Mining’s old guard needs strong medicine
A new report details subpar investor returns in the mining industry over the last decade, particularly big cap diversified companies which have not adapted to new realities.
Every picture tells a story and the above chart shows the US Dollar heading down the tubes in contrast to the ascendancy of gold prices, silver prices and the unhedged mining companies that comprise the HUI. The USD has dropped from ’88′ to ’78′ in 4 months, a fall of 11.40%.
Just imagine being a cabinet member of a foreign government with a pile of trade generated dollars on your hands, watching them disintegrate before your eyes!
We can also see that the downward swing of the 50dma crossing over the 200dma, sometimes known as the death cross as it usually portends further weakening of the dollar. Gold prices, however, are at an all time high, with silver prices coming to the party with a terrific effort. The mining companies are also showing signs of activity and we look forward to them setting new records both as individual enterprises and collectively as a group of unhedged miners.
Its not just the dollar that is facing a few difficulties, over in Europe Spain has had a general strike and there have been demonstrations in Brussels, so the unrest and discontentment continues.
Keep an ear open today for news from Ireland where the Anglo Irish Bank will declare just how much money it requires to stay afloat. Having had billions the mind boggles at where all this cash is going. The property market there certainly boomed when the economy was in better shape, but those days are well and truly over, leaving behind an all too familiar financial hangover. We doubt that this bank will not be allowed to fail, but even the European Union is not bottomless pit and somebody somewhere will have to endure more belt tightening.
In the United Kingdom the unions are gathering strength and popularity on the back of a stuttering economy and the proposed austerity measures required to balance the books, which are going down like a lead balloon.
The new coalition government will be put to the test and the newly elected leader of the Labour Party, making it New, New Labour, will need to make his presence felt. As they say a week can be a long time in politics.
All in all its a sad state of affairs and being gold and silver bugs is all we can do to protect ourselves and hope that we come through this very trying time with a limited amount of damage.
Over in our options trading den they have updated the chart to show all the closed trades as of today, so you can see exactly how it is going, please click this link.
Stay on your toes and have a good one.
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