CFTC talks about position limits in metals futures

http://www.kitco.com/reports/KitcoNews20100324B123A.html

 

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Here's another take on the same subject.

If the lion's share of speculation is actually being done on behalf of the US Government (as this article suggests), then the CFTC hearings could just be a ruse to "talk down" PM prices heading into April futures expiration.

Cloud has some interesting thoughts on this, too. It'll be intesting to see what happens to PM prices over the next week or so.

The most likely outcome is that PM price drift lower over the next week, the April expiration is a non-event, and prices inch back up again in April.

 

The quote below from the article is interesting. Chilton is saying that the CFTC needs to prove "intent to manipulate." When the Hunt Brothers were investigated, the agencies took the position that the existence of concentrated positions in the futures market was proof of manipulation. Apparently there is a double standard depending on whether you are a private individual buying or a large bank selling.

<Chilton added, " Many say that there is clear ‘manipulation’ in metals and that we at the CFTC should merely ‘stop it.’ Well, in order for the agency to prove manipulation in court we have to demonstrate, among other things, that there was a specific intent to manipulate the market.” >

 

Cloud, no matter what happens supply problems will be what sets off this powder keg. They can only hold it down for so long. I could be wrong on the latter part. Either way, I think silver miners will explode as the prices increase and supply dwindles. Maybe that is the best way to hedge?

 

I expect silver to rise, but I can think of one situation that would prevent it. The general belief is that the big shorts in the futures market have no silver to deliver and are pure speculators. Well, what if JPMorgan, the supposedly largest short, has China for a client. China may be trading through JPM for it's own account to earn a return on its massive silver holdings. In that case, the present situation could continue for years.

However, silver has been is a long term uptrend over the past decade, and it is equally possible that this trend will continue, especially if the economy recovers.

 

Interesting article, Thanks for the read!!

 

http://www.kitco.com/reports/KitcoNews20100325C.html

It goes on!

 

This is an interesting comment from the link you posted.

<"In the event of a shortage of gold or silver, supply can be mobilized on relatively short notice, he said. The buoyant scrap market, which has grown significantly during the current rally and is credited by many analysts with helping to moderate price appreciation, is an example of the rapid mobilization of existing supply.">

I understand the comment as it applies to gold because it is generally not consumed. Silver, however, isn't all recoverable. So much scrap silver was melted back in the late 70s that I would think it would take prices between $25 and $30 to lure significant quantities out of hiding. Granny's tea set can only be melted once. And a lot of the silver in Comex is not registered [available] for delivery. The link below is a very good summary of how this process works.

http://beforeitsnews.com/story/2041..._Inventory_Data_Reveal_an_ALARMING_Trend.html

 

Whistleblower attempts to warn CFTC about manipulation

http://www.gata.org/node/8466

An interesting read.

 

After reading all of those articles I am a bit fuzzy as to weather or not silver will be on the rise here shortly. I have been holding off on buying a roll of ASE's this month waiting on silver to fall below $16/oz. With the contracts changing April 1 do you think that silver has room to grow or will it slowly start to decline?

 

If silver falls to $16, you may not pay much less than you would pay now. Since you used the word "shortly" as a buying criteria, I don't think anybody can tell you exactly when to buy. My guess[with the emphasis on the word guess] is that silver will rise after the contract expiration.

 

I don't know....the markets are getting harder to predict this month. It's anyone's guess.

 

When were markets ever easy to predict?

 

Did I say they were easy to predict?

 

http://www.investmentrarities.com/ted_butler_comentary03-22-10.shtml

This one is another good read.

 

Do you know when the next non-farm payroll data release will be?

 

You guys gotta read this!!!!

http://www.numismaster.com/ta/numis/Article.jsp?ad=article&ArticleId=9921

 

Pat Heller's articles are always a must read. He also writes for Coin Update and a monthly update on his own site for Liberty Coins out of Michigan.

 

It's been an interesting week in the gold conspiracy world :bigeyes:. Le Metropole has been flooding my e-mail with updates. For a contrary point of view on the subject, you might want to check out the discussion on this thread over on Tickerforum :eating::

http://tickerforum.org/cgi-ticker/akcs-www?post=132987&page=1

Nonfarm payrolls are this Friday I believe.

 

WOW!! I'm speechless...(I guess there's a first for everything).