Peter's Blog

Americans Ramp Up Credit Card Debt to Cover a Rising Cost of Living

In spite of the government’s ongoing narrative of a US economic recovery, major news outlets continue to remind us that life isn’t getting easier for most Americans. The Wall Street Journal recently published a lengthy expose on the rising cost of basic necessities. This chart shows how much more middle-class American households are spending thanks […]

Industrial Silver Demand to Increase 27% by 2018

The Silver Institute forecasts that demand for industrial silver will increase by 142 million ounces by 2018 – a 27% rise from 2013 levels. The majority of this growth will come from the electronics sector, where silver is used as one of the most reliable and efficient electrical conductors on earth. However, every major application of […]

US Mint Silver Sales Break Annual Record

The United States Mint has officially sold a record amount of silver two years in a row. As of Monday, US Mint sales of American Silver Eagles for 2014 reached 42,864,000, surpassing the total annual sales of 42,675,000 in 2013. The US Mint temporarily sold out of Silver Eagles earlier this year and had to […]

The Expanding Uses of Gold

Last week, Peter Schiff defended the intrinsic value of gold by briefly explaining how many uses it has beyond bullion investment. Many people have no idea how integral gold is to products they rely upon every day, not to mention exciting technologies of the future. People who argue that gold is becoming less useful in […]

US Debt Balloons to $18 Trillion and Will Continue to Grow

The national debt of the United States officially surpassed $18 trillion this past week. The news has been making the rounds of every media outlet, with many economists reminding us of the very shaky footing of the US economy. However, there are other analysts who play down this outrageously irresponsible amount of debt. In his […]

China Is Now the World’s Largest Economy and It Wants More Gold

China has officially surpassed the United States as the largest economy in the world, based upon economic output as measured by the International Monetary Fund. China’s production of real goods and services will touch about $17.6 trillion this year, while the US will produce $17.4 trillion. This gap will continue to grow, according to the […]

Liberty Dollar Creator Receives Lenient Sentence; Silver Returned

More than three years ago, a jury found Bernard von Nothaus guilty for “making, possessing and selling his own coins,” which Nothaus had dubbed the Liberty Dollar. This week, a judge has passed a very lenient sentence on Nothaus despite pleas for a long prison term from the prosecution. More importantly, the judge ruled that […]

Indian Eases Strenuous Gold Import Rules

India – once the world’s largest gold consumer – has eased restrictions that had limited its gold imports and allowed China to overtake it in gold consumption. The so-called “80:20 rule” has been dropped, which required gold importers to reexport at least 20% of their imported gold. The rule was supposed to shrink a high […]

This Month in Gold – November 2014

Swiss Vote “No” on the “Save Our Swiss Gold” Initiative Wall Street Journal – Swiss voters voted down the Swiss gold referendum that would have forced the Swiss National Bank to hold 20% of its assets in gold. About 78% of voters were against the initiative, which was heavily opposed by the SNB and much […]

All Eyes on Switzerland This Sunday

Switzerland will vote on the “Save Our Swiss Gold” initiative this Sunday, and the news is reminding everyone just why the financial world is watching so closely. USA Today and the Wall Street Journal can give you a good summary of how the Swiss gold initiative would affect the policies of the Swiss National Bank […]