Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. This column emphasizes JWR’s “tangibles heavy” investing strategy and contrarian perspective. Today, we look at Canadian trade and currency exchange issues.
Precious Metals:
Mike Gleason: Gold Breaks $3,000, But Here’s Why Silver Could Steal the Show…
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At Gold-Eagle.com: $3000/Ounce: Why The Oldest Money Just Hit Its Newest High.
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Take heed: The silver-to-gold ratio just hit 90.7-to-1. And the platinum-to-gold ratio is now 3.04-to-1. For anyone who has holdings that are heavy on gold, I recommend doing some diversifying. – JWR
Economy & Finance:
This is a gut-punch of a statistic: The U.S immigrant employment rate.
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This video offers some basic but quite sound advice: This Is What “ALWAYS” Happens Before A Depression.
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The Irish Times reports: US shoppers cut spending as economic outlook concerns mount.
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A U. of M. report: The U.S. Economic Outlook for 2025–2026.
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Wolf Richter: Will Economic Detox Lead to a Recession? Maybe Not. But a Long Deep Stock Market Rout Will (See Dotcom Bust).
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And just for fun, from the great Finnish comedian, Ismo Leikola: The World’s Debt.
Commodities:
Reader G.D. wrote to ask me to explain the variances between spot and futures prices, and my advice on trading on margin. JWR’s Reply: In essence, the spot and futures figures are closely linked, but sometimes because of physical supply issues with a commodity, you can have a “contango” or “negative basis.” This is where spot prices trade below futures contract maturity prices. Conversely, there can also be “backwardation” or “positive basis.” This is a situation where spot prices trade substantially above futures prices, at maturity. In the long term, spot and futures prices usually equalize — or at least come close to that. But in the short term, there is often room for arbitrage between the two. In the final analysis, it is always the eventual settlement with physical delivery that determines the real and current-day value of any given commodity. Remember: There are buyers and sellers in every market. Do your very best to never work yourself into a disadvantageous position where you have to liquidate a commodity (or contract) at a loss. Trading on margin can be tricky, and oftentimes painful. Don’t get in over your head! My general advice: Don’t let the allure of big gains suck you into margin trading. The potential for loss is huge. – JWR
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From OilPrice News: Alaska Looks to Lure Asian Investors in $44-Billion LNG Project.
Trade and Tariffs:
Canada announces C$29.8 billion in retaliatory tariffs on US.
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Bank of Canada says trade war will hurt Canada more than the United States.
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The socialist/globalist NPR reports: The U.S. buys electricity from Canada. Now it’s a focus of the trade war.
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What Trump’s Trade War Would Mean, in Nine Charts. JWR’s Comments: Even the globalist CFR (publisher of Foreign Affairs) admits that the tariff war will hurt Canada and Mexico much worse than the United States. I predict that Canada will back down within a few months, or perhaps even just in weeks.
Forex & Cryptos:
The Canadian Dollar has dropped to its lowest exchange rate with United States Dollar (USD) in 20 years. It took just 69.9 cents USD to buy 1 Canadian Dollar (CAD), when I last checked.
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Reported by Morningstar of Canada: Tariffs Leave Canadian Dollar on Shaky Ground.
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USD/CAD Forecast: The Canadian Dollar Loses Ground as Tariffs Take Effect.
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At Zero Hedge: Trump Wants A Weak Dollar But Needs A Strong One.
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Binance ex-CEO warns 95% of crypto investors won’t survive.
Tangibles Investing:
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Optics Planet (one of our affiliate advertisers) is briefly running a 10% off site-wide sale, with 2% bonus bucks. This includes ammo! Use the coupon code “MAYHEM”.
Provisos:
SurvivalBlog and its Editors are not paid investment counselors or advisers. Please see our Provisos page for our detailed disclaimers.
News Tips:
Please send your economics and investing news tips to JWR. (Either via e-mail or via our Contact form.) These are often especially relevant because they come from folks who closely watch specific markets. If you spot any news that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers, then please send it in. News items from local news outlets that are missed by the news wire services are especially appreciated. Thanks!
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