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Gold silver back off after better-than-expected US manufacturing reports

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Gold, silver back off after better-than-expected U.S. manufacturing reports

Gold prices are moderately lower and silver has lost all the big early price gains in midday U.S. trading Monday. Some upbeat U.S. economic data and positive remarks from the head of the largest U.S. bank worked to pressure the two precious metals markets. June gold was last down $8.10 at $1,990.90 and July silver was down $0.006 at $25.25.

(By the way, I encourage you to check out my new daily item, "Kitco daily macro-economic/business digest." If you need to be up to speed quickly on the latest news that's impacting or has the potential to impact the general marketplace, this report can be your one-stop shopping. Check it out and let me know what you think.)

The gold and silver markets saw selling pressure develop at mid-morning, right after the U.S. ISM April manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) and U.S. construction spending reports came in better than market expectations. Also, JP Morgan chief Jamie Dimon said in a conference call after JP Morgan took over the failed First Republic Bank that the U.S. banking sector is now very healthy. Earlier, some safe-haven demand in gold and silver was seen following the weekend news the FDIC shut First Republic in the second-largest U.S. bank failure ever.

On tap this week is the Federal Reserve's Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting that begins Tuesday and ends Wednesday afternoon. Gold and silver traders today reckoned fresh on the FOMC members' minds will be today's better U.S. manufacturing data, which favors the monetary policy hawks. The FOMC is expected to raise the key U.S. interest rate by 0.25%. The European Central Bank also meets Thursday. The ECB is also expected to raise its main interest rate by a quarter-point. Also, on Friday comes the U.S. employment situation report from the Labor Department. Corporate earnings reports continue to flow out this week, including Apple's results.

  S&P 500 will crash 20% as 'panic' sets in and gold hits $2,300 in 2023, Fed will cause 'more tremors' in banking sector – Gareth Soloway

Global stock markets were mostly higher overnight. Some European markets were closed for a holiday. U.S. stock indexes are mixed at midday. The U.S. stock index bulls had a good week last week, including the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indexes on Friday closing at technically bullish weekly and monthly high closes.

The key outside markets today see the U.S. dollar index solidly higher. Nymex crude oil prices are lower and trading around $75.50 a barrel. The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note yield is presently fetching 3.551% and up today. These three markets were daily bearish elements for the gold and silver markets.

Technically, June gold futures bulls have the firm overall near-term technical advantage. However, a price uptrend on the daily bar chart has been negated. Bulls' next upside price objective is to produce a close above solid resistance at the April high of $2,063.40. Bears' next near-term downside price objective is pushing futures prices below solid technical support at the April low of $1,965.90. First resistance is seen at $2,000.00 and then at today's high of $2,015.40. First support is seen at $1,980.90 and then at $1,965.90. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.0

July silver futures bulls have the firm overall near-term technical advantage. Silver bulls' next upside price objective is closing prices above solid technical resistance at the April high of $26.435. The next downside price objective for the bears is closing prices below solid support at $23.00. First resistance is seen at $25.80 and then at $26.00. Next support is seen at $25.00 and then at last week's low of $24.735. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.0.

July N.Y. copper closed up 495 points at 394.00 cents today. Prices closed near mid-range. The copper bulls and bears are on a level overall near-term technical playing field. Copper bulls' next upside price objective is pushing and closing prices above solid technical resistance at the April high of 418.65 cents. The next downside price objective for the bears is closing prices below solid technical support at the January low of 372.45 cents. First resistance is seen at today's high of 400.50 cents and then at 405.00 cents. First support is seen at today's low of 387.05 cents and then at the April low of 381.65 cents. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 5.0.

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Jim Wyckoff

For Kitco News

Time to Buy Gold and Silver

Tim Moseley

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Mastercard launches Crypto Credential for a more secure verified blockchain experience

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Mastercard launches Crypto Credential for a more secure, verified blockchain experience

  Mastercard has announced the launch of Crypto Credential in an effort to establish a set of common standards and infrastructure that will help attest trusted interactions among consumers and businesses using blockchain networks.

According to the announcement posted on Friday, Crypto Credential is being created to provide a way for trusted, compliant and verifiable interactions to take place on public blockchain networks in order to bring more legitimacy to the blockchain industry.

“With Mastercard Crypto Credential, we can help ensure that those interested in interacting across Web3 environments are meeting defined standards for the types of activities they’d like to pursue,” the press release said. “Mastercard Crypto Credential will not only define verification standards and levels, but also provide necessary enabling technology to help bring more use cases to life.”

One benefit of the new service is that it allows for the creation of easy-to-remember aliases to help consumers share wallet addresses with one another. This helps to improve the consumer experience and reduces the potential for errors.

Crypto Credential will also “bring richer information to blockchain transactions through metadata, helping to define attributes of a wallet to help ensure that transactions are completed as intended,” Mastercard said.

The service will utilize CipherTrace’s suite of services to verify addresses and support Travel Rule compliance for cross-border transactions. Mastercard has partnered with crypto wallet providers Bit2Me, Lirium, Mercado Bitcoin and Uphold to enable transfers between the U.S and Latin America and the Caribbean corridors.

The payments firm has also joined forces with ith public blockchain network organizations Aptos Labs, Ava Labs, Polygon and The Solana Foundation to help introduce the application to developers in their ecosystems. “Together, we’ll collaborate to enhance verification in NFTs, ticketing, enterprise and other payments solutions,” Mastercard said.

This new service is just the latest cryptocurrency-related endeavor to be announced by Mastercard as the firm has been one of the most active multinational financial service providers in the crypto space in recent years.

In October, the firm announced the launch of ‘Crypto Secure’, a new crypto service desk focused on helping banks identify and prevent fraud from occurring on crypto merchant platforms. Later that month, the company launched ‘Crypto Source’, a new program that enables financial institutions to begin offering secure crypto trading services to their customers.

In January, Mastercard partnered with Polygon to launch the Web3-based Mastercard Artist Accelerator program, which is designed to help up-and-coming artists get established and connect with fans in the Web3 arena.

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Jordan Finneseth

For Kitco News

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Tim Moseley

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Gold market is in ‘buy the dip’ mentality until Fed’s messaging analysts watching Powell’s banking sector comments – analysts

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Gold market is in 'buy the dip' mentality until Fed's messaging, analysts watching Powell's banking sector comments – analysts

Gold is stuck in a tight range, with the "buy the dip" mentality dominating the market. Investors are keenly watching the Federal Reserve's widely expected 25-basis-point rate hike next week. But if markets interpret the messaging as a "hawkish pause," gold's rally could re-start, according to analysts.

The gold market is looking to wrap up April with a slight gain of 0.7% after reaching a 13-month high of above $2,050 an ounce earlier in the month. At the time of writing, June Comex gold futures were trading up 0.13% on the day at $2,001.60 an ounce.

"Gold is going to remain a buy-the-dips market until we get a few things ironed out as far as the economy is concerned," Walsh Trading co-director Sean Lusk told Kitco News.

Gold's rally failed at an important level, which might mean there is still a deeper setback to come, Michael Boutros, senior technical strategist at Forex.com, told Kitco News.

"Gold reached the 2022 high-day close at $2,049 and then posted a reversal lower," Boutros said Friday. "The $1,966 is the line in the sand, and we tested it last week. If we fall below that, a deeper washout to $1,912-$1,919 is possible. I would love to see that hold."

The objective in May is to find that exhaustion low before the next leg up in the gold price rally, said Boutros.

The Fed meeting: 'The devil is in the detail'

Markets are currently pricing in an 83% chance of a 25-bps hike on Wednesday, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.

"From the Fed's standpoint, the devil is in the details. The 25 bps is heavily priced in," Boutros said. "Commentary will be key. The big thing to look for is if the Fed will start to mention the banking system and issues like the First Republic Bank troubles."

The banking sector turmoil is not over yet, Boutros warned. "The heavy emphasis will be on whether the Fed sees cracks or risk of contagion," he noted.

Media reports were circulating at the end of the week that the U.S. government was leading rescue talks for First Republic Bank.

Markets are still pricing in rate cuts later in the year, but the majority of analysts are having trouble reconciling the market's expectations versus the Fed's obligation to keep fighting the elevated inflation.

"Inflation won't be going away any time soon, which is why the Fed is not going to cut rates," Lusk said.

What the Fed can do is sit on its hands, which will be viewed by the gold market as the much-needed pause in its rate hike cycle.

"Gold positioning is at less than 50% of its peak, suggesting upside risk once the Fed signals the end of the current hiking cycle," said Suki Copper, precious metals analyst at Standard Chartered. "We expect a hawkish pause."

Many see the May hike as the last one in this tightening cycle, with Boutros stating that a June rate increase is likely off the table.

Gold's fundamentals are bullish: Analysts look for $2,100 on the upside

The gold sector is the safe place many choose to go into for cover amidst all the market uncertainty, said Lusk.

"There is the perfect storm to the upside for gold still. Some headwinds for the economy here are housing and growth. The stock market will have a lot of trouble navigating to where it was. A lot more flows will go into gold sooner rather than later. Gold is a great asset to park money and find some safe haven within the market. Dips will be bought here," he explained.

From a technical perspective, gold's first major support is at $1,950-40, and then $1,925, said Lusk.

On the upside, Lusk's targets are $2,060 and then $2,100, which will be 15% up on the year. "Above that, the $2,190 area is 20% on the year — that's my ultra-bullish upside target," he said.

Another event to watch next week is the U.S. employment report from April, with markets looking for job growth to slow to 178,000 positions added from March's 236,000. The unemployment rate is expected to tick up to 3.6%.

Other supportive gold drivers in the longer term are the debt-ceiling suspense and geopolitical tensions, analysts added. "Geopolitics is not at the forefront right now, but it will be an X-factor moving forward," Boutros said.

 

Data next week

Monday: U.S. ISM manufacturing PMI

Tuesday: U.S. factory orders, JOLTS job openings,

Wednesday: Fed meeting, Powell press conference, U.S. ISM services PMI, U.S. ADP nonfarm employment

Thursday: ECB meeting, U.S. jobless claims,

Friday: U.S. nonfarm payrolls

By

Anna Golubova

For Kitco News

Time to Buy Gold and Silver

Tim Moseley

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8 Altcoins set to EXPLODE HUGE NEWS Best Crypto to Trade amp Invest?

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8 Altcoins set to EXPLODE (HUGE NEWS)! Best Crypto to Trade & Invest?

 Apr 30, 2023  , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 

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8 Altcoins set to EXPLODE (HUGE NEWS)! Best Crypto to Trade & Invest?

The altcoin space is about to get out of control. Here are my top 8 altcoins making huge news for accomplishing huge Milestones, pay very close attention to all eight coins in this list. If you like, crypto, give this video a like comment: what coins we should include on a list like this in the future without further Ado, Aptos is a layer 1 blockchain that uses key elements from Facebook's former blockchain DM launched in October 2022, with a mission to Redefine the web3 user experience today, Aptos is landing some of crypto's biggest strategic Partnerships.

Mastercard, the future of identity is web 3 and Aptos is partnering with MasterCard to make that future a reality with MasterCard's crypto credentials, program, and on-chain identity and verification framework, with a variety of applications in payments, remittances, ticketing, and NFTs as a master card credentials. Partner Aptos will support the infrastructure for identity security, trust, and verification tools that enable the free flow of funds between individuals and across borders.

altcoins

So this program kicks off with remittances between the United States, Latin American countries, and Caribbean countries. In addition, Aptos is partnering with the likes of Google, exciting news, Aptos and Google are back at it again this time with Google's web3 startup program. This collaboration will provide startups with the support and resources needed to develop the infrastructure Bridge platforms and Foster the future of Web 3.

The Google Cloud web3 startup program gives Web 3 startups The Tech Community and the resources they need to explore serious Innovation over reliable infrastructure, enabling the evolution of dapp's web retooling services and more at scale. Aptos is on a mission to bring Web 3 to the masses, and this program is a major step toward that goal.

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For more on this Google partnership, let's hear from the co-founder of Aptos himself Aptos is a layer, one blockchain. It's been designed with evolution in mind. Allows you to support all the use cases of web3 to build applications seamlessly when we think about Aptos and how it's positioned in the market as a network. We want it to be a network that stands the test of time. Its infrastructure and infrastructure need to be reliable, it needs to be scalable and it needs to continue to evolve.

I see the Aptos and Google Cloud partnership, giving users and developers infrastructure that allows them to build easily with things like big query developers, and the ecosystem feels very confident. Google Cloud can help us go to market faster in three ways. The first is developer tooling. The second is ecosystem funding and support, and the third is continuing to support the network growth and providing continuous infrastructure and reliability.

Two industries that are really well positioned to take advantage of Web 3 and aptos's network, our gaming and social media gaming experiences continue to push the boundaries to share experiences with people in multiplayer environments across the world, and now you can share digital assets with those players.

altcoins

Gamers, don't want their experience to be disrupted. You need a network that works really well, it has fast throughput, it has extremely low latency and it has infrastructure. That's completely reliable. Google Cloud and Aptos together can provide that. What we're excited about at Aptos is to help bridge these different platforms connecting people together.

That's the original vision of the Internet. Aptos wants to remain a network that can help bring that Vision to life and we're excited to partner with Google Cloud to make that a reality. You might think you know Cardano. I do think you know this Cardano makes our list today because they have a huge development Milestone coming up, it's called Aiken, it's a new programming language. This will take Cardano's capabilities to the next level by orders of magnitude.

I don't think the broader crypto ecosystem truly understands what's about to happen to Cardano over the next few months. Cardano'S core Tech has always been great, but the major limiting factor has been the developer experience. Those shackles are now about to be completely removed, buckle up a new programming language, that's not Haskell. What's all this about to help answer your questions, let me play you a short clip from a fellow YouTuber and crypto educator. Red spark he's more technically minded.

He breaks down what this new Cardano update is all about. Give him a like give him a follow. He puts out great crypto content, Aiken called Dano the Cardinal-specific language written to make smart contract development a lot easier. Now, for those of you who aren't familiar with Akin, it's a new programming language that was developed as it became obvious that programming in Haskell wasn't quite right. The good thing about Aiken is that it takes inspiration from a lot of other well-known languages and really tries to get the best of every world into one package.

Now, if you like this person and thought Cardano's, smart contracts had to be written in Haskell. While this is a common misconception, the current Cardinal node implementation does indeed happen to be written in her school Cardona uses something called a uplc okay. This is what's actually used by Cardinal smart contracts. Haskell simply just compiles down to uplc Haskell compiles into uplc and you can have other languages compiled into uplc. Ublc does not need Haskell, okay, so that's why we're able to have a language such as Aiken?

altcoins

It's just another way of writing code in a language, and then the compiler will take that code and compile it down into uplc, and I've seen some interesting benchmarks with Akin and these other languages that are popping up whereby they actually compile down into much smaller.

A more efficient file than the official Haskell-based Plutus language, which I thought was quite interesting algorand, is an altcoin that if you subscribe to us, you certainly understand the basics of algorand. By now today, I want to highlight a travel app-oriented project building on Algorand, which shares the three reasons why they chose Al Grant to build on instead of Ethereum from Cointelegraph reporter Rachel Wolfson's podcast.

Why? You guys chose to build on top of Algorand, which is a blockchain network, which is a wonderful blockchain network instead of using something like Ethereum, for instance, mainly because of three reasons.

The first one is the performance. They do have an extremely good performance. The Sigma one is the cost we travel has a very lower Martians. We really needed a network that had really low costs. So that's another reason why we have chosen the algorithm and the third one is that algorithm is a carbon-neutral chain and especially in the travel industry, but we believe that that's extremely important avax makes our list today.

They've been firing on all cylinders for a while. Now we've been keeping you updated on a vax for a while now, yet the price of the token is still disconnected down five percent. Yet over the last 90 days, daily, active users have up Revenue up core development up, do not sleep on polygon.

If you watched our video from just the other day, you understand why a polygon is going to be such a big deal. Their Google partnership accelerates the adoption of core polygon protocols using Google's infrastructure and tools, transforming the blockchain landscape forever, again check out this video.

If you want to learn more about injective protocol, making great strides injective protocol is a decentralized exchange that offers cross-chain margin, Trading derivatives, and Forex Futures Trading. The injective protocol is built on Cosmos blockchain as a layer 2 app.

The protocol uses cross-chain Bridges which allow traders to access cryptocurrencies from other platforms such as Ethereum polka, dot, and Binance, and as I said throughout this bear Market they've been making great strides most recently in just a few days. The injective ecosystem witnessed integration with seller Network Bona Fida deployment, testnet, and smart contracts. Integration with a polka dot project asked our Network and Polka dot assets.

Protocol Talus beginning to create the first nft marketplace with injective unmatched progress, as always by the way make sure you subscribe to our channel daily videos. Just like this keeping you informed on the entire cryptocurrency Market, if you're interested in making money in cryptocurrency subscribe to our channel's daily videos, are you bullish on the altcoin Phantom? I am because a phantom crypto bank is coming. The block bite boys explain this. This has to be very exciting, for all Phantom holders is Phantom opening a crypto bank.

So I hit up Andre this morning and said: hey. Can you tell me more about this and his response to me was if you're asking whether or not Phantom has obtained a banking license and is launching a crypto-friendly Bank. The answer is yes that is happening. So here's what I was given that I can share with you is that it is a crypto-friendly bank. It's going to not really be a retail-facing bank, it's a little way out.

It's probably like a year out like hey. This is actually something that's happening. They've been building this out very quietly for quite some time, very, very intelligent move on behalf of Phantom.

I know no details behind a sort of the setup of the bank itself, but like what an interesting move on behalf of the Phantom Foundation, given all the Regulatory and banking shutdowns we've seen over the last month and a half again, I want to hear from you comment Your thoughts below, let's have a conversation in the comments section. What coin would you add or subtract to today's list?

Make sure you get your tickets to Bitcoin Miami Conference this month. May we will be there using code altcoin daily for 10 off your tickets? Our final pick in today's video is ICP internet computer protocol. Let me know if you want me to do a deeper dive into ICP crypto in the future. It is different from a lot of other blockchains.

Even Mark Cuban recognizes this Warren Buffett. Has this a great thing? First are the innovators then there are the imitators, then there are the idiots did you know Mark Cuban mentions this? One blockchain in particular is different than others. They're all there, all Forks of each other.

altcoins

There's not a lot of innovation. There yeah, you can talk about some of them. You know, maybe the ITP likes to think that they're a lot different in some ways. They are the chains, no, that there is no room for a hundred different blockchains. There is no room for 20 different, horizontal blockchains.

if you want to look at vertical applications that are specific to you know, maybe ICP and others that have specific ways of doing things that have applications that are better suited for those changes. Okay, maybe the total number will grow.

As found on YouTube

Tim Moseley

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DeFi Needs More Than Synthetic High-Yield Products

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DeFi Needs More Than ‘Synthetic High-Yield Products’: Dragonfly’s Haseeb Qureshi

The venture capitalist discusses non-ZIRP monetary policy, rebooting crypto’s market structure and why Ponzi bubbles always burst.

By Daniel Kuhn

AccessTimeIconApr 28, 2023 at 2:33 p.m. MST

Updated Apr 28, 2023 at 2:54 p.m. MST

NEAR on What's Next for Web3, Protocol Village, Austin, Texas, USA - 28 Apr 2023

Haseeb Qureshi of Dragonfly at Consensus 2023 (Shutterstock/CoinDesk)

 

Haseeb Qureshi is a managing partner of Dragonfly Capital, a well-watched crypto venture firm, and the moderator of one of crypto’s best podcasts, “The Chopping Block.” Both are roles he takes on with equanimity and poise. In the aftermath of the Terra fiasco, Qureshi wrote one of the most lucid articles about why the blockchain collapsed. Following FTX, he corralled his podcasting partners – including his Dragonfly colleague Thomas Schmidt, Gauntlet’s Tarun Chitra and Compound creator Robert Leshner – into doing a series of informative episodes on the fall of FTX. And as a VC, Qureshi has keen foresight but is afflicted with the same problem all humans share: an inability to foreknow.

This article is excerpted from The Node, CoinDesk's daily roundup of the most pivotal stories in blockchain and crypto news. You can subscribe to get the full newsletter here.

 

Still, when it comes to understanding the current moment in crypto he’s more or less unmatched. Or, at the very least, he’s not afraid to be a little contrarian. At Consensus 2023, for instance, Qureshi argued that CertiK, an auditing firm with a less-than-stellar reputation, was making a mistake by offering to reimburse victims of Merlin, a decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol Certik had recently audited. “This is explicitly insurance,” Qureshi said, arguing that if this move is repeated it would push premiums for audits without necessarily improving their accuracy because firms would expect to have to make payouts. CoinDesk caught up with Qureshi to talk about the state of crypto venture capital, the regulatory environment and why Ponzi schemes will always collapse.

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Read full coverage of Consensus 2023 here.

How has your investment thesis changed in a non-ZIRP [zero interest-rate policy] environment?

The biggest change has been the demand for [decentralized finance]-sourced yield. This was a big theme of what made DeFi attractive in a ZIRP environment. Now the appetite for risk has totally changed, so in order to gain traction with consumers, you have to do more than just create synthetic high-yield products.

You've said in the past that one of crypto's particular selling points is permissionless innovation. Are there emerging trends that have developed this past year that you didn’t see coming.

Nope, I predicted everything perfectly. I also knew you would ask this question.

Don’t you have a hot take on the Cosmos ecosystem?

The Cosmos community is an army of generals. A community founded on the basis of radical independence from other chains is, unsurprisingly, unable to agree on stuff.

Following FTX there have been numerous calls to rethink crypto's market structure. Are there ways to redesign centralized exchanges (like separating trading from custody or adding a centralized clearing house) that you'd support?

 

Separating trading from custody is the obvious one. Prime brokers like Hidden Road and FalconX are already facilitating this. Post-FTX (and post the Binance Commodity Futures Trading Commission suit), institutional players are no longer comfortable facing risky exchanges directly and taking on counterparty risk. In that regard, we'll see the same disaggregation of financial layers that you see in [traditional finance].

See also: Mike Belshe – The SEC's Custody Rule Would Be a Net Positive for Crypto | Opinion

Do you believe that VCs should be subject to similar lockup periods on token stakes as they currently are on equity stakes?

To be clear, equity stakes are not necessarily locked up. There's nothing that generally stops a company from selling its equity via a secondary transaction (unless the board specifically prohibits such sales). The thing that usually stops them is the reputational damage of doing so. The same is true of tokens. But yes, in general we push for long lockups when we make investments, both for investors and for the team.

In 100 years, will there be more or fewer monies?

Fewer.

Is it better to be able to do what you want or feel compelled to do what you must?

It is better to feel compelled to do what you must. It doesn't feel as good, but it leads to a life better lived.

Are there ways of designing crypto systems that have network effects without "Ponzi-like" attributes?

 

Ponzi schemes don't have network effects (they are not networks). They don't even have economies of scale – that is, they don't get easier to sustain the bigger they get. It's the reverse – the bigger they get, the harder they are to sustain. That's why Ponzi schemes that are small can survive for a while, but the bigger they get, the more likely they are to pop.

Do you think mass automation will finally cause U.S. productivity to increase/time spent working to shrink for most people? Bonus: any thoughts on why the past century-plus of techno progress has not increased leisure time?

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I think it will cause productivity to increase, but I think it will lead to very unequal effects on time spent working. Poorer people will work less, wealthier people will work about the same I would guess, because wealthy people tend to like their jobs more.I think the way we are measuring increased leisure time is not well-measured. We do a lot more leisure at work now than we did in the past. It's difficult to quantify one for one.

Tim Moseley

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Gold Price News: Gold Set for Monthly Gain as Attention Turns to Rate Decisions

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Gold Price News: Gold Set for Monthly Gain as Attention Turns to Rate Decisions

Gold continues to trade just below $2,000 an ounce with the precious metal set to record a second monthly gain on the back of investors’ rush to safe havens earlier in the month.

While gold may have dipped slightly from the highs achieved earlier in April, there remains plenty of support for the haven asset while market confidence is still so fragile. A broadly positive set of corporate earnings has failed to have a detrimental impact on the gold price – illustrating investors’ medium-term concerns about the health of the global economy and the banking sector.

As we look ahead to May, next week’s Federal Reserve interest rate decision on Wednesday followed by the European Central Bank on Thursday is likely to set the early tone for gold. While both banks are expected to increase their rates by 25 basis points, the commentary that supports these moves will have a significant impact on how long gold can remain at these elevated levels.

After a strong run in March and April, gold investors will be hoping that next week’s hikes, particularly that of the Fed, are close to the final ones in this current cycle of increasing interest rates. If that does prove to be the case, then gold has sufficient support to keep it trading in the high $1,900s for the foreseeable future while hints of further hikes needed may push it back down towards $1,900.

Rupert is a Market Analyst for Kinesis Money, responsible for updating the community with insights and analysis on the gold and silver markets. He brings with him a breadth of experience in writing about energy and commodities having worked as an oil markets reporter and then precious metals reporter during the seven years he worked at Bloomberg News.

As well as market analysis, Rupert writes longer-form thought leadership pieces on topics ranging from carbon markets, the growth of renewable energy and the challenges of avoiding greenwash while investing sustainably.

This publication is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a solicitation, offering or recommendation of any security, commodity, derivative, investment management service or advisory service and is not commodity trading advice. This publication does not intend to provide investment, tax or legal advice on either a general or specific basis.

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Tim Moseley

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Google Cloud to optimize Polygon zkEVM scaling performance

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Google Cloud to optimize Polygon zkEVM scaling performance

 Apr 28, 2023

Google Cloud to optimize Polygon zkEVM scaling performance

 

Polygon Labs and Google Cloud announced a multi-year partnership at Consensus 2023 that will see the cloud computing service provider help boost the development of the Ethereum scaling protocol’s tools and infrastructure.

Polygon’s core protocols, including Polygon proof-of-stake (PoS), Polygon zkEVM and Polygon Supernets, are set to benefit from the provision of Google Cloud’s framework and developer tools. The partnership is aimed at simplifying developer integration to build, launch and grow Web3 products and decentralized applications (DApps) on Polygon.

Google Cloud’s partnership with the ecosystem is expected to advance Polygon’s zero-knowledge development. Testing of Polygon zkEVM’s zero-knowledge proofs on Google Cloud reportedly resulted in faster and cheaper transactions compared to the existing infrastructure available.

The Polygon zkEVM beta, an Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) scaling solution, was launched to mainnet in March 2023, powering reduced transaction costs and increased throughput of smart contract deployments.

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Related: Polygon’s ‘holy grail’ Ethereum-scaling zkEVM beta hits mainnet

Google Cloud’s Blockchain Node Engine will be used by the Polygon ecosystem to assist with time-intensive processes and costly overheads of acquiring, maintaining and operating dedicated blockchain nodes. This specific integration intends to remove the need for Polygon developers to configure and run Polygon PoS nodes.

Polygon Labs president Ryan Wyatt highlighted the wide variety of benefits to the protocol’s ecosystem through the partnership in a statement coinciding with the rollout of the collaboration:

“Today’s announcement with Google Cloud aims to increase transaction throughput enabling use cases in gaming, supply chain management, and DeFi.”

Google Cloud’s APAC managing director of engineering and Web3 go-to-market, Mitesh Agarwal, said its services are improving data availability, resilience and performance of scaling protocols like ZK-proofs.

The partnership will also provide capital resources to Polygon ecosystem developers and companies building Web3 products and DApps. Certain early-stage Polygon Ventures-backed startups will also be able to receive newly launched Web3-specific benefits from the Google for Startups Cloud Program.

Google Cloud’s startup accelerator program now supports 11 major blockchain firms. Meanwhile, blockchain analytics firm Nansen also announced that its data services would be available to projects in Google Cloud’s Web3 startup program.

Magazine: Here’s how Ethereum’s ZK-rollups can become interoperable

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Gold a bit weaker following downbeat US GDP data

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Gold a bit weaker following downbeat U.S. GDP data

Gold prices are modestly down in midday U.S. trading Thursday, in the aftermath of a major U.S. economic report that was weaker than expected and falls into the camp of those expecting a U.S. economic recession. Such a scenario would likely mean less consumer and commercial demand for metals. June gold was last down $3.40 at $1,992.80 and May silver was up $0.009 at $24.885.

First-quarter U.S. GDP growth came in lower than expected at up 1.1%, year on year, compared to expectations for a rise of 2.0%. The closely watched PCE price index of the GDP data came in hot at up 4.2%; it was expected to be up 3.7%, year-on-year, versus a rise of 3.9% in the fourth quarter. The hotter PCE number falls into the camp of the U.S. monetary policy hawks, who want the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates higher for longer, to choke off problematic inflation.

Global stock markets were mostly higher overnight. U.S. stock indexes are solidly higher at midday. Risk appetite is better Thursday, but by no means robust, following the big drop in share price of First Republic Bank earlier this week. Also, the specter of a U.S. economic recession is moving closer to the front burner of the marketplace. It could be that the growing U.S. government debt burden and congressional wrangling regarding what to do about it are also crimping investor enthusiasm. Reads a Wall Street Journal headline today: "Banking turmoil is tip of debt iceberg."

  Gold consolidates but remains on a 'golden cross path' higher – NDR's Tim Hayes

The key outside markets today see the U.S. dollar index firmer. Nymex crude oil prices are up and trading around $74.75 a barrel. The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note yield is presently fetching around 3.5%.

Technically, June gold futures bulls have the firm overall near-term technical advantage. However, a six-week-old uptrend on the daily bar chart has stalled out. Bulls' next upside price objective is to produce a close above solid resistance at the April high of $2,063.40. Bears' next near-term downside price objective is pushing futures prices below solid technical support at the April low of $1,965.90. First resistance is seen at this week's high of $2,020.20 and then at $2,028.00. First support is seen at last week's low of $1,980.90 and then at $1,965.90. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.0

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May silver futures bulls have the overall near-term technical advantage. Silver bulls' next upside price objective is closing prices above solid technical resistance at the April high of $26.235. The next downside price objective for the bears is closing prices below solid support at $23.00. First resistance is seen at this week's high of $25.435 and then at $25.71. Next support is seen at this week's low of $24.53 and then at $24.25. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.0.

May N.Y. copper closed up 115 points at 386.50 cents today. Prices closed nearer the session high and hit a nearly four-month low early on today. The copper bulls and bears are on a level overall near-term technical playing field. Copper bulls' next upside price objective is pushing and closing prices above solid technical resistance at 410.00 cents. The next downside price objective for the bears is closing prices below solid technical support at 360.00 cents. First resistance is seen at 390.00 cents and then at Tuesday's high of 397.00 cents. First support is seen at today's low of 380.50 cents and then at 377.50 cents. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 5.0.

By

Jim Wyckoff

For Kitco News

Time to Buy Gold and Silver

Tim Moseley

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Gold weaker as US Treasury yields up-tick

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Gold weaker as U.S. Treasury yields up-tick

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(Kitco News) – Gold prices are modestly down and silver near steady in midday U.S. dealings Wednesday. The precious metals markets are seeing buying interest limited by a rise in U.S. Treasury yields at mid-week. However, losses in metals are being limited by a weaker U.S. dollar index today. June gold was last down $7.20 at $1,997.30 and May silver was up $0.003 at $24.89.

Traders at mid-week are buzzing about First Republic Bank's quarterly earnings report on Tuesday that was worse than expected, including a huge outflow of deposits. Reports said the bank's conference call on its earnings was very brief, with no questions taken from reporters. That prompted a nearly 50% drop in the bank's share price Tuesday, including trading in the stock being halted for a while. Reports today said the U.S. government is not going to step in an assist the ailing bank.

Meantime, U.S. and/or global recession fears appear to be moving back toward the front burner of the marketplace. Diesel fuel prices in the U.S. have plunged in recent months and are about half of what they were one year ago. Such suggests a slowdown in the commercial transportation sector that could be a signal of a slowing U.S. economy. United Parcel Service (UPS) on Tuesday issued a downbeat corporate earnings report, saying “macro conditions” would likely continue to pressure its delivery volume. The metals markets appear to be taking a bearish lean from this situation, on notions of less consumer and commercial demand if the global economy weakens.

Global stock markets were mixed to weaker overnight. U.S. stock indexes are mixed at midday. Focus of stock traders this week is on the release of quarterly corporate earnings reports. So far, they have been mixed.

  QE isn't over and will drive gold to $3,000 and Bitcoin to $100,000 in the next decade – Crossborder Capital

In overnight news, Sweden's central bank raised its main interest rate by 0.5%, saying inflation is still far too high.

The key outside markets today see the U.S. dollar index lower. Nymex crude oil prices are weaker and trading around $76.75 a barrel. The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note yield is presently fetching 3.695%.

Technically, June gold futures bulls still have the firm overall near-term technical advantage. However, a six-week-old uptrend on the daily bar chart has stalled out. Bulls' next upside price objective is to produce a close above solid resistance at the April high of $2,063.40. Bears' next near-term downside price objective is pushing futures prices below solid technical support at the April low of $1,965.90. First resistance is seen at today's high of $2,020.20 and then at $2,028.00. First support is seen at last week's low of $1,980.90 and then at $1,965.90. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.0

May silver futures bulls have the overall near-term technical advantage. However, a six-week-old uptrend on the daily bar chart has been negated, which is one early clue that a market top is in place. Silver bulls' next upside price objective is closing prices above solid technical resistance at the April high of $26.235. The next downside price objective for the bears is closing prices below solid support at $23.00. First resistance is seen at this week's high of $25.435 and then at $25.71. Next support is seen at this week's low of $24.53 and then at $24.25. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.0.

May N.Y. copper closed up 105 points at 385.85 cents today. Prices closed nearer the session low today. The copper bulls and bears are on a level overall near-term technical playing field. Copper bulls' next upside price objective is pushing and closing prices above solid technical resistance at 410.00 cents. The next downside price objective for the bears is closing prices below solid technical support at the March low of 382.20 cents. First resistance is seen at 390.00 cents and then at Tuesday's high of 397.00 cents. First support is seen at this week's low of 383.00 cents and then at 382.20 cents. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 5.0.

By

Jim Wyckoff

For Kitco News

Time to Buy Gold and Silver

Tim Moseley

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Can A Loving God Send People To Hell?

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The world is living on borrowed time, it’s given by God for His purpose.  

Judgement God Images – Browse 2,684 Stock Photos, Vectors, and Video | Adobe Stock

2 Peter 3:9

“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.”

The world has fallen into darkness, it has abandoned God and instead follows the doctrines of demons and worships idols.  The darkness has become so blatant that men now resemble the days of Noah, evil and wicked, which leads to death and destruction!  They twist the truth to their own wicked desires as they turn good into bad and bad into good.  This is where we are my friends, in a world turned upside down and inside out!

There is no other reason for God to not now judge the world and pour out His wrath, other than Him waiting for more people to come to repentance and accept Him as their Lord and Savior.

The world deserves God’s wrath, it deserves what it strives for, peace with God or friendship with the world and its system, the latter of which is enmity with God!

James 4:4

“Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”  

The time is very close my friends, very close to God’s wrath being poured out upon an evil and wicked world.  We are living on borrowed time!  

The world systems are an illusion, a false reality, a twisted copy of what God Himself has created.  At some point in time all of it will come tumbling down, like a house of cards that it truly is!  Evil, corruption, and perversion!!!

Listen to the Lord, do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind through Christ Jesus!

Romans 12:2

“And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”

The day of God’s wrath is coming soon.

Revelation 6:17

“For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”

The day of the Lord comes quickly as a thief in the night!  

1 Thessalonians 5:2

“For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night.”

The world scoffs at those that warn of God’s coming judgment.

2 Peter 3:3-5

‘knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, 4 and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.” ‘

Yes, all things continue as they have from the beginning, just as they did in the days of Noah when the great flood came and took them all away!  So shall it be at the time of the beginning of the Tribulation period, mocking, scoffing, and living life as they always have, not heeding God’s warnings!

Today is the day of salvation, you might not have another tomorrow!

2 Corinthians 6:2

‘For He says:

“In an acceptable time I have heard you,
And in the day of salvation I have helped you.”

Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.’

Sinner's Prayer

God bless my friends!  Maranatha!  Looking up!!!

Tim Moseley

The Artist that came out of the Winter