by Tyler Durden , I serve on the Board of Directors of a large Singapore-based company that’s in the gold and silver business.And, last night during our quarterly conference call, the management team gave me a lot of intriguing information.Sales of physical gold and silver are collapsing across the entire industry.At the US Mint, for example, sales of US Eagle gold coins fell by 67% between February 2016 versus February 2017.And sales of US Eagle silver coins are down 75% over the same period.The World Gold Council’s data also shows a substantial decline in physical precious metal demand in 2016, particularly with bars, coins, and jewelry.Suppliers and refiners in the precious metals business are echoing these numbers, lamenting that sales are extremely slow and margins are falling.For our Singapore company, this decline is irrelevant.They have their own proprietary, state-of-the-art storage facility and a number of cutting-edge service like bullion-backed peer-to-peer loans, so business is great.

But I would expect that a number of other bullion dealers will probably go bust if this downturn lasts much longer.The one conundrum is that this trend does NOT correlate with the price of gold.In US dollar terms, the gold price is up 16% since the beginning of 2016.So it would be reasonable to conclude that sales of physical bars and coins are up as well.The reason is because there’s a HUGE difference between physical gold and “paper” gold.When people talk about the gold price, they’re really quoting the price of gold contracts at exchanges around the world in London, Shanghai, Chicago, etc. Traders aren’t actually buying and selling physical gold.These gold contracts are merely paper financial instruments, like stocks and bonds, that traders use for speculation.When some conflict breaks out in Africa, the knee-jerk reaction is for traders to buy gold contracts.And when central bankers announce that the economy is totally awesome, traders dutifully dump their gold contracts.

But they’re really just buying and selling highly leveraged paper assets.Nothing physical changes hands.It’s the same with gold ETFs; these are merely financial instruments to gamble on the paper price of gold.Investors who truly understand the benefits of owning gold, and don’t simply want to speculate on the price, buy physical bars and coins from a dealer.And quite often there’s a massive difference in fundamentals between the demand for physical coins and the paper price.cashout cvv to bitcoinDuring the 2008 financial meltdown, the paper price of gold and silver plunged.bitcoin core double spendSpeculators and traders were hit by margin calls and forced to sell their contracts.ethereum overtake bitcoin

But demand for physical coins was incredibly strong; savvy investors were looking for a safe haven.There was a total disconnect between the paper price and physical demand.That’s now happening again, but in reverse.The paper price is rising, but physical demand is falling.Management told me last night that they’ve been invited to speak at several investment conferences attended by family offices and high net worth individuals.But they told me that there’s very little interest in owning physical precious metals among these wealthy investors.bitcoin nyu polyEveryone seems to want to dump all of their money in US stocks or real estate, expecting that they’ll easily make 20% despite both markets being at all-time highs.bitcoin goaThis strikes me as total madness.bitcoin rental mining

Few people ever prospered buying what was popular and expensive.There seems to be no fear in the market… no regard for sense or safety.And my contrarian instincts tell me that this complacency is a great reason to own physical gold and silver right now.Remember that gold is primarily a form of savings.You could hold your savings in a bank account, denominated in paper currency like dollars or euros or renminbi.Or you could hold savings in physical cash.You could even own government bonds.Each of these is a form of savings.But so is gold and silver.(And cryptocurrency, for that matter.)The difference is that gold and silver cannot be conjured out of thin air by a central bank.And unlike cash, or money in a bank, precious metals actually keep pace with inflation over time.I remember having a conversation once with a famous investor who told me that he didn’t know what was going to happen in the future… … and THAT’S why he owned gold– for the “I don’t knows.” Will there be a trade war with China in the next few years?

A major debt crisis?“I don’t know.” Gold and silver are fantastic insurance policies against the “I don’t knows” due to the metals’ 5,000 year history of value and marketability.There’s no need to go overboard and keep 100% of your net worth in precious metals.But given the obvious risks on the horizon that we discuss regularly, and these bizarre demand trends, it’s a great time to consider adding to your physical precious metals savings.Do you have a Plan B?Thank you, President Trump.The Obama rush of $221,000,000 to jihad terror organization will fund Jew-killing.Obama’s parting gift to the Jews.To the very last minute, Obama was aiding, abetting and arming Islamic enemies of freedom.He released $221 million to the Palestinians in his administration’s last hours.Officials say outgoing administration defied GOP opposition and sent funds to PA that had been blocked in Congress.The Muslim leaders of “Palestinian Authority” exhort Muslims living in Gaza, Judea and Samaria to kill Jews and attack the Jewish state.

They glorify murder and reward terrorists and their families, and indoctrinate their young to grow up to be homicide/suicide bombers.These funds will be used to slaughter, maim and destroy.That is Obama’s legacy.“State Department freezes Obama’s $221m gift to Palestinians,” World Israel News, January 25, 2017: The Trump administration has frozen Obama’s parting gift to the the Palestinians.Former US President Barack Obama, in his waning hours, quietly released $221 million to the Palestinian Authority (PA), which Congress had been blocking.The Trump administration announced it is freezing the move.The State Department is reviewing the last-minute decision by former Secretary of State John Kerry to send $221 million dollars to the Palestinians.Kerry formally notified Congress that State would release the money Friday morning, just hours before President Donald Trump took the oath of office.The funds — supposedly intended for reconstruction in Gaza and good governance programs for the Palestinian Authority — were being blocked by at least two Republican lawmakers— Ed Royce (R-CA), the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Kay Granger (R-TX), who sits on the House Appropriations Committee — in response to Palestinian attempts to join international organizations, from which it intended to launch more international campaigns against Israel and before a peace deal with Israel.

Such holds are generally respected but are not legally binding.When asked about the transfer by a reporter during Tuesday’s press briefing, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said that “[Trump] is very concerned about how taxpayer money is spent, whether it’s sent overseas and what we get for it in terms of the relationship or our support for a democracy or aid to another country for their defenses.But he’s going to be examining all aspects of the budget… He’s going to make sure that every deal, every dollar that is spent by the government is done in a way that respects the American taxpayer.” Stay on top of the news the media censors and scrubs.Subscribe here (it's free).Follow Pamela Geller on Facebook here and Twitter here.Support the work and the website, it's critical to the fight - donate here.Join Tweets by @PamelaGeller Pamela Geller, COMMENTARY Magazine: “Is Free Speech Under Threat in the United States?” Pamela Geller WND EXCLUSIVE: Muslim migrant rapists of 5-year-old Idaho girl, get no jail time, JUDGE issues gag order on ‘sentencing’ Must See HD VIDEO: AFDI protests City University of New York 5/25/17 – FULL EVENT #CancelSarsour Donate: Or contribute monthly.