Posted on 07/09/2016 6:25:39 PM PDT by TigerLikesRooster
After Bitcoin, Chinese Go Crazy About Silver
By Valentin Schmid, Epoch Times
July 5, 2016 AT 3:30 PM
Last Updated: July 7, 2016 12:06 pm
Chinese speculators have the reputation of buying anything and everything that is going up.
Real estate, the stock market, copper, bitcoin, and now silver. Futures in Shanghai reached their upside limit when prices hit $21.13 per ounce, up 6.9 percent on the day. Chinese are behind the bulk of the buying as volumes on the Shanghai futures exchange exploded to 95 billion yuan ($14.2 billion) last Friday.
The price has since retreated to a tad below 20, but the overall performance over the second quarter is best in class, up 17 percent.
At least considering traditional asset classes. Bitcoin, the preferred Chinese capital outflow vehicle is up 66 percent in Chinese yuan over the same time period. After peaking on June 16, it has leveled off a bit, a good chance for Chinese traders to focus on silver again. Like Bitcoin, silver is not part of the Chinese banking system and provides insurance for a possible debt restructuring.
Throughout history, the Chinese have been alternating between currency systems based on silver and currency systems based on paper money. Genghis Khan was the first emperor to force his citizens to use paper money, Chiang Kai-shek’s Nationalist Party was the last one to switch silver for paper in 1935.
"The fact that the traded volume goes up while the open interest goes down is a clear indication that day traders have taken over for now."— Ole Hansen, Saxo Bank
(Excerpt) Read more at theepochtimes.com ...
P!
Mama Like! Buy all you want, China! In fact, buy MORE than you can afford!
I’ll just sit here and smile and watch my assets grow. ;)
So the fork I ate dinner with is worth $35, eh?
If it was Tiffany or Christofle it's worth a lot more than that.
Throughout history the Chinese have shown they prefer currency systems based on precious metals and detest fiat currency systems based on paper money.
That’s fine with me.
The prices (in US Dollars) of both gold and silver have been artificially depressed by the manipulators for quite some time I’m told.
But it won’t last forever.
Still plenty of paper silver at JP Morgan.
International Silver, ‘Prelude’ Pattern:
45 Piece Dinner Size Starter Set: $2,499.00
You’ve got a whole new RESPECT for Great-Grandma’s silver service these days, don’t you? ;)
>>If it was Tiffany or Christofle it’s worth a lot more than that.<<
I have always been under the impression that after sale, things made of rare metals are only worth their value on the scale.
The *second* great wad of silver I accumulated 2003-2007 was in scrap sterling silver forks and spoons. I sold over 100 lbs of sterling flatware to a refiner at about $38.50 last time silver ran up. I missed $50 pretty badly but I’m sure glad I didn’t allow my horde to drop down to $15. Back then it was often possible to buy .925 for under the implied Ag spot price. But it’s a crappy way to buy silver, IMO.
Would you ever sell your silver unless you had to? Even if it goes up to $100 per ounce I don’t think I would raid my safety deposit box and sell it.
Reed and Barton :-). I found one (fork) metal detecting. Replacement on it is $250+. It’s a cool design though!
I’d sell the gold, first. The junk silver proves useful in many more ways. ;)
You eat with two ounce forks. You must have a hell of a wrist shot, eh?
That depends. That's what some silver-buy back folks would want you to believe. But it may not be true.
If you are selling your flatware to places like Replacements - maybe. But it depends. As a start, check out eBay. Some pieces, e.g., forks, go as high as $100 or more. Place spoons also. I've seen pea spoons go for $700.
Silver US dollars seem to be a good bet.
Interesting you say that.
Not long ago someone, and I can’t remember who, pointed out to me that with a gallon of gasoline at $2.50, a silver dollar (at melt value) will buy roughly 8 gallons. A paper dollar won’t even buy a half a gallon!
Yes, because of the "backed by the government" factor.
But where most starting investors make a mistake is in the graded stuff.
And a MS-60-70 Proof Liberty in fancy boxes with "Certificates of Authenticity" still contains only one ounce of .999 silver, just like the BU's fresh off the US Mint press, but at more than twice the price.
Presenting graded silver dollars for food, if the SHTF, will not get you any more food than presenting a circulated one.
Or ammunition or a gun or a gallon of gas, etc.
The "Certificate of Authenticity" is not even good for toilet paper...it's too rough...much like the pages of the koran.
Don't ask me how I know that.
I just want to add that the person who told me this was here on FR.
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