by Clint Siegner, Money Metals:

Welcome to this week’s Market Wrap Podcast, I’m Mike Gleason.

Coming up Craig Hemke of the TF Metals Report joins me for an explosive conversation on a range of topics. Find out whether Craig believes we’re going to have a repeat of 2010 – when metals took off – or if it’ll be more like 2016 – when metals had a false breakout before pulling back. He also calls out Elliot Wave chartists and why he thinks you are doing yourself a great disservice if you are following these “buffoons,” as he calls them. So, don’t miss an eye-opening interview with Craig Hemke, coming up after this week’s market update.

Gold and silver markets are off to a strong start in the early goings of the fourth quarter. After getting through some end-of-Q3 selling on Monday, the precious metals proceeded to post gains in the first three trading days of October.

As of this Friday recording, gold prices come in at $1,509 per ounce, up 0.7% for the week. Silver is unchanged week over week to come in at $17.61 an ounce. Platinum is off 5.6% to trade at $882. And finally, palladium prices are off slightly at $1,688, a 0.2% decline now since last Friday’s close.

While the platinum group metals struggle for the time being, gold and silver are proving to be effective safe havens from stock market volatility. The Dow Jones Industrials Average swung more than 1,000 points this week from high to low. Disappointing manufacturing data stoked investor concerns about an economic slowdown.

In turn, the U.S. Dollar Index dropped as futures markets reflected a big jump in the odds of another Federal Reserve rate cut later this month. It’s hard to believe that just a year ago, the financial media were talking about how many times the Fed would hike. Rate cuts weren’t even on the table for 2019.

Now, not only are central bankers cutting, they are also massively expanding their balance sheet in order to prop up the repo market on a daily basis. Clearly not all is well in the world of banking and finance.

Perhaps Jerome Powell and company will succeed in getting out in front of the liquidity problems plaguing big banks. But the prospect of ongoing emergency interventions, and the apparent inevitability of further interest rate reductions, may help stimulate investor demand for hard money in the final three months of the year.

Although investment demand for physical precious metals is showing some signs of picking up, it remains soft compared to what it was a few years ago. The public remains complacent to risks in financial markets and skeptical of holding bullion as an alternative.

Surprising as it may seem to those of us who view owning some gold and silver outside of the financial system as common sense, lots of investors don’t understand the first thing about precious metals. They don’t know where to buy them, or what to do with them, or what the point of owning them even is.

They understand stocks, bonds, and bank accounts – perhaps even cryptocurrencies. But for some reason they can’t grasp the least complicated and most enduring way to hold wealth.

It could be our lousy educational system, our biased financial media, our corrupt monetary system, or all three that are leaving much of the public dangerously ignorant about sound money.

Perhaps, too, the bullion industry needs to do a better job of communicating the benefits and features of gold and silver ownership and combatting the myth of the “barbarous relic.”

Physical precious metals offer far more versatility than conventional paper assets in terms of what you can do with them. About all you can do with a stock or bond is sell it for cash, donate it, or in some cases borrow against it.

You can do all those things with bullion – and much more. Since precious metals exist outside of the financial system, they can serve many non-financial purposes.

Bullion coins and rounds can certainly be appreciated for their aesthetic qualities, which confer a pride in ownership and add a special sentimental value when given as gifts. Since gold and silver have near-universally recognized value, they can be used as money around the world in transactions with any willing party.

Gold and silver can also be used to achieve conventional financial goals such as estate planning and tax savings. Precious metals IRAs are a great way to shield gains from taxation.

Precious metals can be used as collateral to obtain loans with favorable terms. Money Metals Exchange is proud to play a leading role in helping people tap the hidden utility of gold and silver. And Money Metals Capital Group can now extend to you cash loans on gold, silver, platinum, or palladium bullion.

If you own at least $70,000 of precious metals and store them in the Class 3 vaulting facility operated by Money Metals Depository, you may be eligible for a loan of $50,000 or more.

Borrowing against your precious metals can be a more efficient way of accessing their buying power as compared to selling and facing transaction costs along with potential tax consequences.

Read More @ MoneyMetals.com