Dutch Central Bank To Move Its Gold From Amsterdam To A Former Military Air Base

Nearly two years after the Netherlands made waves in the gold market when it announced that it had secretly withdrawn 122 tons of gold from the New York Fed, this morning there was another surprising announcement out of the Dutch central bank which said is was planning to move the country’s gold reserves from the centre of Amsterdam to land owned by the defence ministry near Zeist .... http://www.zerohedge.com

Secret Alpine Gold Vaults Are the New Swiss Bank Accounts

Deep in the Swiss Alps, next to an old airstrip suitable for landing Gulfstream and Falcon jets, is a vast bunker that holds what may be one of the world’s largest stashes of gold. The entrance, protected by a guard in a bulletproof vest, is a small metal door set into a granite mountain face at the end of a narrow country lane. Behind two farther doors sits a 3.5-ton metal portal that opens only after a code is entered and an iris scan and a facial-recognition screen are performed. A maze of tunnels once used by Swiss armed forces lies within.

The owner of this gold vault wants to remain anonymous for fear of compromising security, and he worries that even disclosing the name of his company might lead thieves his way .... http://www.bloomberg.com

Alan "Bubbles" Greenspan Returns To Gold

The former Fed chairman says he believes another debt crisis is inevitable. He believes it will lead to high levels of inflation. His solution? Gold:

“Now if we went back on the gold standard and we adhered to the actual structure of the gold standard as it exists let’s say, prior to 1913, we’d be fine. Remember that the period 1870 to 1913 was one of the most aggressive periods economically that we’ve had in the U.S., and that was a golden period of the gold standard.” .... http://www.zerohedge.com

"You Want To Own Gold" Marc Faber Warns "Brexit Is The Excuse For QE4"

“If Brexit is used as an excuse, the central banks will print more money, QE4 in the U.S. is on the way and the depreciation in the purchasing power of currencies will continue,” warned a vociferous Marc Faber said in a Bloomberg TV interview today from Hong Kong.

"In that situation, you want to own some gold," he explained, carefully noting that central planners will be forced into this move because, despite all their extreme experimentation, "global growth has contracted, in other words, growth rates have been reduced and many countries are in recession already."

This has nothing to do with Brexit, stated the Gloom, Boom & Doom Report editor, "Brexit is actually not about an end of globalization. On the contrary, it’s about people that rebel against the arrogant elite in the financial centers." .... http://www.zerohedge.com

Google Searches For "Buy Gold" Soar 500% After Brexit

According to Google, the number of internet searches for the phrase "buy gold" spiked by 500% after the Brexit results trickled through around 5am. Investors flocked to the safe haven asset during Asian trading while the pound plummeted to a 31-year low .... http://www.zerohedge.com

Central banks buying up gold to diversify

The demand for gold has renewed worldwide with the price for the precious metal climbing to nearly $1300 per ounce for the first time in 15 months. The rally has been led by the world's central banks loading up on gold to diversify from the US dollar.

Russia has been the most active buyer in the bullion market. The country has purchased 46 tons of the yellow metal this year, while China comes second with 35 tons.

The demand by the central banks increased 28 percent from January through March compared to the same period a year ago, Capital Economics' commodities economist Simona Gambarini told Business Insider .... https://www.rt.com

Paul Singer says gold’s best quarter in 30 years is probably just the beginning

Billionaire hedge fund manager Paul Singer said that gold’s best quarter in 30 years is probably just the beginning of a rebound as global investors -- including Stan Druckenmiller -- weigh the ramifications of unprecedented monetary easing on inflation.

“It makes a great deal of sense to own gold. Other investors may be finally starting to agree,” Singer wrote in an April 28 letter to clients. “Investors have increasingly started processing the fact that the world’s central bankers are completely focused on debasing their currencies.”.

Gold for immediate delivery rallied 16 percent in the first three months of the year, the biggest quarterly surge since 1986, as the Federal Reserve refrained from tightening and central banks in Europe and Japan pressed on with negative interest rates. Druckenmiller, the billionaire investor with one of the best long-term records in money management, said last week gold is his largest currency allocation and the bull market in stocks was exhausted .... http://www.bloomberg.com

How The World's Largest Banks Rigged Gold & Silver Prices - Mike Maloney

Stunning Admission Made by Deutsche Bank: Some big news broke late last week. After mountains of evidence over the last several years had piled up, Deutsche Bank finally admitted in a court of law that the price of silver has been rigged. 

The significance of this development cannot be overstated because it implies that the gold price has also been manipulated .... https://www.youtube.com

The Conspiracy Theorists Were Right: Mega Bank Admits To Rigging Global Gold And Silver Markets

In a stunning victory for “conspiracy theorists” within the precious metals space, overnight Deutsche Bank not only agreed to settle a lawsuit accusing it of manipulating the silver fix, butalso agreed to help the plaintiffs pursue similar claims against other banks as part of the settlement by providing instant messages and other communications, reports ZeroHedge. And so the former cartel members are turning on each other.

Within the span of 24 hours, it was reported that Deutsche Bank, along with other banks, has been rigging both the silver and gold futures markets since 2007. The German-based bank reached a settlement in two separate lawsuits brought by bullion investors .... http://www.activistpost.com

Russia Becomes Globe's Top Buyer of Gold Bullion, Boosting Reserves

The Central Bank of Russia became the world's leading purchaser of gold when it bought 356,000 ounces of the precious metal in February, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

At least 356,000 ounces of gold were bought by the Central Bank of Russia last month, making it the largest buyer of the precious metal among the world's central banks, an IMF report said.

China took second place; its Central Bank purchased about 320,000 ounces of gold in February, according to Chinese Central Bank officials.

Meanwhile, it was reported last week that between March 11 and March 18, the value of Russia's gold reserves rose by $5.8 billion, from $381.1 billion to $386.9 billion .... http://sputniknews.com

Germany wants its gold back: At least half reserves to be repatriated from abroad by 2020

The Bundesbank has announced plans to repatriate some of Germany’s gold reserves from abroad. At least half of the country’s gold would be transferred to Frankfurt by 2020, according to Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann.

Weidmann says 366 tons of gold worth €11.5 billion have been delivered to Frankfurt so far. "There are now about 1,400 tons or 41.5 percent of our gold reserves here," the banker said.

In October last year Germany’s gold reserves stood to around 3,384 tonnes, worth about €120 billion, which is the second largest in the world after the US.

Weidmann added the rest of the gold will remain in New York and London, which he says are as safe as Germany. In case of emergency, these reserves would quickly be converted on the markets in these cities, the banker said .... https://www.rt.com/business

This Is How Venezuela Exported 12.5 Tonnes Of Gold To Switzerland On March 8, 2016 Via Paris

Following on from last month in which BullionStar’s Koos Jansen broke the news that Venezuela had sent almost 36 tonnes of its gold reserves to Switzerland at the beginning of the year, “Venezuela Exported 36t Of Its Official Gold Reserves To Switzerland In January“, there have now been further interesting developments in this ongoing saga.

It has now come to light that on Tuesday 8 March, the Banco Central de Venezuela (BCV) sent another 12.5 tonnes of gold by air freight to Switzerland (via Paris), and fascinatingly in this instance, the exact details of the transfer are already available, including the cargo manifest, courtesy of Venezuelan newspaper El Cooperante which broke the news on 11 March.

As per the January gold exports to Switzerland, which most likely were part of a gold swap to generate much-needed financing for the crisis-ridden Venezuelan economy, this latest shipment appears likewise .... http://www.zerohedge.com

Gold Futures Rally on Sag in Dollar, Risks to ECB Growth Outlook

Gold is up 19 percent this year as demand for havens surges with gyrations in financial markets and mounting concerns on global economic growth. Draghi said at a press conference Thursday that the recovery in the euro area continues to face hurdles including subdued demand in emerging markets and volatile financial markets.

“You had the dollar go up and then down, and gold followed the dollar’s lead,” Bart Melek, the head of commodity strategy at TD Securities in Toronto, said in a telephone interview. “Gold has an inverse relationship to the dollar, typically, especially in the short term.”

Gold futures for April delivery added 0.7 percent to $1,266.30 an ounce at 10:19 a.m. on the Comex in New York. The metal lost 1 percent over the prior three days .... http://www.bloomberg.com

Market panic pushes gold buying to highest level since financial crisis

The stock market plunge has triggered a gold buying spree with a popular fund that tracks the metal accepting the most cash on a single day since the financial crisis on Tuesday.

Index fund provider ETF Securities told Telegraph Money that February 9 saw the most money flow into Gold Bullion Securities, its gold tracking fund, since January 2009. Investors poured in £239m.

James Butterfill, head of research, said investors had become more cautious and were buying gold to shelter from stock market volatility .... http://www.telegraph.co.uk

Exclusive: Venezuela central bank in talks with Deutsche Bank on gold swap

Venezuela's central bank has begun negotiations with Deutsche Bank AG (DBKGn.DE) to carry out gold swaps to improve the liquidity of its foreign reserves as it faces heavy debt payments this year, according to two sources familiar with the talks.

Low oil prices and a decaying state-led economic model have weakened the OPEC nation's currency reserves and spurred concerns that it could default on bonds as it struggles to pay $9.5 billion in debt service costs this year.

Around 64 percent of Venezuela's $15.4 billion in foreign reserves are held in gold bars, which limits President Nicolas Maduro's government's ability to quickly mobilize hard currency for imports or debt service.

In December, Deutsche and Venezuela's central bank agreed to finalize a gold swap this year, the sources said. The sources did not confirm the volume of the operation in discussion. Neither Deutsche nor the central bank responded to requests for comment .... http://www.reuters.com

Mystery Buyer Of Massive 1,500 Ton Gold Vault In London Is China's Largest Bank

Back in June 2013, when Deutsche Bank opened a gold vault in Singapore which could hold up to metric 200 tons, the German bank was euphoric about the prospects for storing physical gold: "Gold has traditionally been stored in London, Zurich and New York, but there is a serious shift in dynamics going on as the global financial crisis continues to evolve," Mark Smallwood, Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management's head of wealth planning in the Asia-Pacific region, told The Wall Street Journal .... http://www.zerohedge.com

A Disturbing Warning From UBS: "Buy Gold" Because A 30% Bear Market Is Coming

As Wall Street axioms (Santa rally, January effect, as goes January etc.) are rapidly falling by the wayside at the start of 2016, following a chaotic but return-less 2015, the UBS analysts who correctly forecast last year's volatility are out with their forecast for 2016. It's simple - Sell Stocks, Buy Gold.

UBS Technical Analysts Michael Riesner and Marc Müller warn the seven-year cycle in equities is rolling over.

UBS expects S&P 500 to move into a 2Q top and fall into a full size bear market, with risk of a 20% to 30% correction into minimum later 2016 and worst case early 2017 .... http://www.zerohedge.com

A Sri Lankan man has been arrested for 'smuggling gold bars in his rectum'

Sri Lankan authorities have arrested a man for allegedly smuggling gold bars (not pictured) in his rectum.

Officers apprehended the 42-year-old man after noticing that he was “walking suspiciously”, a customs spokesman told the BBC.

Spokesman Leslie Gamini told the BBC that 400g of gold, worth around £9,351, had been found inside the suspect’s rectal cavity at Bandaranaike International Airport.

Sri Lanka's The Nation newspaper reports that he gold had been in the form of "four slabs" .... http://i100.independent.co.uk

Israel exported $400k in gold to N. Korea, violated UN sanctions, Knesset hearing reveals

Israel has sold gold worth an estimated $400,000 to North Korea, according to the Israeli tax authority – an action which is in defiance of UN Security Council sanctions in place for almost 10 years.

The Knesset Economics Committee ordered a ban Wednesday on exporting luxury goods to North Korea, in compliance with UN Security Council Resolution 1718, adopted in 2006 after Pyongyang’s first nuclear test.

At the same Knesset hearing, the export director of the Israel Tax Authority, David Khoury, admitted "there was export of gold, and regretfully [the UN] discovered this and we were required to give explanations," as reported by Israeli news agency Haaretz .... https://www.rt.com