Free Republic

High-flying gold and silver took a staggering hit in overnight trading with the precious metals losing roughly $6 trillion in just 30 minutes — as oil prices surge over fears over Iran. Gold tumbled back after hitting a new record at $5,595.47 an ounce as investors rushed to assets deemed safe, including silver, which reached its own record of $120.44 an ounce. The dollar steadied after losing ground most of this week. Gold declined more than five per cent and silver plunged more than eight per cent, while copper and nickel prices also fell, as traders reassessed the market. “The...

Gold and silver prices plunged Friday, as President Donald Trump’s nomination for the next chair of the Federal Reserve, Kevin Warsh, appeared to relieve concerns about the central bank’s independence and sent the dollar soaring. Spot silver was down 28% at $83.45 an ounce, trading near its lows of the day. Silver futures plummeted 31.4% to settle at $78.53, marking its worst day since March 1980. Meanwhile, spot gold shed around 9% to trade at $4,895.22 an ounce. Gold futures dropped 11.4% to settle at $4,745.10. The sharp moves down were initially triggered by reports of Warsh’s nomination. However, they...

Peter Schiff: ‘The dollar is going to collapse, the dollar is going to be replaced by Gold. We are headed for an economic crisis that will make the 2008 financial crisis seem like a Sunday school picnic.’

The value of the U.S. dollar plunged Tuesday, after President Donald Trump said he was not concerned about the currency's recent drop. "I think it’s great," Trump said, speaking to reporters in Iowa, when asked if the dollar's value had declined too much. “The dollar’s doing great.” Before Trump's comments, the benchmark ICE U.S. Dollar Index was already on pace to record its worst three-day drop since Trump's April 2025 "Liberation Day" tariff rollout. After Trump’s comments, the value of the dollar as measured by the index sharply extended its slide to as much as 1.5%, putting it on track...

Gold crossing $5,000 an ounce is not a technical breakout, a speculative frenzy, or a “risk-on trade.” It is a judgment. Silver pushing past $100 last week only reinforces the point. These prices are not expressions of optimism about growth or productivity. They are expressions of doubt: about currencies, about governments, and about the institutions charged with preserving economic stability. What makes this moment different is not simply the level of prices, but the speed and unanimity with which investors have arrived at them. Gold did not grind higher over a decade of slow erosion in confidence. It vaulted. Silver...

India’s holdings of US Treasuries have seen a drop, sliding to the lowest level in five years....In fact, most economies around the world are reducing reliance on the world's largest bond market...With gold and other assets accounting for a growing share of reserves...

The gold price is racing from one all-time high to the next. That’s good news for friends of the precious metal and bad news for anyone still hoping for a stabilization of global debt dynamics. Assuming the markets close out the year without major volatility, gold holders can look forward to an approximate 70 percent increase in value within a single year. This is remarkable -- not least because 2024 already ended with a 26 percent gain for the otherwise conservative asset class of precious metals. That amounts to a doubling of value in just two years -- a surge...

Geopolitics, diversification, and Fed easing contribute to the U.S. dollar’s downward pressures.While the so-called Santa Claus rally delivered year-end gains for stocks and precious metals, the U.S. dollar received a lump of coal to finish a not particularly strong 2025. The U.S. dollar index, a measure of the greenback against a weighted basket of currencies, is on track for its largest annual decline since 2003. This year, the index has dropped 10 percent, with nearly all of the damage occurring in the first half of 2025, when it tanked almost 11 percent. The alternative trade-weighted dollar index—a measure created by...

Quote of the week: “Inflation is when you pay fifteen dollars for the ten-dollar haircut you used to get for five dollars when you had hair. “ - Sam EwingThe ‘debasement trade’ has been gathering momentum all year, but it's really gathered momentum in the financial media lately. And then just to keep everyone on their toes, the gold price took a tumble on Tuesday. So what is the debasement trade? Is it real, and should you be following it?In this piece, we’ll unpack what debasement really means, why it’s driving markets today, and how to think about real assets,...

@RandPaul Like I told @cherylcasone on @MorningsMaria, Republicans ran against Biden’s reckless spending… then adopted his spending levels. I won’t. $38 trillion in debt isn’t sustainable. It’s a threat to our economy and our dollar. I’ll keep voting no until Washington gets serious about balancing the budget.

As the national debate intensifies over the solvency of Social Security, Truth in Accounting (TIA) is urging policymakers and the public to look deeper: beyond “trust fund” projections and into the silent erosion of benefits through inflation. TIA board member Chuck Chokel has compiled a sobering analysis of the dollar’s decline over three overlapping 50-year periods. His findings illustrate that even if Social Security checks keep coming, their purchasing power has steadily—and dramatically—shrunk: 1925–1975: $100 in 1925 had the purchasing power of $33.21 in 1975, representing a 67% decrease in purchasing power. 1950–2000: $100 in 1950 was worth just $13.92...

The short answer is: NO. The real answer is: It's slowly losing value.

From Von Greyerz Gold, Zurich Friday, August 15, 2025 In an informal yet compelling conversation, two veterans of the precious metals space -- Egon von Greyerz and James Turk -- bring needed financial and historical perspective to evolving (and eerily foreseeable) cracks in the global financial system. They reminisce upon a discussion they enjoyed nearly 15 years prior. Not surprisingly, much of what was discussed and warned about then (currency debasement, trapped banks, dangerous credit expansion, and rising gold) is playing out dramatically in real-time today. ... Dispatch continues below ... Turk, having equally foresaw the U.S. dollar's direct march...

The U.S. Dollar (USD) has had two quick rallies in July 2025 against a basket of foreign currencies.

ran across a 2021 meme the other day that vividly illustrates just how quickly the government is destroying your money. The meme points out that in 1964, the minimum wage was $1.25, or five quarters. That sounds really low, but keep in mind that before 1965, quarters were 90 percent silver. In 2021, the melt value of those five quarters was $23.34. In other words, the five quarters a minimum wage worker earned in an hour in 1964 had $23.34 in purchasing power in 2021. There's your "living wage." That’s pretty staggering in and of itself, but now fast forward...

At this writing, trading at $97.75 - This index measures the value of the U.S. Dollar (USD) against a basket of foreign currencies - $100 is considered neutral - Below $100 indicates USD weakness - Above $100 indicates USD strength - In January 2025, USD was trading at close to $110 - USD has been trading between $90-$110 for the last ten years

The precursor to the Federal Firearms License (FFL) required by the Gun Control Act of 1968 (GCA1968), was the Federal Firearms License required by the Federal Firearms Act passed in 1938. The Federal Firearms Act of 1938 is not the National Firearms Act (NFA) of 1934. The NFA of 1934 is an act requiring taxes and registration for machine guns, short barreled shotguns (sbs), short barrelled rifles (sbr), silencers, and an “any other weapon” for firearms that do not look like firearms. The Federal Firearms Act (FFA) of 1938 was an act that required people to have a license to...

ETFs tracking the U.S. dollar are gaining investor attention as the greenback faces increased pressure amid increasing global trade tensions and indications of a weakening U.S. economy. As sentiment turns bearish at a record pace, ETFs such as Invesco DB U.S. Dollar Index Bullish Fund UUP -0.90% are becoming crucial tools for investors trying to deal with the volatility. The most popular dollar ETF is UUP, which provides exposure to the greenback versus a basket of currencies including the euro, yen, and pound. It’s constructed to profit when the dollar rises — but has underperformed in recent days as bearishness...

LONDON, April 4 (Reuters) - In times of market panic investors tend to rush to the safety of the dollar, but when stocks swooned in response to U.S. tariffs this week, they ran away from it. Investors say it's a sign that the greenback’s global standing may be eroding. The dollar, for decades a safe haven, on Thursday fell about 1.7% in its biggest daily drop since November 2022 (.DXY), opens new tab, after President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on imports at levels not seen since the early 1900s. Stock markets also tanked, as tariffs ignited recession worries….

Global bond markets were gripped by volatility on Wednesday, as the rollout of U.S. President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs left investors scrambling to find safety as global equity markets resumed their sell-off. U.S. Treasurys sold off on Wednesday as a new wave of duties came into force and China announced fresh retaliatory action, with the yield on the U.S. 10-year Treasury last seen trading 12 basis points higher at '4.382% while the 2-year was 4 basis points higher at 3.768%. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions, as investors demand a lower price on the bond and a higher...