Replies

Yes, and the number of shares issued for GLD and other gold etfs far exceeds the amount of actual physical gold reserves held by COMEX, so the entire PM etf thing is just another Wall Street, three card Monty screw job. Trade PM etfs all you want, but WTSHTF, don't think you'll be able to redeem them or use them to demand delivery of physical gold; you'll be left holding worthless paper.

Google: Comex. gold price manipulation.

http://www.fgmr.com/where-is-the-etfs-gold.html

Long read, but here's the money quote:

"People who might have otherwise bought physical gold coins or bars, but wanted the same thing with more convenience, could be misled into thinking that they are buying physical gold by investing in the shares of GLD. But given GLD's loose custodial controls, there is no certainty that the investor is actually buying gold bullion in the form of an exchange-traded security. They mayinstead only be buying paper (i.e., a promise to deliver physical metal, rather than the metal itself) because there is no possibility by independent auditing or other means to substantiate that the gold supposedly owned by GLD and stored in the BoE and other vaults (other than HSBC's vault) really exists. This mechanism thus provides the central banks managing gold's price with a tool to divert into paper promises the money coming from investors who otherwise think they are buying physical metal, thereby enabling these central banks to relieve the upward pressure we have been seeing on the gold price. Therefore, if you are intending to buy physical gold bullion, do not buy GLD.