Gold price sidelined as silver drops sharply unable to hold 50-day moving average

Gold price sidelined as silver drops sharply, unable to hold 50-day moving average

Gold price sidelined as silver drops sharply, unable to hold 50-day moving average teaser image

While gold prices have meandered listlessly through the day, it’s silver that has suffered, with the metal falling sharply below its 50-day moving average, a critical support level analysts have been watching.

Gold continues to trade within a tightening range between $2,300 and $2,350 an ounce. August gold futures last traded near session lows at $2,331.10 an ounce, down 0.57% on the day.

However, silver has significantly underperformed its sister metal. July silver futures last traded at $28.915 an ounce, down 2% on the day. The selling pressure picked up momentum when the metal was unable to hold support at the 50-day moving average of $29.925 an ounce.

Gold has actually outperformed silver in the last three sessions pushing the gold/silver ratio back above 80 points, near its highest level since mid-May.

According to some analysts, silver is more sensitive to U.S. dollar moves, which has recovered from Monday’s selloff. The U.S. dollar index last traded at 105.62, up 0.10% on the day.

The U.S. dollar continues to be driven by the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy as expectations ebb and flow around when the central bank will cut interest rates. Commodity analysts have pointed out that gold has been able to weather this volatility a little better because it is seen as a stronger safe-haven asset than silver.

Although a rate cut would benefit silver, if the U.S. central bank is forced to cut rates because the U.S. economy is slowing, that could weigh on the precious metal’s industrial demand.

Analysts have said that critical support to watch in the silver market comes around $28.60 and $28.70.

Akhtar Faruqui, a market analyst at FXStreet.com, said in a note Tuesday that silver’s technical picture is turning negative.

“The momentum indicator Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) suggests a bearish bias for silver,” he said. "This configuration indicates that the overall trend might still be positive as the MACD line is above the centerline. However, the momentum is weakening as the MACD line is below the signal line.”

Faruqui added that in the current environment, he could see silver prices falling to $28.00, with the potential to test support at $27.76 an ounce.

Although gold and silver continue to struggle in the near term as investors focus on interest rates, many analysts continue to see lower prices as a tactical opportunity to gain exposure, as both precious metals remain in a solid uptrend.

While gold has the upper hand on silver as a monetary metal, analysts have noted that the grey metal continues to benefit from the green energy transition as solar power demand drives industrial consumption.

At the same time, silver’s industrial demand also makes it a more attractive inflation hedge compared to gold.

Looking ahead, analysts expect gold and silver to remain fairly range-bound ahead of Friday’s Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Index, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge.

Kitco Media

Neils Christensen

Time to Buy Gold and Silver

Tim Moseley

2024 Updates On Solana Network SOL Price Potential and The Markethive Community Wins

2024 Updates On Solana Network, SOL Price Potential, and The Markethive Community Wins

With Bitcoin's record-breaking surge, the crypto community is abuzz with anticipation for the next altcoin to make a significant leap. And all signs are pointing to SOL. Solana has shown remarkable resilience recently and is on the cusp of achieving significant milestones that could trigger a substantial price surge. This growth potential is an exciting prospect for cryptocurrency enthusiasts and investors.

SOL, a native cryptocurrency of the Solana blockchain, holds immense potential. It covers costs on the Solana network through burning and can be deposited as a stake to operate a blockchain node. SOL tokens are not just for trading and peer-to-peer transactions but also as rewards for staking SOL. Since its introduction to the market in March 2020, it has gained significant popularity, being recognized as one of the top ten cryptocurrencies on CoinMarketCap. With a market capitalization of $61.9 billion and 618,596 SOL tokens in circulation, SOL is poised for a promising future.

As valued members of the Markethive community, we've been at the forefront of Solana's journey, given that our own Hivecoin operates on the Solana blockchain. This previous article from 2022 provides an overview of Solana, highlighting its blockchain's suitability for supporting Markethive's decentralized ecosystem. In this update, I will discuss Solana's recent developments, explore SOL's potential growth, and identify the key factors that could drive its value higher, emphasizing Solana’s crucial role in the Markethive community in this exciting journey.

Solana Has Been Making Waves

Solana, a layer-1 protocol in the blockchain arena, stands out with its exceptional transaction velocity and affordability. It can handle an impressive 50,000 to 65,000 transactions per second, far surpassing Ethereum's current processing power of around 30 transactions per second. This cutting-edge platform deploys smart contracts and decentralized applications, leveraging a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism that ensures ease of access and timestamped transactions to optimize performance.

This article highlights Solana's eight core features, including its groundbreaking Sealevel technology. This innovative feature allows concurrent execution of multiple smart contract runtimes on a single chain, thereby significantly boosting the network's ability to handle multiple transactions simultaneously.

Since its establishment in 2017, Solana has experienced significant growth and development, forging connections with major technology corporations like Google, Visa, and Amazon. These alliances are crucial benchmarks for blockchain initiatives, as they validate the project's credibility, demonstrating real-world adoption, practical use cases, and technological progress.

Solana has forged alliances with a diverse range of notable entities, including Chainlink, a decentralized data provider on Ethereum, and two leading stablecoin issuers: Tether, which has integrated its USDT token into Solana's network, and Circle, whose USDC stablecoin is a critical player in the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector. 

Moreover, Solana has partnered with Asics, a renowned sportswear brand, and Membrane Finance, a Finnish fintech company that has introduced the first Euro-backed stablecoin on the Solana platform. Notably, Solana's collaboration with e-commerce giant Shopify has opened the door for customers to make purchases using USDC, further expanding the utility of the Solana ecosystem.

In May 2023, Solana unveiled the Saga, a cutting-edge Android smartphone boasting robust blockchain capabilities. This innovative device is now accessible to consumers in various countries, including the UK, EU member states, Canada, the US, New Zealand, Switzerland, and Australia.

Concurrently, Solana revealed its collaboration with ChatGPT, a cutting-edge technology born out of Solana Labs. According to Anatoly Yakovenko, the founder and CEO, "AI will make Solana more usable and understandable." The open-source ChatGPT plugin seamlessly merged with Solana's ecosystem, initially facilitating various operations, including NFT acquisitions, token transfers, finding NFT collections, reviewing transactions, and interpreting public account data.

The frenzy surrounding meme coins on Solana kicked off in December 2023 with the debut of the BONK token. The subsequent distribution of BONK to owners of Solana's Saga smartphone led to the device selling out, and it appears to have had a ripple effect, causing Solana's future phone releases to sell out as well. Amidst the chaos of meme coin excitement, Solana made two significant announcements that flew under the radar.

One notable development was Circle's decision to launch its euro-pegged stablecoin natively on the Solana blockchain. It's worth mentioning that Solana was previously designated as the preferred blockchain for Circle's USDC, although it's unclear if this is still the case. Combined with the recent approval from New York regulators for Paxos to issue its assets on Solana, institutional investors increasingly view Solana as a viable alternative to Ethereum.


Source: X

Could a Solana Spot ETF Be the Next Big Thing?

Following the debut of Bitcoin spot ETFs in January, there has been mounting anticipation about the potential for a similar investment product dedicated to Solana. This buzz seems to have originated from statements made by Franklin Templeton, a prominent asset management firm, which emphasized Solana's notable advantages on the social media platform X.

Despite expectations, Bloomberg's ETF analyst James Seyffart casts doubt on the imminent arrival of a Solana ETF, citing the US Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) ongoing scrutiny. The SEC's classification of SOL as a security in its recent lawsuits against major exchanges Binance and Coinbase may be a significant hurdle. 

Nevertheless, Solana may still have a chance to secure its own ETF in the future. This prospect appears to hinge on whether SOL is listed on the prestigious Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), following in the footsteps of Bitcoin and Ethereum. Industry insiders believe that SOL and other prominent cryptocurrencies like ADA and DOT will eventually be listed on the CME, particularly since the exchange began providing pricing data for these assets in 2022.

Beyond the excitement surrounding ETF speculation, Solana garnered attention in January by introducing Token Extensions, a new development designed to facilitate widespread adoption among institutional investors. Essentially, these extensions represent fresh token standards on the Solana platform, boasting integrated compliance and privacy safeguards to meet the specific needs of institutional users.

Obstacles Facing Solana

Despite the positive developments, Solana's progress was hindered by a significant setback in early February when the network suffered unexpected downtime. This marked the first such incident in nearly 12 months. However, it's important to note that Solana's team swiftly addressed the issue, demonstrating their commitment to maintaining the network's stability. A thorough investigation subsequently identified the outage's root cause as a known bug previously flagged by developers, reassuring us of Solana's ability to overcome challenges and continue its upward trajectory.

Institutional investors prioritize consistency and stability above all else, so Solana's downtime may have affected their trust in the project. Nevertheless, this setback did not prevent Abu Dhabi from collaborating with Solana to develop blockchain solutions. Moreover, it did not deter Sam Bankman-Fried, the embattled founder of FTX, from promoting SOL to his prison authorities.

In addition, Binance revealed in March 2024 that it had put a temporary hold on withdrawals due to overwhelming network activity on the Solana blockchain. Around the same time, Coinbase users may recall similar notifications. Clearly, the Solana network became overwhelmed due to the surging popularity of memecoins, which reached a fever pitch and generated hundreds of millions of dollars in presale revenue on the platform.

Several people drew parallels between these pre-sales and the excitement surrounding Ethereum's initial coin offering (ICO) during the bullish market 2017. Yet, the underlying technical causes of the problems caused by this congestion may be obscure. A deeper understanding reveals that the congestion problems primarily stemmed from the Maximum Extractable Value (MEV) mechanism provided by Solana clients, particularly Jito, which ceased its mempool functionality in March 2024.

To clarify for those who may not know, MEV gives validators the ability to reorder transactions in a way that boosts their earnings. As a result, some transactions may not be processed successfully, leading to exchange problems.

Furthermore, transactions are temporarily stored in mempools before being included in the blockchain. While Solana's fundamental structure does not include a mempool, Jito's block engine, which aims to maximize extractable value (MEV), does have one. As a result, numerous expensive front-running attacks have been carried out on cryptocurrency traders, including sandwich attacks.

In the end, the Jito Labs team sees negative MEV, including sandwich attacks, as a hindrance to the Solana ecosystem, which is why they have decided to suspend it. Nonetheless, they are committed to providing an additional revenue stream for validators and stakers while striving to make Solana the top choice for all users in terms of performance.

On a positive note, Jito's bundle and block processing systems remain functional, and the rewards for maximizing extractor value (MEV) have not experienced a significant decline. Moreover, the attractive economic benefits will likely motivate teams to develop similar mempool solutions inspired by Jito's model.

It's worth noting that Franklin Templeton remains optimistic about Solana's prospects, as evidenced by a recent research report shared with its clients, which argues that memecoins can successfully drive user growth. This suggests that the recent surge in memecoin popularity may be intentionally orchestrated to achieve this goal. The results support this theory, with Solana reportedly surpassing Ethereum in terms of decentralized exchange trading volume.


Source: X

SOL’s Price Movement 

Solana's price movement has been influenced by its recent updates, announcements, and progress, leading to significant SOL value growth. Analysis of on-chain data indicates that this surge in price may be attributed to the popularity of memecoins, with an increase in user activity and transactions on the Solana network. This trend is further supported by the growing adoption of the Phantom wallet browser extension, which has now surpassed 3 million downloads.

Let's take a step back to appreciate the rapid progress: just six months ago, Phantom had 2 million downloads—this stark contrast highlights Solana's astounding growth rate, which is accelerating at an incredible pace. A closer look at on-chain data reveals a remarkable surge in Solana accounts, with growth rates reminiscent of the crypto market's peak in 2021.

According to DappRadar's statistics, the Raydium DEX on Solana has attracted nearly 1.3 million unique wallets, while the Magic Eden NFT Marketplace has gained 300,000 new wallets. This indicates a resurgence in Solana's NFT environment. Current data shows that Solana NFT transactions have reached a significant milestone of $5 billion in trading volume.


Source: DappRadar

The importance of this lies in the fact that SOL is a necessary prerequisite for purchasing memecoins and NFTs on the Solana platform. As a result, any individual seeking to invest in or speculate on these digital assets must initially acquire SOL, thereby generating a surge in demand. This increased demand has been the primary force driving up the value of SOL over the past few months.

However, that only addresses the demand side of the situation. When considering the supply side of the equation, historical information indicates that the SOL supply has risen by around 20 million in the past six months. Therefore, using an estimated price of $150 per SOL could lead to potential selling pressure amounting to as high as $3 billion.

Despite significant selling pressure, SOL's price came remarkably close to reaching a record high, implying that the demand was exceptionally strong, possibly exceeding $3 billion. Alternatively, the selling pressure may have been overstated. Nevertheless, observing the substantial funds invested in memecoins is quite revealing.

As mentioned in this article, the rise in popularity of memecoins is thought to be caused by the absence of new retail investors entering the market. This situation may have encouraged large-scale investors, known as "whales,"  to target the existing retail investors familiar with decentralized exchanges (DEXs), leading to the hype surrounding memecoins. Despite the underlying reasons, Solana (SOL) displays a strongly optimistic outlook across various time frames.


Source: Messari

Solana’s Actual Road Map For 2024

Solana developed a de facto roadmap for 2024, established by the Solana Foundation in January. This plan includes four key milestones. The first milestone was the introduction of Token Extensions, completed in January. The second milestone involves the rollout of new validator clients, such as Fire Dancer, which is already operational on the testnet. Without delving into complex technical details, validator clients effectively enable validators to engage with the blockchain, enhancing network performance. 

The introduction of the Fire Dancer client is expected to substantially boost Solana's speed, although the exact improvement remains uncertain. Anatoly Yakovenko, the founder of Solana, mentioned in a December 2023 discussion that the Fire Dancer client is anticipated to be launched by the upcoming Breakpoint Conference in September 2024.

Interesting tidbit: With the successful integration of Fire Dancer, Solana will finally shed its beta label. This milestone, combined with the anticipated boost in performance, is expected to have a profoundly positive impact on SOL's value. Many experts believe this could be the spark that propels SOL to surpass the $300 mark in the upcoming weeks.

The next significant benchmark on Solana's defacto roadmap is unspecified institutional support. This milestone marks a crucial step forward, indicating that businesses now have unrestricted access to a comprehensive suite of tools necessary for building on the Solana platform. Furthermore, given Solana's ambition to emulate a decentralized version of the NASDAQ exchange, the integration of tokenized, real-world assets is likely on the horizon.

The following key objective is establishing a “mature building ecosystem,” where Solana’s developers are encouraged to leverage the full range of tools to create innovative products and services on the platform. The authors identify six critical focus areas: developing gaming finance applications, (GameFi) decentralized autonomous organizations, (DAOs)  permission products, infrastructure solutions, payment systems, and interoperability features.

The Solana Foundation recently announced a new milestone in a blog post involving an upcoming upgrade to address Solana's congestion problems. This upgrade began in mid-April and may include potential MEV functionality.

The Governance Forum of Solana has indicated that it plans to develop a new governance framework. An article published in August 2023 mentions that the introduction of this governance structure is expected in the first quarter of 2024. However, it remains to be seen whether it has been finalized at this point.

Closing Thoughts on Solana

Anatoly Yakovenko, the mastermind behind Solana, noted in an interview the importance of considering the potential shift in efficiency between decentralized and centralized exchanges. As decentralized exchanges become more effective, centralized cryptocurrency exchanges will likely transition to utilizing the decentralized blockchain for enhanced efficiency. Solana is determined to be at the forefront of this shift and has a strong possibility of emerging as the go-to blockchain solution.

Solana boasts 29.7 million active accounts and 340 million minted NFTs. With fast block times at 400ms and a low median TX fee of $0.00064, the network is known for its energy efficiency and zero net carbon impact. Despite notable obstacles, the Solana ecosystem has shown impressive resilience and sustained expansion. It has emerged as a leading candidate for managing millions of users on decentralized trading platforms.

Solana is an impressive venture supported by influential figures who believe in the network. The team is both reliable and innovative. Despite being in beta, Solana has demonstrated its capabilities beyond just a polished interface, processing billions of transactions. Additionally, the company started modestly without relying on massive amounts of venture capital, focusing on achieving tangible outcomes. These aspects collectively indicate a focus on delivering results.

Markethive Thrives On The Solana Blockchain

Solana is a perfect fit for the Markethive ecosystem, empowering the Markethive to further its mission of creating a fully decentralized platform for social media, marketing, and broadcasting where users can freely express themselves without fear of censorship. This all-encompassing ecosystem provides a comprehensive suite of tools for social media, marketing, broadcasting, publishing, eCommerce, and business facilitation. Ultimately, this collaboration aims to create an environment where individuals from diverse backgrounds can flourish in a cottage industry economy.

A key long-term goal is to launch the Markethive blockchain and decentralized exchange (DEX). This comprehensive project, designed to operate independently at every level, will resist the oppressive forces affecting societies worldwide. Multiple components of Markethive's ecosystem are being developed in tandem, preparing the way for the millions seeking a safe haven and reclaiming their independence. We have established our sovereign merchant account and successfully activated the Markethive wallet.

To conduct transactions through your Markethive wallet, you will need Solana's native coin (SOL) for the transaction fees, as Markethive’s Hivecoin (HVC) is a Solana token. Sending HVC involves paying gas fees. If Hivecoin were based on the Ethereum network, sending 10 HVC would cost $4.16. However, because Hivecoin is built on the Solana Network, the cost of sending 10 HVC is just $0.00003, which is a minuscule amount by comparison.

SOL can be purchased from a wallet like Solflare, Trust, or Exodus and then sent to your Markethive Solana sub-wallet. Watch this video for a step-by-step guide on setting up and utilizing the Exodus wallet to purchase SOL. To begin building your SOL reserves, leverage Solana's numerous faucets, which offer free SOL in exchange for participation. As detailed in this article, you can also take advantage of airdrops through Trojan On Solana

Markethive originated from modest roots without the backing of influential investors. Instead, it was created by the people and for the people, forming a collaborative environment that empowers entrepreneurs. The true beneficiaries of this system are its grassroots community, who will collectively reap the rewards and share in the prosperity and abundance that permeates every level of humanity. 

Keep updated on the advancements of Markethive as we implement our innovative new system—a secure Divine fortress impervious to malevolent forces. Join us for the weekly meetings held every Sunday at 8 a.m. Mountain Time. You can access the meeting via the invitation link in the Markethive calendar.

This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.


 

Editor and Chief Markethive: Deb Williams. (Australia) I thrive on progress and champion freedom of speech.  I embrace "Change" with a passion, and my purpose in life is to enlighten people to accept and move forward with enthusiasm. Find me at my Markethive Profile Page | My Twitter Account | and my LinkedIn Profile.

 

 

 

 

Tim Moseley

Gold rises on weaker dollar as investors eye multiple economic reports including PCE

Gold rises on weaker dollar as investors eye multiple economic reports, including PCE

Gold futures saw modest gains on Monday, primarily driven by a weakening dollar. As of 4:15 PM ET, the most active August gold contract settled at $2,345.90, up $11.20 or 0.48%. The dollar index declined by 0.35% to 105.491, contributing significantly to gold's upward movement.

Investors are bracing for a busy final week of the month, with several crucial economic reports on the horizon. The Conference Board's June Consumer Confidence report, due Tuesday, is expected to show a slight decline to 100, down two points from the previous month.

Thursday will bring a flurry of economic data. The Commerce Department is set to release its third and final revision of the first-quarter GDP, projected to remain steady at 1.3%. Additionally, advance readings for May's goods trade balance and wholesale inventories will be published. Analysts anticipate a 0.1% decline in durable goods orders.

The week's most anticipated report is the May Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) data from the Commerce Department. According to a Reuters poll of economists, the headline PCE is expected to remain unchanged month-over-month while showing a 10-basis-point decrease to 2.6% annually.

Investors will closely monitor the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation measure, the core PCE, which excludes volatile food and energy prices. Forecasts suggest monthly and annual readings of 0.1% and 2.6%, respectively, both lower than April's figures.

Several Federal Reserve officials are scheduled to speak throughout the week. Mary Daly, president and CEO of the San Francisco Federal Reserve, addressed the San Francisco Commonwealth Club, emphasizing the need for higher interest rates to curb demand and inflation. Her remarks will be followed by speeches from Fed governors Lisa Cook and Michelle Bowman later in the week.

While economic reports and Fed comments will largely influence gold prices, the CME's FedWatch tool indicates that traders currently see a 67.7% probability of a rate cut in September.

Kitco Media

Gary Wagner

Time to Buy Gold and Silver

Tim Moseley

BTC Price Will Hit 10 Million A Coin

Bitcoin Is ‘Economic Immortality’, BTC Price Will Hit $10 Million A Coin — Michael Saylor

By Brenda Ngari – June 24, 2024

One of the crypto industry’s best-known pundits insists that Bitcoin will reach $10 million per coin.

In a recent 84-minute podcast interview, Michael Saylor, co-founder and executive chairman of business intelligence firm MicroStrategy, explained how Bitcoin offers “economic immortality” and claimed the entire country of China would support the benchmark cryptocurrency.

Bitcoin To Eliminate Challenges Of Corporate Mortality

During the discussion with Bitcoin podcast host Robin Seyr, Michael Saylor shared the belief that companies investing in Bitcoin are positioned to outlive those stuck in the corporate dysfunction of old. Saylor believes Bitcoin helps eliminate corporate mortality by extending economic vitality “by a factor of 10, maybe by a factor of a hundred, maybe by a factor of a million.”

By acting as a secure, verifiable store of value, Bitcoin can enable the efficient transfer of capital across generations, essentially serving society as a sort of corporate immortality machine.

This vision stems from the flagship crypto’s ability to hedge against traditional economic shortcomings like inflation and fiat currency devaluation. The Bitcoin bull argues that “perfect money,” like Bitcoin, safeguards against such pitfalls, while “imperfect money,” like fiat currencies, makes firms vulnerable.

Saylor further postulates that Bitcoin’s decentralized design and fast transaction speeds have the potential to profoundly reform global payments, offering a near-instantaneous, cheaper alternative to legacy banking systems. This could be especially revolutionary in developing economies, where citizens have little access to financial services.

“Capital has never been programmable before, but with science, Bitcoin allows us to channel capital through time and space. This means we could eventually enable global payments for 8 billion people at the speed of light, directly from a mobile phone, without intermediaries,” he posited.

Why Bitcoin Is Poised To Reach $10 Million, Earn Support From China

Saylor is optimistic that the Chinese people and government would embrace Bitcoin. He suggests the possibility of a Chinese-listed Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), which would grant China’s massive population exposure to the benchmark crypto:

“When the Bank of Shanghai rolls out a Bitcoin ETF, providing custody services, it will give access to 1.5 billion people in China.”

While it remains uncertain that China will make this move, spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs have already been conditionally approved in Hong Kong. This widespread adoption, Saylor asserts, would considerably impact global Bitcoin prices and usher in a new era of financial stability.

More striking, however, the outspoken Bitcoin evangelist predicted that a single Bitcoin would cost $10 million at some point in the future. This sky-high price prediction highlights Saylor’s belief in Bitcoin’s long-term value proposition.

Saylor has not only led MicroStrategy to its purchase of 226,331 BTC worth over $14 billion over the past almost four years — the latest being the acquisition of 11,931 BTC just last week — but he’s also evangelized for other corporations to make Bitcoin a part of their treasury strategies.

DISCLAIMER The views expressed in the article are wholly those of the author and do not represent those of, nor should they be attributed to, ZyCrypto. This article is not meant to give financial advice. Please carry out your own research before investing in any of the various cryptocurrencies available.

The original article written by Brenda Ngari and posted on ZyCrypto.com.

Article reposted on Markethive by Jeffrey Sloe

** Loans, secure funding for business projects in the USA and around the world. Learn more about USA & International Financing at Commercial Funding International. **

Tim Moseley

NY Fed warns of risk to major US banks ‘something amiss in the banking system’ says Soloway

NY Fed warns of risk to major U.S. banks, 'something amiss in the banking system,' says Soloway

NY Fed warns of risk to major U.S. banks, 'something amiss in the banking system,' says Soloway teaser image

here is something "amiss" in the U.S. banking sector, says Gareth Soloway, Chief Market Strategist at VerifiedInvesting.com, warning that big institutional players are "unloading" the stocks of big banks.

"I'm hearing a lot of chatter about the big banks unloading bad debt right now, trying to get ahead of some sort of crisis looming," Soloway tells Michelle Makori, Lead Anchor and Editor-in-Chief at Kitco News. "Because interest rates are so high, the amount of losses in mortgage-backed securities potentially rival what we saw in 2008 and 2009. In addition, the commercial real estate market is in tatters. And these are all things that banks are holding on their balance sheets."

Soloway points to the SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF (KRE), noting the formation of a bear flag pattern since the banking crisis lows of April last year. Watch the video above for Soloway's breakdown.

There has also been a technical breakdown in the stocks of some of the bigger banks, including JPMorgan, according to Soloway.

"This trend line breakdown just started on JPMorgan, Citigroup has already broken down," Soloway added. "There are signs that something is amiss within the banking system, whether it's the bear flag in the KRE or in these bigger banks. There are some bigger players that are unloading the big banks here."

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell commented on the banking sector at the June press conference following the central bank's two-day monetary policy meeting.

"The banking system has been solid, strong, well-capitalized lending. We've seen good performance by the banks. We had turmoil early last year, but banks have been focusing on bringing up their liquidity, bringing up their capital, and having risk management plans in place. So, the banking system seems to be in good shape," Powell said.

Soloway reacted to Powell's comment by pointing out that the Fed Chair would never come out and say there is a big issue in the banking system. "Think about the fire that would spread in the market crash that would ensue if he said that," Soloway noted.

Soloway's warning comes as the New York Fed's Liberty Street Economics blog cautioned of U.S. big banks facing growing spillover risks from non-banks.

During periods of increased market volatility, liquidity demand accelerates, putting pressure on banks as non-banks look for loans and lines of credit. This could trigger "vectors of shock transmission and amplification, forcing authorities to intervene and do so en masse," the post said, adding that the disruptions "could be rather severe."

 

At the same time, the Federal Reserve pointed to weaknesses in four of the biggest banks on Wall Street regarding how they would handle their own failures.

According to a joint statement released Friday by the U.S. central bank and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the regulators spotted shortcomings in the so-called "living wills" of JPMorgan, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs Group, and Citigroup.

"For the four banks with an identified shortcoming, the letters describe the specific weaknesses resulting in the shortcoming and the remedial actions required by the agencies," the agencies said.

Soloway also revealed the black swan event investors need to pay close attention to in the year's second half. Watch the video above for insights.

In addition, Soloway shared his technical analysis of gold, silver, and Bitcoin. Watch the video above for his short-term and long-term price forecasts.

Kitco Media

Anna Golubova

Time to Buy Gold and Silver

Tim Moseley

How to Make Money Online

How to Make Money Online

TOP AFFILIATE PROGRAMS FOR EARNING ONLINE

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If you have expertise in a particular field, consider creating and selling online courses or ebooks. Platforms like Udemy and Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing make it easy to reach a wide audience.

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Starting a blog can be a lucrative way to make money online through advertising, affiliate marketing, and sponsored content. Choose a niche you are passionate about and create high-quality content to attract readers. Monetization options include:

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Dropshipping is an ecommerce model where you sell products without holding inventory. When a customer makes a purchase, the product is shipped directly from the supplier to the customer. Popular dropshipping platforms include:

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Many companies now offer remote work opportunities in various fields such as customer service, sales, and IT. Websites like Remote.co and We Work Remotely list job openings that you can apply for.

CONCLUSION

Making money online requires dedication, patience, and the willingness to learn. Start by exploring the methods that best align with your skills and interests, and gradually build your online income streams. Remember, success doesn't happen overnight, but with persistence, you can achieve your financial goals.

If you found this guide helpful, be sure to share it with others who might benefit from it. Subscribe to our newsletter for more tips and strategies on making money online.

Tim Moseley

Gold Price News: Gold Rallies as Geopolitics Back in Focus

Gold Price News: Gold Rallies as Geopolitics Back in Focus

Gold enjoyed a strong, but somewhat volatile session yesterday, briefly spiking to the two-week (pre-Fed) high of $2,364/toz before profit-taking set in. Still, gold has moved decisively through the 50-day simple moving average at $2,343/toz. If held, next resistance level is at the 7 June high at $2,387/toz. Today’s early trading sees gold at $2,359/toz.

While this latest rally has been framed as an indication of markets’ increasing confidence of US rate cuts later this year, rate markets tell another story. Gold has risen as both US 2-Year and 10-Year Treasury yields have edged up and US Fed Fund Futures pricing in a slightly lower probability of cuts in 2024. While this back up in rates markets has been small, it is certainly not gold supportive. The answer lies elsewhere.

A far more plausible explanation is that markets are now pricing in higher levels of geopolitical risk and gold’s rise has notably been accompanied by an uptick in the safe-haven US dollar.

Investors’ anxiety over French parliamentary elections on 30 June and 7 July have been heightened by the European Commission recommended placing France into an Excessive (budget) Deficit Procedure on Wednesday. This has exacerbated concerns in the French bond market, sending credit spreads against German Bunds to a 7-year high.

Meanwhile, Russia’s President Putin has just signed a mutual defence pact with a nuclear-armed North Korea. It is difficult to argue that geopolitical risk hasn’t risen – with gold a likely beneficiary.

 

The market calendar for today includes Euro Area, UK and US flash PMI data for June, with a focus on the Prices Paid and New Orders sub-components as lead indicators of inflation and growth respectively.

Mike is a market strategist and media commentator with 30 years of experience analysing precious metals markets. He developed his expertise working as an investment banker in emerging markets such as South Africa, Russia and Chile. His focus on precious metals was extended through subsequent work within private wealth management and his own research consultancy. During this time, he covered the gold, silver, platinum and palladium markets.

Mike Ingram

Time to Buy Gold and Silver

Tim Moseley

Wall Street reaches perfect equilibrium of indecision on gold prices Main Street maintains optimistic outlook

Wall Street reaches perfect equilibrium of indecision on gold prices, Main Street maintains optimistic outlook

The gold market saw one of its least dramatic weeks of the year this week, but as has been the case of late, it saved some drama for market participants for the end.

Spot gold kicked off the week trading at $2,332.64, and after sliding to a daily low of $2,311.50 around noon EDT on Monday, it did very little other than set the weekly low of $2,307.38 early Tuesday morning.

So steady and narrow was the sideways churn that by the middle of the day Wednesday, which also marked the Juneteenth holiday in the United States, gold had traded in only about a $20 range and found itself flat on the week.

U.S. traders brought renewed energy to the markets with their return on Thursday morning, driving spot gold from $2,332 in the early morning to the then-high of $2,364.09 by 10:45 am EDT. Gold then traded in its newly elevated range between $2,350 and the weekly high of $2,367.70 until Friday morning’s precipitous decline that saw spot gold slide from $2,363.71 at 9 am EDT all the way to $2,317.70 shortly after 1 pm, leaving traders and investors wondering whether the key psychological support level of $2,300 per ounce would hold into Friday's close.

The latest Kitco News Weekly Gold Survey shows industry experts indecisive about gold’s near-term path, while retail sentiment remains positive.

Marc Chandler, Managing Director at Bannockburn Global Forex, sees geopolitics pushing bullion prices higher next week.

“US rates remain soft and although Mexico’s president-elect has made some market-friendly cabinet appointments, political tensions continue to run high in Europe (EU, France, and UK),” he said. “And we note elevated tension between China and the Philippines.”

Chandler said the slippage in U.S. rates “seems to run against the grain of the rally in crude oil, where the Aug WTI contract reached its highest level since the end of April.”

“The yellow metal is testing the $2368 area, and a push higher could see $2388-$2390,” he concluded.

“BULL,” wrote Mark Leibovit, publisher of the VR Metals/Resource Letter.

“Down,” countered Adrian Day, President of Adrian Day Asset Management. “Gold is in a short-term trading range right now and, after last week’s rally, could pull back next week. The market is in a holding pattern, looking for news on the resumption of Chinese official gold buying as well as clarity on US inflation and employment, which will provide insight into the timing of any rate cut.”

Darin Newsom, Senior Market Analyst at Barchart.com, sees gold prices trending higher next week.

“August gold’s short-term uptrend has turned up on the contract’s daily chart, with August posting a new 4-day high of $2,5379.50 Thursday,” Newsom wrote. “While the early part of next week could see renewed light selling interest, by the time we get to next Friday, the contract should be higher again.”

Newsom said he’s looking for a higher weekly close this week and next, which would constitute a string of three straight weeks against the intermediate-term downtrend on the August contract’s weekly chart. “At that point, based on the Benjamin Franklin Fish Analogy (Like guests and fish, markets start to stink after three days/week/months of moving against the trend), I’m looking for the futures contract to turn down again,” he said.

“The short-term upside target area is between $2,370 and $2,390, with an outside shot at $2,410.”

Analysts at CPM Group are also projecting higher gold prices over the next week or two.

“A wide range of political, economic, and financial market issues are likely to push gold higher, toward $2,400 if not $2,450 during this time,” they said. “A stronger dollar is not likely to be a negative for gold: The dollar and gold are both expected to find strong investor demand as the safer currencies to be in. Silver prices are expected to exhibit strength next week ahead of the July Comex futures delivery period starting on 28 May, which may help pull gold prices higher.”

“The increase may be short-lived, however, and dissipate beyond the first week of July,” the analysts warned.

This week, 14 Wall Street analysts participated in the Kitco News Gold Survey, and their responses produced a perfect equilibrium of indecision about the near-term prospects for precious metals. Five experts, representing 62%, expect to see gold prices climb higher next week, while an equal number of analysts predict a price decline. The remaining four, or 28% of the total, expect gold to trade sideways during the coming week.

Meanwhile, 209 votes were cast in Kitco’s online poll, with Main Street investors maintaining their positive outlook on the yellow metal. 114 retail traders, or 55%, look for gold prices to rise next week. Another 38, or 18%, expected the yellow metal to trade lower, while 57 respondents, representing the remaining 27%, saw prices chopping sideways during the week ahead.

The highlight of next week's economic news calendar is the release of the core PCE price index report for May, as markets will be very interested to see if the Federal Reserve's preferred measure of inflation shows further improvement, increasing the likelihood of interest rate cuts in 2024.

Markets will also receive U.S. consumer confidence for June, the S&P Case Shiller home price index for April on Tuesday, and MBA mortgage applications, new home sales, and the results of the Federal Reserve’s bank stress tests on Wednesday. Thursday will bring the May durable goods report and final Q1 GDP, along with initial jobless claims and pending home sales for May, and the week wraps up with the final University of Michigan consumer sentiment for June on Friday.

There will also be a battery of central bank speakers for markets to tune in to, including the Fed's Waller and Daly on Monday, speeches from Cook and Bowman on Tuesday, and Barkin and Bowman again on Friday.

Daniel Pavilonis, Senior Commodities Broker at RJO Futures, said gold appears to be in its summer doldrums, but there’s a lot more happening under the surface.

“If you look at the retracement of the dollar, the dollar is still moving higher, we're inching our way up there, and we're also looking at energy prices move higher,” he said. “This could cause a rebound in rates, which may put some pressure on gold.”

“But ultimately, we're going to see some major headwinds here coming into the elections, and possibly some flaring up of rates in Europe with the situation in France, and French yields moving higher because of the elections.”

“At the base of it, everywhere you look, in terms of de-dollarization, rates, debt, political instability, I still think this is very, very beneficial for gold,” he said. “But it may take a little bit of a pause here.”

Regarding gold’s slide on Friday, Pavilonis said he thinks it was likely driven by hawkish Fed commentary.

“I think some of it was the Fed talk yesterday, with Brainard, on the possibility of not cutting rates,” he said. “Then, coming into this morning, we had some European data that was maybe weighing on the markets, but then we had the global composite PMI and manufacturing PMI, and I think that ticked a little bit higher.”

Pavilonis said the data is inconclusive right now, and it’s creating a weird situation for market participants. “Are we walking into a recession because rates are too tight, or are they not tight enough?” he asked rhetorically. “Some of the data is just all over the place, and I think it's causing a little bit of uncertainty in the market.”

While Pavilonis sees a lot of global instability pushing gold prices higher in the coming months, as far as next week is concerned, he still thinks the yellow metal could fall further.

“I still think there may be some downside,” he said. “We have that double top up there around $2,440. We come back and we try to make a new high, and we actually make a new low, and then we start grinding higher from the beginning of June, all the way to where we've been over the last couple of days… but the candlesticks on the daily [chart] on futures don't look that great.”

“I think the path of least resistance is to the downside,” he concluded. “Maybe we start getting back down to $2,250, somewhere around there.”

Michael Moor, founder of Moor Analytics, wrote that based on where gold is trading on Friday, the charts are indicating further downside.

“The trade above 23386 (-1.2 tics per/hour) should bring in decent strength,” he said. “Decent trade back below 23520 (-2 tics per/hour starting at 6:00am) should bring in decent pressure. Decent trade below 23249 (+1 tic per/hour) will project this downward $35 minimum.”

And Kitco Senior Analyst Jim Wyckoff said traders appear to be positioning themselves long for next week.

“The near-term technical postures have turned more bullish for gold and silver this week, which is inviting the chart-based speculators to the long sides of the markets,” he said. “Technically, August gold bulls have the overall near-term technical advantage. Bulls’ next upside price objective is to produce a close above solid resistance at the June high of $2,406.70. Bears' next near-term downside price objective is pushing futures prices below solid technical support at the June low of $2,304.20.”

 

“First resistance is seen at $2,390.00 and then at $2,400.00,” Wyckoff said. “First support is seen at the overnight low of $2,368.60 and then at $2,300.00.”

Spot gold last traded at $2322.89 at the time of writing for a loss of 1.59% on the day and 0.41% on the week.t

Ernest Hoffman

Time to Buy Gold and Silver

Tim Moseley

Gold price testing resistance at 2350 but largely ignores 55 drop in US housing starts

Gold price testing resistance at $2,350 but largely ignores 5.5% drop in U.S. housing starts

Gold price testing resistance at $2,350 but largely ignores 5.5% drop in U.S. housing starts teaser image

The U.S. housing sector continues to struggle as the construction of new homes falls to its lowest level in nine months.

The gold market is not seeing much reaction to the disappointing data, as the price manages to push above initial resistance at $2,350 an ounce.

Housing starts dropped 5.5% in May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.277 million units, the Commerce Department said on Thursday. The data came in lower than expected, as economists looked for a rate of 1.37 million units.

Meanwhile, the report said that housing construction compared to last year is down nearly 20%.

The gold market continues to consolidate as it pays little attention to economic data. August gold futures last traded at $2,350.50 an ounce, up 0.15% on the day.

At the same time, a further decline in building permits issued last month does not bode well for a sustained recovery in the housing market anytime soon. The report said that building permits for future homebuilding declined 3.8% to a rate of 1.386 million last month, compared to April’s revised estimate of 1.444 million permits.

The issuance of building permits is down 9.5% for the year.

Although the latest housing data continues to disappoint, it has not surprised many economists as the sector faces some significant headwinds.

The Federal Reserve’s aggressive monetary policy stance has kept mortgage rates elevated. At the same time, a lack of supply has pushed home prices higher, pricing many potential home buyers out of the marketplace.

Relief for the housing market could come after the summer as markets expect the U.S. central bank to cut rates in September.

Kitco Media

Neils Christensen

Time to Buy Gold and Silver

Tim Moseley

Gold and silver caught in prolonged consolidation but prices will head higher – Saxo Bank

Gold and silver caught in prolonged consolidation but prices will head higher – Saxo Bank

Although gold and silver are stuck in neutral at elevated levels, one market analyst remains a long-term bull on precious metals.

le Hansen, Head of Commodity Strategy at Saxo Bank, published a report Tuesday saying investors and traders are just catching their breath after the market’s nearly $250 rally from its February lows to its peak above $2450 an ounce last month.

Hansen added that although gold has lost some momentum, there is very little bearish sentiment in the marketplace as investors and money managers see no urgency to take profits.

He explained that many hedge funds jumped into gold when prices were still below $2,200 an ounce. This sentiment is helping gold hold sticky support at around $2,300 an ounce.

“It is clear that the bulk of the run-up in prices back in February and March was supported by strong demand from managed money traders, such as hedge funds. Having joined the rally at an early stage, they have subsequently not been forced to adjust (sell) positions as the current correction phase has kept prices above levels that otherwise would have forced them to reduce their exposure,” he said in the report.

“Getting on board early and at much lower levels helps explain why the current gold volatility is relatively low compared with other metals such as silver, platinum, and copper, where speculators joined a bit later and at higher prices, leaving them more exposed to long liquidation and with that, the risk of a deeper correction,” Hansen added.

Looking ahead, Hansen said that one of the biggest pillars of support in the marketplace comes from gold’s role as a safe-haven asset and hedge against market risks as geopolitical uncertainty continues to impact the global economy.

At the same time, Hansen said that growing sovereign debt is also forcing central banks to continue to diversify their foreign reserves away from the U.S. dollar.

As to how long gold and silver’s prolonged consolidation will last, Hansen said that is up to the Federal Reserve. He noted that while retail investors in Asia and central banks continue to support the market, it is still missing a key component: investor demand.

“Gold and silver continue to see limited interest from ETF investors who have remained mostly net sellers since 2022 when the FOMC began its aggressive rate-hiking campaign, raising the cost of carry, or opportunity cost, of holding a non-coupon-paying metal investment. Demand from ETF investors will likely remain subdued until interest rates are lowered, and this cost is reduced,” he said.

Kitco Media

Neils Christensen

Time to Buy Gold and Silver

Tim Moseley

The Artist that came out of the Winter