There’s much to report this morning, but let’s start under the category of serendipity – as this week, Miles Franklin launched its 25th anniversary celebration. To that regard, look for an email in your inbox Wednesday morning, prompting you to fill out a simple, five-question survey enrolling you in a raffle for a FREE ¼ ounce gold Eagle coin. Not to mention, in the coming days regarding a FREE dinner presentation hosted by myself and Miles Franklin’s President, Andy Schectman – in Minneapolis on April 8th. I assure you, you will be happy you attended and frankly, I’d be shocked if the event isn’t sold out.
On Monday, David Schectman – Miles Franklin’s founder and CEO – wrote a heartwarming piece of what the firm means to him; which I followed up yesterday, with my own take on the company that has given me the most rewarding job I’ve ever had. Together, we focused on numerous aspects of the business; most of all, how gratifying it is to protect people from a global financial collapse that has been ongoing for more than a decade, with the worst yet to come.
Even amidst the most oppressive, illegal price suppression tactics that any markets have ever endured, gold and silver prices have dramatically advanced since the global economy peaked at the turn of the century, with the best yet to come. Miles Franklin has helped thousands of clients to prepare for a bleak economic future with PHYSICAL Precious Metals; and now that the global fiat Ponzi scheme is in its final stages, it’s just a matter of time before the Cartel’s price-suppressing “jig is up.” We have recently focused heavily on how PM manipulation is finally going mainstream, and that those that “apologize” for such world-destroying schemes will inevitably end up on the “wrong side of the trade.” Moreover, if we can’t convince you, perhaps today’s front page headline of top MSM lackey Yahoo! Finance will.
To that end, I was intrigued by this week’s comments from former Bank of International Settlements governor William White, saying that:
The analytical underpinnings of what we [mainstream economists] do are actually pretty shaky.
I’m becoming more and more convinced that all of the models we use are basically useless.
We’ve got the potential to do so much harm by not getting the creation of fiat credit and money right.
-Sovereignman.com, March 3, 3014
To wit, Central bank cluelessnessis exactly what I wrote about two weeks back; and if this admission statement doesn’t tell you all you need to know, I don’t know what will.
By the way, Mr. White is already infamous for his 2005 comment that one of the BIS’s five key functions is:
The provision of international credits and joint efforts to influence asset prices (especially gold and foreign exchange) in circumstances where this might be thought useful.
-Gata.org, March 9, 2006
FYI, the BIS – i.e., the “Central bank’s Central bank” – is the Cartel’s “headquarters”; which is exactly why its name was floated ahead of the December 2011 “Operation PM Annihilation II” raid to calm surging gold prices, amidst a nearly fatal economic collapse which, at the time, I deemed Global Meltdown II.
But I digress, as the point I seek to make is that HONESTY is what has propelled Miles Franklin to the ranks of the nation’s largest bullion dealers; and more importantly, one with an A+ Better Business Bureau rating, and not a single registered complaint in 25 years of operation. And such HONESTY has never been on display as prominently as during 2013, which David’s must-read article todaydiscusses. To wit, whilst overseas physical PM demand shattered all records in 2013, it was as weak as we have ever seen it here in the States. Following our best month ever in April – after the “Alternative Currencies Destruction” raids – business ground to nearly a halt as the Cartel temporary gained the upper hand. Ironically, the U.S. Mint generated record Silver Eagle sales in 2013; but given our experience, and those of our competitors, no doubt it was the CHINESE buying these coins.
To that end, Miles Franklin and the entire North American bullion industry was forced to “hunker down”; in our case, enabling us to “high grade” our business to a level that has made us more competitive – and financially strong – than ever. However, many of our competitors have fallen by the wayside; particularly those relying on high volume, low margin strategies that only work during times of brisk demand. Moreover, countless competitors have gone bust – or subjected themselves to (in most cases, well-deserved) litigation by focusing on the high-margin “numismatic” segment that often have little, if any, relation to the underlying bullion market where Miles Franklin does nearly all its business. In other words, “bait and switching” clients to risky, speculative investments in the search for “firm-saving” margins; which ultimately, lost clients millions while ultimately, bankrupting the firms irrespective.
Regarding the latter, I won’t go into great detail here; as lawsuits against the likes of Merit Gold, Goldline International (of Glen Beck infamy), and other bullion dealers regarding the pressuring of clients into purchasing “numismatic” coins are becoming as commonplace as the flu in December. However, as relates to the former, here’s where said serendipity comes into play; as just as David Schectman’s article is being published about the nature of the “high volume, low margin” strategy undertaken by a handful of our competitors, it appears that the largest of them – i.e., Tulving, Inc. – has gone out of business. Though we cannot confirm this, it appears highly likely based on thisarticle noting how, after dozens of complaints regarding non-delivery in the past six months or so, appear to have stopped answering the phones.
Moreover, another such firm – Gainesville Coins – has, per thisweb page from the Better Business Bureau, 43 registered complaints against it; alarmingly, including several non-delivery issues. We are not making any judgments whatsoever regarding the validity of such claims; but considering Miles Franklin has been in business 17 years longer – with zero Better Business Bureau complaints, and an A+ rating compared to Gainesville’s BBB rating; clearly, you get what you pay for in the largely unregulated bullion industry.
Over the years, countless customers have called us saying “I want to deal with you, but went to Tulving because they are cheaper”; or, alternatively, “I’d prefer to deal with you, but will only do so if you match Tulving’s ultra-cheap prices.” If you were one of the lucky ones that we “matched” for, Miles Franklin likely earned NOTHING after considering the cost of its overhead. And if you went to Tulving, you may be one of the dozens still awaiting your product – with your money long gone; at a time when the global financial system could collapse at any time.
Why are we discussing competitors’ business models – and hopefully, not coming across as petty? Because, per the title of today’s article, HONESTY in a “world of lies” has put us on the high ground – both personally, and as a business. And for anyone that has dealt with David Schectman, Andy Schectman, myself, or any of our fine staff – you’ll know exactly what I speak of. By the way, our brokers – on average – have nearly 20 years of Precious Metals sales experience; and thus, you will undoubtedly get the best advice available.
I have relentlessly written that one’s primary goal in this financial world gone mad is to identify – and ally with – the handful of “good, smart people” that not only know what they’re speaking of, but have your best interests at heart. Fortunately, physical PM ownership is in your best interests; which is why we not only have great pride in what we do, but put our money where our mouth is – by holding significant portions of our net worth in our product. And not just the coins themselves, but our world-class storage operation at Brink’s Montreal – where David, Andy, and myself hold significant amounts of our personal “stashes.”
In our view, physical gold and silver ownership could be the difference between the “financial life and death” of you and your loved ones; so hopefully, you will take what David and I are so solemnly writing today of to heart. I assure you that if you deal with Miles Franklin, you will be happy that you did; and not only that, you will not just receive coins for your money, but world-class, one-on-one service and in my view, the best financial blog in the world – each and every day, for FREE!
OK, now that that’s off my chest, I want to discuss the broader topic of “honesty in a world of lies” – as it pertains to the global economy and financial markets. Let’s start with yesterday’s all-time most ridiculous “market action”; in which the Dow was rocketed higher by the PPT – and paper PMs blatantly attacked – to “calm” the masses’ fears regarding Ukraine. From the second I awoke, MSM headlines blared of Putin “softening” his stance; when in fact, if anything he hardened it. To wit, John Kerry gave a press conference from Kiev stating that Russia was blatantly disregarding international law; whilst Putin’s deputies stated they would dramatically respond to international sanctions, whilst increasing their troop presence from 6,000 to 16,000 – and even test-firing an ICBM to demonstrate their intentions!
Following Monday’s ridiculous PM capping; in which gold, as usual, was stopped at exactly the Cartel’s 99.9% utilized 2.0% upside cap, PMs were viciously attacked all day Tuesday – resulting in gold losing more than half its Monday gains, and silver nearly all of them. This morning, the 181st “2:15 AM” attack of the past 204 days was utilized to prevent gold from “relapsing” to the upside; followed by yet another “Cartel Herald” at the 8:20 AM EST COMEX open, before finally their capping efforts started to fail anew (let’s see how successful they are at capping the round number of $1,340/oz).
And how can they not; as aside from the clear and present danger that is the expanding Ukraine crisis, the inevitable hyperinflation that ends ALL fiat currency regimes inches closer each day? To wit, tomorrow’s ECB meeting may well be “Draghi’s Reckoning Day”; not to mention, next month’s suicidal Japanese increase of the national sales tax from 5% to 8% – and, ultimately, 10% next year. And then, you have today’s horrific, global economic data – starting with the second-lowest ever Chinese composite PMI reading; at 49.6, just barely above the all-time low of 49.5 set last July. Ironically, the Chinese government put forth its official 7.5% GDP growth estimate for 2014 yesterday; which in the eyes of this experienced financial analyst, doesn’t computewhen compared with recessionary PMI readings.
Here in the States, where the city of Chicago’s bonds were downgraded to just a few notches above junk, we saw across-the-board miserable economic data; starting with a horrific ADP employment report that clearly presages an equally miserable NFP report Friday – economic “recovery” and all (FYI, Goldman Sachs just reduced its NFP forecast, based on the terrible ADP report, from 145,000 to 125,000). Yes, not only did ADP report just 139,000 new jobs in February versus the 160,000 estimate; but reduced January’s gains from 175,000 to 127,000; December’s from 227,000 to 191,000; and November’s from 289,000 to 245,000. As usual, ADP proved clueless in the art of counting; and as usual, such errors were in over-estimation of the dying labor market.
Worse yet, the PMI Service Index plunged from 56.7 in January to 53.3 in February; and the ISM Non-manufacturing Index, from 54.0 in January to 51.6 in February, representing its worst print in four years – in both cases, well below “expectations.” And for the coup de grace, General Motors reported that, despite a 1% sales decline, it’s “channel stuffing” activity in February hit an all-time high level. Take a guess at the monstrous losses dealers are about to take on these unwanted cars; and subsequently, how they will impact dealership personnel decisions.
Zero Hedge
Perhaps the day’s only “good news” was that – whilst paper silver was under vicious attack at the COMEX by a Cartel hell-bent on “downplaying” the risks of the Ukrainian situation – the U.S. Mint has another monstrously strong day of selling PHYSICAL metal. In the first two days of March alone, a whopping 903,000 silver Eagles have been sold; which, if the pace is kept up, will shatter all imaginable sales records. In other words, the HONESTY of physical demand, in a world of PAPER lies.
In my view, this is one of the most important articles I’ve ever written; as the direr the global financial situation becomes, the more rapidly the window to protect yourself with PHYSICAL gold and silver will close. In doing so, we can’t emphasize enough that you get what you pay for in the unregulated bullion industry; and at Miles Franklin, we assure you, you will receive maximum value for your dollars, Euros, or whatever fiat currency you pay for your coins with. All we ask is that you “give us a chance” to earn your business – by calling at 800-822-8080. You won’t be disappointed!
