How did this scenario happen? Perhaps, a more apt question to ask is why did this scenario happen?

Traditional mediums of investment like stocks and bonds and other paper investments are vulnerable and are easily threatened in an adverse economic situation. Investors wisely shy away from them under the circumstances to seek out safe and more reliable haven for their investments – an investment haven that can shield their funds from getting depleted and devalued. This explains why last week’s scenario came about. Investors moved their funds away from stocks and placed them on gold, the traditional refuge for threatened funds.

But gold does not only hedge investments against inflation. It does a lot more. It opens to an investor an opportunity for profit. Gold therefore serves a dual purpose – it not only preserves the value of invested funds and, more than preserving their value, increases their value.

The funds transferred last week from stocks and placed on gold not only avoided a value drop as staggering as 1,000 points but also earned for an investor as much as $13 an ounce of gold. Protection and profit are twin benefits an investment gets from gold.

Steve Kickner

This quarter of 2010, the American Silver Eagle bullion again flexed its muscles, soaring to 7,157,000 ounces in sales. This figure is higher by 26 percent over the same first quarter of 2009. Sales in January reached 2,773,500 ounces, dipped to 2,050,000 ounces in February but soared again to 3,057,000 ounces in March.

The January numbers easily surpassed the 1,900,000 ounces sold in January 2009. Despite drop in February sales the American Silver Eagle managed to make February the second best February ever behind February 2009. These records were achieved despite the fact that only the American Silver Eagle Dollar was the only variant available for sale during the first quarter.

The sales numbers are apparently good signs of a promising 2010. If expectations are realized, this will mean that 2010 is a run-up of a terrific surge that began in 2008 through 2009.

Yearly sales of 200 until 2009 are the following:

Year                Ounces                Value

2000                9,133,000          45,100,650
2001                8,827,500          38,571,165
2002               10,827,500        48,267,945
2003               9,153,500           45,495,680
2004               9,617,000          64,016,840
2005              8,405,000          63,296,100
2006              10,021,000        116,425,840
2007              9,887,000          133,803,310
2008              19,583,500         286,451,715

Sub-Total    177,848,000      1.271,574,045

2009            28,766,500 -

Total           206,614,500 -

Please note the increase in value in relation to ounces sold starting the year 2004.

Steve Kickner

Gold bullion refers to both gold bullion bars and gold bullion coins. US gold bullions are of 24 karats, with 0.999% gold content. Unlike rare gold coins and gold jewelry, they are without numismatic value. Their value lies in the amount or percentage of gold that they contain.

Gold bullion coins, because of the artistry that went into their design, enjoy a higher premium than the simpler designed gold bullion bars. Gold bullion bars come in many sizes and weights. They are stamped with the manufacturer’s name and information about weight and purity.

Gold bullion coins and gold bullion bars are traded differently. Gold bullion coins need no storage after a change of ownership. Because of their size they can be immediately taken into possession by the new owner without jeopardizing security and secrecy. They can be secretly and safely kept at home without need of sophisticated security storage.

The gold bullion bars, because of their size, are cumbersome for an ordinary investor to keep. During a change of ownership, the new owner gets hold of a mere piece of paper attesting to his ownership of the traded gold bullion bars. The gold bullion bars remain secure in a bank vault or some safe storage. The new owner is charged a storage fee.

Gold bullions are kept short-term, unlike rare gold coins that are held on to by collectors and investors over a longer period of time. Gold bullions are keyed to daily price changes, even hour on the hour price fluctuations.

Have a second look at gold bullions with Certified Gold Exchange, America’s biggest and most trusted, as your tour guide. CGE has been certified by the Better Business Bureau with A+, the highest possible rating. Call us 1-800-300-715 or log in to http://www.gold-bullion.org.

Steve Kickner

Many Gold Bullion swashbucklers, claim to be working on behalf of a client, “who has a substantial amount of Gold Bullion they are looking to liquidate”. It is not uncommon to hear numbers as high or higher than 10,000 MT’s (metric tonnes) of gold. The U.S. Federal Reserve presently holds about 8,000 MT’s.

The most Popular Schemes on the internet today:

• High Interest Yield Investments- HYIPs are usually just Pyramid Schemes dressed up with no real value underneath. Using gold in their prospectus makes them seem more solid and trustworthy.
• Advanced Fee Fraud – Various emails circulate on the Internet for buyers or sellers. Often using mythical terms like ‘Swiss Procedure’ or ‘FCO’ (Full Corporate Offer). The end-game of these scams is unknown, but they probably just attempt to extract a small ‘validation’ sum out of the innocent buyer/seller from their hope of getting the big deal.
• Gold dust sellers – This scam persuades an investor there is real gold with a trial quantity, then eventually delivers brass filings or similar.
• Counterfeit Gold Coins
• Shares in fraudulent mining companies with no gold reserves, or potential of finding gold, as per the saying, attributed to Mark Twain, “A gold mine is a hole in the ground with a liar on top.”

It is advisable to research a supplier before investing in Gold Bullion.

Steve Kickner

In a telephone interview with Bloomberg.com, Cailleteau said “We expect the situation to further deteriorate in terms of the key ratings metrics before they start stabilizing, this story is not going to stop at the end of the year. There is inertia in the deterioration of credit metrics.”

According to Moody’s adverse scenario, which assumes 0.5 percent lower growth each year, the U.S. will be paying about 15 percent of revenue in interest payments, more than the 14 percent limit that would lead to a downgrade to AA.

Many investors are considering a position in gold and silver coins as a hedge against the falling dollar and to have a hard currency available in the safety deposit box; not to mention the potential for appreciation.

Investors looking to reduce their risk exposure are encouraged to contact one of our friendly specialists, to get a better understanding of how to best utilize gold bullion in their portfolio.

Steve Kickner

Experienced investors know that the gold bullion market historically picks up steam when whole nation’s economies become overextended, and hard assets are required to represent actual wealth, when printed (or fiat) currencies struggle to maintain their buying power. When nation’s central banks purchase enormous quantities from the IMF (International Monetary Fund), these gargantuan buys historically tend to stimulate the gold spot price, as a greater perceived need is seen in the market, and the gold spot price typically rises as a result.

The United States and Europe were hoping for a boost in the global gold bullion market from India, since the IMF has 191.3 tons of gold bullion for sale, and India was considered to be a likely buyer. India is the world’s largest gold bullion consumer, but India has just raised her gold and silver import taxes by 50%, so India may only purchase 28-32 tons of bullion, according to Suresh Hundia, President of the Bombay Bullion Association.

Investors who complete their research, are encouraged to contact one of our friendly specialists, who offer expert consultation on precious metals investing, as well as institutional discounts on bullion, and certified rare gold coins.

Jonathan Monroe

The gold spot price was $1114.40 at around noon EST, so even though mainstream media headlines may read that gold bullion falls, investors must maintain an objective perspective over economic developments, and decide for themselves where financial safety is optimal. Just last week, the gold spot price was below $1100 per troy-ounce levels, yet our Federal Reserve has yet to implement any notable action toward real economic recovery. Their latest strategy is to raise overnight lending rates between banks by .25% by the third quarter of this year, but such a measure will hardly mark the advent of a US economic turnaround.

Short-term profit seekers also know that when gold bullion falls, it is also an opportunity to capitalize on potential rebounds that the spot price invariably makes. 15 of 22 analysts surveyed at Bloomberg project gold to hit $1300 by year-end, so prospective bullion buyers are encouraged to thoroughly review their research.

Investors can also avoid paying outrageous retail prices for their bullion bars and coins by contacting one of our friendly specialists, who offer institutional discounts on these, and other precious metal items to household investors like you.

Jonathan Monroe

Some individuals aren’t comfortable with the notion of personally storing their gold bullion bars and coins, and use safety deposit boxes. This type of gold bullion storage is quite common, and depositors have thirty days to retrieve their gold bullion storage in the event of a bank closure. Still, it is wise to have at least a small amount of bullion within arm’s reach, as well as two or three locations designated for liquidating the bullion, if need be. If the investor does need to suddenly liquidate his or her metal, they should be abreast of the current gold price, as bullion prices are slightly higher than the ever-fluctuating spot price.

Investors who use IRAs for their gold bullion storage often have their bullion holdings secured at Wilmington Trust in Delaware, which is used by both Sterling Trust, and Gold Star, who are the two government-approved precious metal IRA custodians.

Prospective buyers can avoid paying mind-bending retail prices for their bullion bars and coins by contacting one of our friendly specialists, who offer institutional discounts on these, and many other items to household investors like you.

Jonathan Monroe

Investors should be able to convey the approximate weight of their scrap, as well as the specific type of scrap that they wish to refine. Comex (Commodities Exchange) quality bullion bars are 99.999% pure gold (24-karat), and are traded over the NYMEX (New York Mercantile Exchange), so alloys that are contained in your scrap are eliminated during the refining process. Naturally, the weight of scrap gold doesn’t normally translate directly into Comex gold bullion weight, and there are refining, and various processing fees associated with a scrap gold conversion.

Scrap converters have the option of receiving their very same refined metal, a like quantity of Comex bullion, or a monetary sum that is compatible with the current gold spot price. Investors with questions about precious metal refinement are encouraged to contact one of our friendly specialists, who can assist you with your precious metal needs.

Jonathan Monroe

The immediate shortage of IMF gold bullion buyers has reflected in a 0.3% increase for the U.S. dollar on the Index today, bringing it up to 80.75. Experts believe that if China bought IMF bullion now, it would reflect negatively on dollar values, which is why despite enjoying a thriving economy, China won’t likely be one of the IMF’s needed gold bullion buyers, since she already owns so much U.S. debt.

Gold investors are eagerly awaiting this Thursday’s testimony by Federal Reserve Chairman, Ben Bernanke before Congress. Bernanke will be speaking about our government’s monetary policies, which could likely act as a strong influence on both gold spot prices, and dollar values. The gold spot price moves oppositely to dollar values, and many anticipate the Fed’s announcement to finally begin raising interest rates. Higher rates historically mean lower dollar values, which bullion investors hope will equate to a rising gold spot price.

Jonathan Monroe