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To: goldsnow who wrote (4251)	12/14/1997 2:51:00 PM
From: PaulM	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116753

From your OECD article: Asia in trouble, but "outlook remains bright for the United States and Europe." It seems the economy is "global" only when pundits and brokerage analsysts need an excuse to pump up equity prices.

To: goldsnow who wrote (4251)	12/14/1997 3:02:00 PM
From: mike h	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116753

I apologize if this is a stupid question but I keep thinking back that there used to be the threat that the IMF would sell part of it's huge gold reserve. My memory is probably wrong but I seem to recall that Germany put an end to that at the time. My question is does the IMF still have huge gold reserves? The reason I ask is because Bill Seidman on CNBC said the IMF was broke and couldn't finance any more bailouts by themselves. It just seems that if the gold is there the preasure to sell may become irresistable. I am sure if they do sell it will mark the bottom . Any clarification would be greatly appreciated. This is a great thread. Mike H

To: goldsnow who wrote (4251)	12/14/1997 3:14:00 PM
From: Jim S	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 116753

AuSnow: Many thanks to you and the others who helped me try to figure out the meaning of "intrinsic value" as it relates to currency in general, and gold in particular. I still have trouble with the whole idea of what constitutes "wealth," but I'm afraid that the conversation will get too esoteric if I try to pursue it too much further. But, I can't resist a few comments. It wasn't all that long ago that salt was a universally accepted currency from the Roman era up into the 17th century. Once something is accepted as currency, be it cowery shells or 20-ton Fiji rocks, it has a *psychological* value in addition to its intrinsic value. If we can agree that that "consumption" of gold (that is, its actual use in manufacturing or jewelery) only accounts for about 30% of production, that means that 70% of all gold produced has only psychological value, and that currently hoarded gold (by individuals as well as CBs) would satisfy any real need for gold for a helluva long time, even without any more production at all. So, my strawman arguement is that there seems to be an effort underway to reduce some of the psychological value of the yellow stuff, and replace it with psychological value of faith in world currencies. I agree with most of the comments that this is an effort that will ultimately fail, but between now and failure is a lot of chaos. I guess that the bottom line is the cost of a bushel of corn, and whether one has the currency to bear that cost. Good trading, jim

To: goldsnow who wrote (4251)	8/27/2001 8:16:31 AM
From: long-gone	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116753

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gold demand up despite slow economy -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Editor's note: The following is a guest commentary from one of WND's sponsors, Kevin DeMeritt, president of Lear Financial. If you would like to learn more about investing in precious metals, take advantage of the free information Lear Financial is making available to WND readers. By Kevin DeMeritt © 2001 WorldNetDaily.com Despite rising world unemployment, sinking consumer confidence, and surging debt defaults, one key economic factor has held steady. That's gold. In figures just released by the World Gold Council, gold demand is actually reported to be up 1 percent over the same period last year, due largely to personal investment use, "currency replacement," and strong jewelry sales. These positive world statistics could have continued their torrid first-quarter pace (ahead 6 percent over last year) had demand not been dampened in areas where the economic slowdown is more pronounced. For example, Latin America, with its Argentina default, and Japan, where bad loans are now estimated to make up 40 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product, both saw sharp declines in gold demand, mostly in the jewelry sector. Conversely, and despite slowing economic conditions, the United States continued its strong appetite for gold. Robust bullion coin sales by investors and collectors and mounting gold jewelry interest, coupled with strong consumer demand, pushed U.S. gold demand to a mighty 80 tons, 4 percent higher than at midyear of 2000. The Middle East, perhaps reflecting an abundance of cash from higher oil prices together with renewed economic preparations in the event of war in the region, also showed a 10 percent increase in demand. Commenting on the figures, Haruko Fukuda, Chief Executive Officer of the World Gold Council, said: "Gold demand is not independent of economic conditions. However, growth is holding up in key markets such as India, the Middle East and the U.S.A., demonstrating the continued importance of gold." There are many reasons why demand continues to hold in a soft world economy. One factor is supply. It was recently reported by a South African brokerage, that world gold mine supply will suffer a 35 percent decline over the coming eight years. "The impact of the decline in world gold production will result in an increasing deficit between supply and demand, which is likely to change market perception significantly and subsequently put upward pressure on the gold price," the report by Standard Equities stated. In another recent report, by the World Gold Council, the case was presented that the rapid expansion of the gold derivatives market throughout the 90s may have come to an end. Many investment experts believe that this market and central-bank lending has had an effect on demand and had been the principal reason why gold traded in a disappointing range throughout most of the past decade. When you take into consideration the supply and demand issues, gold continues to be well-positioned for strong growth. Forecasts by Merrill Lynch, Salomon Smith Barney and other brokerages for gold to climb to the $320-$350 range is yet another indicator of the potential gold has to offer. While gold has been historically seen as a hedge against volatile markets and a weakening dollar, more and more investors are now looking to gold for profit and protection for both savings and retirement accounts. In fact, gold is already up 10 percent since its recent low and continues to outperform 90 percent of stock equity funds this year. While no one knows exactly how high gold prices will go in the next 12 to 18 months, one thing remains certain – many investors are now taking gold more seriously. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Special for WND readers, Lear Financial is making available free information on investing in precious metals. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- With more than 20 years of industry experience, Kevin DeMeritt is president of Lear Financial, one of today's fastest growing and most successful precious metals investment firms. worldnetdaily.com