Europe to South and Central America, North America to the Middle East and Asia.
I can't stress enough how important this ruling is.
Gold prices are likely to double by next year — and open the floodgates to massive profits for you at the same time.

Gold's Historic Reentry as Money

Consider this: In the U.S. alone, the Fed has laid out the requirements for the new rule, leaving no bank untouched...
Which means JP Morgan, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, MetLife Inc. PNC, SunTrust, U.S. Bancorp, and others will have to conform to the new gold rule, according to a story buried the Wall Street Journal.
The FDIC also distributed a firm notice to all banks to accept the new banking requirements for gold immediately.
Here's what's already happening, even as Americans are going about their daily business without a clue...
Banks like JP Morgan, Wells Fargo, and Capital One Financial Corp. are leading the way in positioning themselves to implement the new rules, Bloomberg reports:

• JPMorgan has even started allowing clients to use gold as collateral in some transactions where traditionally only Treasury bonds and stocks have been accepted.

• CME Group, the world's largest derivatives future exchanges (90% owner of the Dow Jones Industrial Average), now accepts gold as collateral.

• European-based LCH Clearnet — the second-largest clearer of bonds in the world, which serves major international exchanges and provides services across 13 government markets — has announced it will accept gold as collateral.

• Germany's cabinet is pushing ahead quickly with the introduction of the requirements for banks under these new banking rules, confirms CNBC...

• And Deutsche Bank is already drafting its strategy to comply with the new requirements and make it standard.

• UBS, Switzerland's largest bank, is also applying all of the new banking rules.

In fact, the secret gold-buying spree among central banks, governments, and institutional investors is creating one of the most surefire profit opportunities the world has ever seen...

"Central Bank Purchases Of Gold Soar; Demand Should Continue in 2012" — Barron's

There's no doubt the secret return to the gold standard is incredibly important news.
It's amazing to me that this story is being ignored by the mainstream media. It's almost as though they don't want you to know about it...
Anyway, here are the only public figures I could get my hands on:

• Turkey alone has added over 123 tonnes (3.9 million ounces) since last October.
  
• Mexico has purchased over 100 tonnes (3.2 million ounces) since February 2011.

• The Philippines added 32 tonnes in March, its second-largest monthly purchase ever. Largely under the radar is the fact that it's buying some of its local production.

• Russia continues buying, adding 15.5 tonnes in May. Total reserves now stand at 911.3 tonnes (29.2 million ounces), the highest level since 1993.
  
• Thailand has raised its holdings by more than 80% since mid-2010.

• South Korea has bought 40 tonnes since May 2009, an increase of 180% (3.3 million ounces).

• China refuses to say how much gold it is buying.

Regardless of how you look at it, that's a lot of gold already bought.
Is this the buildup to a gold shortage?
Time will tell. But consider this...
The largest U.S. gold production was the Cortez mine in Nevada that produced $1.42 million ounces of gold last year, while the Grasberg mine in Indonesia — the largest producing mine in the world — pulled a modest $1.44 million ounces as well.
Yet just the few central banks mentioned above have secretly bought 39 million ounces of precious metals and hid them in their vaults in preparation for what's to come.
Keep in mind this excludes the U.S., with its 8,133 tonnes, and other nations like China that don't regularly report their secret gold-buying activity...
According to the World Gold Council, there is a significant number of purchases that have not been reported publicly — and whose buyers couldn't be identified due to confidentiality restrictions.
"This large number is a surprise," said UBS analyst Edel Tully. "This information is very bullish. And no doubt the market will be busy speculating on the identity of such buyers."
This gold-buying spree is so historic, it has created what may seem like a secret Gold Cold War that you won't hear about in the mainstream media.

The Gold "Cold War"

Towards the end of last year, Venezuela ordered the repatriation of 211 tons of its gold reserves held in Switzerland, Britain-based Barclays Bank, JPMorgan Chase and Canada's Bank of Nova Scotia.

Its reason? To reduce exposure to debt-laden economies like the U.S. and those of Europe.
Recently, the German Federal Audit Office criticized its central bank's auditing controls regarding its 3,400 tons of gold (the majority of which is held in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Paris and London).
German lawmakers are concerned about what would happen if they need to access their gold urgently.
I would not be surprised if Germany follow Venezuela's footsteps and have their gold repatriated to Germany.

Over the last two years alone, central banks that rid themselves of gold have completely turned around and begun buying back gold in staggering quantities...

As I said before, it's all just preparation for the "new gold banking rules" set to take effect in the next three months.
In fact gold has now become the most valuable asset and has started a modern day gold rush that will potentially send gold's price soaring over the next year, creating new wealth for early investors like you.

Gold: From $1,600 to $8,890 an Ounce

This is a treble win for gold. It's a major endorsement of its role in our financial system by the highest global financial authority.
It's now time to invest in gold again.
In fact over the next two years, gold could be sitting safely at $8,890 an ounce.
Now, before you tell me I've gone bonkers... $8,890 may well end up being a conservative estimate when you adjust for inflation.
Hear me out...
When the gold window was closed in August 1971, it had already risen from its fixed price of $35 an ounce to $42 an ounce. By the time gold peaked in 1980, it had soared to $850, rewarding early investors with a 2,400% return.
My guess is had I made such forecast in 1971 would you have believed me?
Well, mark my words today. We will see gold's price setting record highs in just a few months... making investors like you rich along the way.
If $8,890 an ounce is a tough pill to swallow, then consider the prediction of Mike Maloney, a precious metal investor and revered historian on monetary history and economics...
He has run calculations showing that if history repeats — and gold covers the same portion of the currency supply that it did in 1934 and 1980 — we should see prices of at least $15,000 per ounce within the next three to five years.
And other insiders are predicting around the same price point: between $10,000 and $15,000.
And it's not far-fetched, given the importance and remonetization of gold right now...
In short, insiders are silently and secretly getting ready to use gold as money in the next three months — and everyday folks have no idea.
But you won't be one of them.
Here's how to prepare for your profit windfall from the secret return to the gold standard...

Here's What You Must Do Now to Secure a Sixfold Windfall
Even If You Don't Buy an Ounce of Gold

There are a few recommendations I can make now. And I'd suggest you do it while you have time — to secure your family's future and ensure you live comfortably while these changes erupt in America's financial system.
Of course you can invest in gold coins or bullion. In fact, I think you should. Converting your paper money into gold before further dollar devaluation is a no-brainer.
But there's another way you can position yourself to earn a massive 670% or more within the next 12 months...
Have you ever wondered where in the world all the gold needed today will come from?
Gold, as a precious metal, is mined.
And it's the gold miners that will become the major players of this next gold bull market.
More specifically, the smallest gold miners/suppliers will make you the biggest profits as investors prepare for the transition from fiat currency to the new gold standard... and as central banks, governments, and institutional investors drain the world's gold reserves.
We've taken liberty and isolated not one but three small, dynamic gold suppliers you can own now and watch them take off.

• Gold Play #1: In one of the newest gold discoveries in Red Lake Ontario Canada, this little gold exploration company owns 100% of 447,000 oz. of high-grade gold with 2.3 million oz. in inferred estimates. And you can get in at under $4 right now.

• Gold Play #2: This little gold supplier is currently churning out a staggering 1 million ounces of gold/year from five gold mines on three continents. And it's no surprise its revenue for the last quarter has increased from $345 million to 410 million, compared to the same period last year...

• Gold Play #3: With a supply of 30,552 ounces of gold (and 208,207 ounces of silver) in just three months, this company is expected to ramp up its supply as it mines higher-grade areas. Its target for 2012: 180,00 ounces of gold.

But you must get in now — before the new gold rules get stamped for good.
That's why I've prepared this presentation to show you how this one-time investment can help you secure a potential 670% windfall and ride gold's historic climb.
All the details are in a brand-new research report called: "Three Gold Plays for the Secret Gold Standard."
And I'd like to send it to you free of charge.
But first...

Let Me Introduce Myself...

As I said earlier, my name is Brian Hicks.
If you've heard my name before, it's probably from my frequent appearances on TV as a Money & Markets commentator on CNBC, Bloomberg, and Fox News...
Or maybe you've read some of my regular commentary in the Wealth Daily e-Letter...
Or perhaps you've read my book, Profit From the Peak.
I mention all this not to brag; but simply to show you that I've been making a living in the financial research industry for more than two decades.
Of all my accomplishments in that time, what I'm most proud of is what I do now.
I'm the president of Angel Publishing, one of the country's largest financial publishing companies.
Our sole mission is to furnish and empower our readers with investment ideas that will afford them financial freedom.
Our researchers and analysts are some the most revered alternative financial minds in our industry, and the only way we've stayed in business — and have continued to grow — is that, over the last decade, we've made our readers money like no one else I know of.
How do we do it?
You don't get the next best investment idea by reading the Wall Street Journal or staring at comments on Bloomberg articles all day...
It takes on-the-ground research and speaking face to face with the major players involved in breakthrough companies... getting the scoop from CEOs and politicians who draft life-changing bills... and getting in on major discoveries before they become mainstream.

We Made 411% in 12 Months

We were the first to tell our readers about energy from the Bakken region in the Williston Basin, stretching from North Dakota to Montana and Saskatchewan...
And we made them a bunch of money: gains like 487%, 286%, and 574% were household plays.
Now everyone's talking about Bakken energy stocks like it's some new idea.
But we're not trying to take credit here...
Our responsibility is to give our readers, who pay us for our research, the best investment ideas under the sun. And the profits keep them happy.
Another example: One of our star analysts and researchers here at Angel Publishing who we fondly call "The Hammer" was the first to tell our readers about oil plays in East Africa — while everyone else was busy looking at shale plays in Canada and the Marcellus Range.
His readers banked 411% in just 12 months from Africa Oil.

But that wasn't the only time...
When no one knew better, The Hammer told us about an oil opportunity in Mongolia, of all places.
You'd think he'd gone crazy...
Think again. Thanks to his smarts, market knowledge, and contacts, The Hammer's readers made a mind-blowing 759% on Mongolian oil company Petro Matad.

Around the same time, The Hammer helped his readers bank a cool 322% on Cove Energy in less than a year.

As good as they were, these gains are in the past. But not to worry — there's more profits coming soon.
The Hammer's been fired up, following this secret gold standard story for the last six months, talking to insiders and getting the real scoop... and documenting every detail.
His latest research on the secret gold standard is destined to trump everything he's done so far and easily become his most profitable — bigger than his Mongolian play and any other of his outrageously successful research ( I'll show you the numbers in a bit).

A Potential 670% Upside by
Following This Military-Trained Maverick

Saying you could bank gains of 670% from The Hammer's latest gold research may be conservative.
If we see gains of 1,000%, I won't be surprised (providing you jump in now).
But who is this guy, really? Who is The Hammer?
His real name is Christian DeHaemer. His last name actually translates to "The Hammer" in his ancestors' native tongue.
Christian's a serious, no-nonsense, "call-a-spade-a-spade" kind of fella — a U.S. Military-trained fortune-seeker with a vast network of worldwide contacts in business and intelligence circles.
I've known the guy for more than 15 years. And I've witnessed firsthand Christian make his way through hazardous places like Mongolia, Cuba, Libya, South Africa, Israel, and Kenya in pursuit of profits no one else even knows exist. He's made tons of cash exploiting opportunities in some of the hottest crisis zones on the planet.
He likes to buy fear with a cool hand while others are selling in panic...
He bought oil wildcatters when the price per barrel was plummeting into the $30 range... and took profits a few months later when crude was pushing $80.
Christian bought numerous gold mining stocks in November 2007 when they were trading for less than cash and were completely unwanted... One gold stock popped 303% in seven months; all were up triple digits.
By then I was convinced. This guy plays for keeps.
I had no choice but to invite Christian to publish his own profit-gushing service here at Angel Publishing, called Crisis and Opportunity.
The gains he's made his readers over just the last two years could have given you absolute financial freedom, paid your kids' college tuition, and bought you an ocean-front cottage in the Caribbean in one fell swoop.
Here's what I mean...

• 192% from Hollis Eden

• 243% from Cemex

• 251% from Unilife

• 302% from Aastrom Biosciences

• 322% from Cove Energy

• 351% from EGI

• 411% from Africa Oil

• 515% from Palm Resources

• 558% from MBMA

• 672% from Sun Microsystems

• 690% from Oracle

• 759% from Petro Matad

No doubt these gains are life-changing.
But Christian's readers have also seen smaller quick gains bring in fast money like clockwork:

• 16% in four days on Fibrocell Science

• 24% in 24 hours on Cal-Maine

• UNG calls popped 59% in five trading days

• QQQQ puts climbed 111% in 13 trading days

• Weyerhaeuser Company soared 85% in just four days

• 33% returns from Orbital Sciences in one week

And there are others. I could sit here all day and show you more numbers, but that's not the purpose of this presentation, really...
Because there is an opportunity for you to make over six times your money in the next few months from the coming "secret" return to the gold standard.
But there isn't much time left...
Three months from now — on January 1, 2013 — gold is be money again, just like the dollar. There's no disputing this fact.
You must move in now if you want to see gains upward of 670%. You can't wait until the new gold rules are implemented.
Get in before they do. And they will...
It's already part of the law.
The Federal Reserve Board and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, along with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, have already issued warning warnings to all banks to make the changes to reenter gold in the financial system...
As I said, this new rule will take place in the next three months — while most Americans have no idea what's happening.
That's why I want to send you Christian's research report "Three Gold Plays for the Secret Gold Standard" — absolutely free.
Given what's happening in the gold market right now and all the exclusivity and secrecy, as a publisher, I could easily sell this report for $249, and it would be worth every cent.
But I don't want to do that. Instead, it's yours free. All you have to do is step and claim it...
You have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to check out Christian's work firsthand and see if it's right for you.
When you claim your profit-making free report detailing gold's historic place in our financial system, you'll automatically get the opportunity to give Christian's research service Crisis and Opportunity a test-drive for the next 30 days.
Of course, there are no strings attached. Fact is I don't want you to pay for something without trying it out first.
I want you to experience Christian's research — so you get a taste of the profits that his readers experience — without risking a penny.
I remember introducing Christian to our readers at Angel Publishing, telling them I believe Crisis and Opportunity (fairly new at the time) would be one of the best-performing advisory services in the country.
Well, it has been. I'm not the only one who thinks so.
Have a look...

These are everyday folks whose lives have changed thanks to Christian's research...
And you're about to experience that same money-making thrill when you test-drive his research today.

Here's Everything You'll Get for a Simple Test-Drive

Besides your free report, you'll also have exclusive access to:

• Christian's Real-Time Alerts: Get breaking news on opportunities that cannot wait. Get his latest recommendations and portfolio updates delivered straight to your inbox seconds after they're written.

• The Members-Only Crisis and Opportunity Website: This is an online archive of Christian's commentary, picks, current and past portfolios, plus all other existing Special Reports.

• Outstanding Customer Support: If you ever have any questions or concerns, you can call our Customer Support staff at any time and get immediate live help between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. (EST).

• Free Report #1: "Three Gold Plays for the Secret Gold Standard"

You get all of the above free of charge when you try Crisis and Opportunity risk-free for the next 30 days.
In other words, you get unlimited free access to off-limit research on gold's new dominance and how it will change our way of life and make you thousands of dollars... all in exchange for simply trying the Crisis and Opportunity advisory service.
When you decide to take this trial to Crisis and Opportunity (in exchange for your FREE special report), you'll get first crack at the absolute mammoth profits that could be made as gold becomes money again...
And your free report is yours to keep whether you decide to cancel your trial run or subscribe for decades — until you don't need any more money.
But remember, for this particular opportunity, you must make your move now...
It's the only realistic way to have a shot at life-changing profits.
How should you sign up to tap into this lucrative opportunity?
As Christian's publisher, I decided to make it as easy as possible to get your name on my trial list for Crisis and Opportunity.
But let me say this first: Traveling all over the country and the world following trends... boots-on the-ground visits to companies... digging like a sleuth to unearth the most profitable deals...
It costs time and money to run an advisory like Crisis and Opportunity.
When a money-maker like Christian can jet set halfway across the globe to no man's land — in forgotten Mongolia — to deliver to his readers 500% in just under 12 months, he's gotta be doing something right...
And he has for years. His historical track record proves this.
And you can see it firsthand when you get your all-access pass to Crisis and Opportunity.
Not only will you get a snapshot of the money he's made his readers, but you will have the chance to get in on The Hammer's latest gold research and all his current "buys."
His current gold research is set to be his most profitable yet. It has the potential to be the profit deal of the decade.
How much would you pay to know the new banking rules months before the rest of the world?
What do you think a big-name hedge fund manager would charge you for a private consultation revealing what stands to be the most lucrative investment opportunity of our time?
Do you think anywhere from $10,000 to $15,000 would be considered a bargain?
Would you even be able to get in on those deals?
Truth is I know exactly how much I could charge for the kind of research we publish...
But I'm not going to charge anywhere near that much.
It just doesn't make sense to charge an arm and a leg just so ten people have access to information that stands to change their lives.
For this reason — just this one time — to get a whole year of Crisis and Opportunity, it will cost just $999.
Of course, I know despite the incredible value here, $999 may still seem like a lot of money...
That's why I'm also offering a special quarterly payment option: for just $279 every three months, you can enjoy the very same benefits and receive the very same information I've been telling you about.
Whether you pay $999 or choose the quarterly option, if you don't make your money back within the first few trades simply give us a call within the first month and we'll gladly take it out of escrow and send it back to you (after 30 days the funds will be prorated).
That's as fair as I can make it.

Guaranteed Profits — or Else

As I said before, you're not on the hook for a thing. This is merely a test-drive. By agreeing to this offer, you're ONLY agreeing to try it for the next 30 days.
For your trial period, you'll have full membership privileges to Crisis and Opportunity, but you'll also immediately access to your free report, "Three Gold Plays for the Secret Gold Standard," absolutely free.
If, after 30 days, you're not convinced that you can make money with Christian's research — or should you decide Crisis and Opportunity simply isn't for you — just let me know and you'll receive a full refund.
Keep in mind that any reports, any alerts you receive, and any other intelligence you gather during those 30 days, are yours to keep — even if you cancel.
Remember, you're not paying a cent yet for the information that could make you six times richer.
You're simply putting your subscription fee on the table while you decide if Crisis and Opportunity is worth what we're asking.
The last thing I want is for you to pay for something that can't make you and your family wealthy over the long haul.
I am making this arrangement simply because I am confident that Christian can deliver. And to prove my point, he's isolated the best way to play gold's historic rise into our financial system — and help you earn a sixfold payday.
This is the most important investment move of the decade, perhaps even the century... and it's destined to dwarf every successful recommendation Christian's made in the past.
Why?
Gold is headed back into our financial system as money — and it promises to trigger more profit than any opportunity I've seen in my lifetime.
This is truly historic.
How many Americans do you think already know this?
How many investors — who know how to make a fortune, as I've been telling you — do you think are aware?
Sure, a few smart ones may know. But it's only a handful... and now you're one of them.
In fact, there are very few opportunities today that can return a 670% windfall from anything as secure as gold.

To Secure Your Free Gold Report...
Simply Click the Link Below

But there isn't much time left to get in on this opportunity.
You can't wait until the news of gold's dominance becomes mainstream. You have to act now.
And I am willing to help you do that by putting the information you need in your hands right now — absolutely free — once you agree to try out Crisis and Opportunity for a full month, without risking any of your own money. No hidden fees. No strings attached.
You'll get your free gold report with three ways to play this golden opportunity and potentially multiply your money six — even ten — times as the gold standard is silently ushered into our financial system.
And moving forward, you'll get the best money-making investment analysis and guidance you'll ever receive for a full year.
If for any reason you aren't satisfied with Christian's money-making research, you'll get your money back any time within the first 30 days.
It doesn't get much fairer than that.
To get started right now, just click here.
Yours in profits,

Brian Hicks
Publisher, Crisis and Opportunity
P.S. By January 1, 2013, gold will historically reenter our money system, due to the actions of a secret banking cartel. This is set to trigger major events that will send the price of gold soaring to new highs. In fact, gold has already started to tick further...
Early investors like you could easily see a 670% windfall and increase your net worth in as little as 12 months as this series of events begins to unfold. This could be the most profitable gold opportunity of the decade — and you shouldn't miss out. That's why I'm prepared to send you details absolutely free in a confidential report called, "Three Gold Plays for the Secret Gold Standard."

Welke veilige havens zie jij om je geld veilig te stellen?

We weten dat de nominale rente door de monetaire overheden kunstmatig laag gehouden wordt. Tegelijk voert men een expansief monetair beleid. Dit extra geld dient om de schulden te steriliseren: doorrollen, vervangen en de illusie hoog houden dat de marktwaarde minstens even hoog is als de boekwaarde. Daardoor komt het voorlopig nog niet tot prijsinflaties. Spaarders houden best hun hart vast wanneer dit geld wel begint te circuleren in de reële economie. Nu al is de reële rente negatief. Anders gezegd, de koopkracht daalt. Nog duidelijker: we worden armer. Er dwaalt dus een enorme berg geld rond op zoek naar rendement. Dat zoekt en vindt zijn weg naar onder meer de aandelenmarkten. Hoe verklaart men anders dat de beursindexen op het hoogste peil in meerdere jaren staan terwijl er fundamenteel naar waardering en vooruitzichten toe niets is om vrolijk over te worden. De enige veilige haven voor duurzame koopkrachtbescherming is fysiek goud. Een bewering die bij sommigen altijd weer hevige emoties oproept. Goud is geen wondermiddel dat alle economische problemen zal oplossen. Op dit moment is fysiek goud het enige toevluchtsoord voor de spaarder die op een ernstige manier bezig is met koopkrachtbehoud.

1.Wat zijn de factoren die de goudprijs beïnvloeden. Het antwoord op deze vraag hangt af van de invalshoek. Op korte termijn spelen er tientallen factoren. Je zou kunnen stellen dat de goudprijsbeheersing deel uitmaakt van de valuta-oorlogen of ‘currency wars’ die dagelijks op de Forex markten worden uitgevochten tussen de verschillende handelsblokken. Op langere termijn zal goud onvermijdelijk worden losgekoppeld van de fiat valuta (zie volgende vraag).

2. Zie je een monetaire rol voor goud en/of zilver weggelegd? Goud vervult nu nog een monetaire rol tegen wil en dank. De link met de Amerikaanse dollar is zelfs na Bretton-Woods nog steeds niet doorbroken want de prijs van goud en ook andere grondstoffen wordt in USD genoteerd. De voorbije jaren werden herhaaldelijk ballonnetjes opgelaten over een terugkeer naar een klassieke goudstandaard. Het laatste voorstel kwam van de Republikeinse Partij in de Verenigde Staten. Het gaat echter om niet meer dan politieke stemmingmakerij en het voorstel is dan ook volstrekt kansloos. Bij de klassieke goudstandaard werd de dollar gekoppeld aan goud volgens een vaste inruilkoers. Op die manier wordt er theoretisch een rem gezet op de ongebreidelde geldexpansie (want er komt jaarlijks slechts een beperkte hoeveelheid goud bij) en kan bijgevolg de prijsstabiliteit worden gegarandeerd. Een nobel doel, alleen is dergelijk systeem is anno 2012 onwerkbaar en dit was het trouwens 50 jaar geleden ook al. Het probleem zit niet zozeer in het beperken van de limieten op de geldexpansie, want dit zou op dit moment zelfs een goede zaak zijn, maar in de rigiditeit van het systeem. De klassieke goudstandaard heeft nooit gewerkt en zal ook nooit werken. De vraag is bovendien aan welke prijs men die ruilverhouding vastlegt: hoeveel goud gaat er in 1 geldeenheid? En vooral, in welke munt? En op basis waarvan moeten dan deze beslissingen (prijs/munt) worden genomen? En door wie? Dit neemt niet wel dat het monetaire systeem onvermijdelijk op de schop zal moeten. Daarin zal opnieuw een belangrijke rol zijn weggelegd voor goud, alleen niet onder de vorm van een klassieke goudstandaard. Goud moet losgekoppeld worden van de fiat valuta en dat kan alleen als er ook een vrije prijsvorming tot stand kan komen. Centrale banken bezitten nog steeds grote hoeveelheden goud. Dat goud staat niet zonder reden op de actiefzijde van de balans van de ECB en andere centrale banken maar met een welbepaald doel. Sinds 1999 (Washington Agreement) is er ook een herverdeling van het goudbezit aan de gang. Ook de IMF verkopen passen in dat kader. Er wordt dus een alternatief klaargestoomd voor als het huidige schuldsysteem bezwijkt onder zijn eigen gewicht. Het gaat hierbij om een geleidelijke transitie waarbij de koopkracht van goud geleidelijk opwaardeert. Zilver heeft helemaal geen monetaire rol en zal die ook nooit hebben. Het klassieke bi-metallisme komt nooit meer terug. Er is geen enkele centrale bank die nog over substantiële hoeveelheden zilver beschikt. Dit kan tellen als signaal voor zij die op een monetaire rol voor zilver hopen. Zilver kent hoofdzakelijk industriële toepassingen maar onderscheidt zich van de andere basismetalen door de in verhouding hoge investeringsvraag.

3. Vind je dat een deel van een portefeuille in fysiek goud en zilver moet zijn belegd? Waarom wel/niet? Ik verwijs naar het antwoord op de vorige vraag. Dat moet iedereen voor zich uitmaken. Het is heel lastig om het evoluerende goudverhaal aan het brede publiek uit te leggen. De geesten zijn er echt nog niet rijp voor. De overgrote meerderheid heeft geen idee hoe het financieel systeem in elkaar zit en ziet de huidige crisis als een fenomeen dat wel zal overwaaien. Er is nog steeds een grenzeloos vertrouwen dat de politieke en monetaire overheden het ook nu wel weer zullen oplossen. Het heeft daarom weinig zin om iemand die nog in klassieke economische denkpatronen vast zit te proberen overtuigen van het nut van fysiek goud. Spaarders moeten zichzelf overtuigen van de noodzaak van fysiek goud. Zij die dit niet doen verkopen bij elke correctie van 5 tot 10 procent.

Koen Lauwers is onafhankelijk financieel analist gespecialiseerd in goud en grondstoffen en werkt voor verschillende bedrijven in Nederland, België en het Verenigd Koninkrijk

Redactie: Dank, Koen voor deze waardevolle bidjrage!