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I owned Barrick stock for a number of years, but I could never figure out how their "forward contracts" worked. They said that they entered into long-term contracts to provide gold at a price...say...15% above the current price, but with some way to get out of the agreement if the price of gold went above the contract price.

Apparently, they knew that the price would not go up significantly.

Maybe you ‘couldn’t figure out how their forward contracts worked’ because your mind doesn’t naturally follow a criminal bent. :)

Up until now I have pretty much been a bullion investor where precious metals are concerned. But this morning I (uncharacteristically for me) invested in a speculative gold stock (MNG – Miramar Mining, on the AMEX) for three reasons:

(1) The American economy is not as strong as the administration and the mainstream media would have us believe, and it’s just a matter of time before the truth is known. It times of severe economic downturn, gold has almost always provided a financial haven.

(2) The Blanchard vs. Barrick/Morgan/World Gold Council lawsuit is being called ‘opportunistic’ by some. But, theories on Blanchard’s motives aside, and no matter the legal result, it cannot help but improve the future outlook for gold, and put at least a crimp in the ability to manipulate its price.

(3) At the risk of appearing ghoulish, the impending (most likely within the next month or so) war with Iraq (as well as the ongoing threat that North Korea poses) bodes will for gold investment, too.

I have been following several gold-related stocks for quite a while now (ASL, AU, GFI, GSS, NEM among them), and decided that today was the day to take the plunge. (May have been a little too premature, since gold may retrace a bit before taking off again, but I’m still feeling a little more secure tonight. :)