Housekeeping: Good Morning.
“The Gold reset is a process, not an event”
Today
Discussion: China Has Taken Gold Public
Premium: China Has Taken Gold Public
Discussion:
China Has Taken Gold [Fully] Public
Here is a Chinese expert explaining to you how one can open an account at the Shanghai Gold Exchange (SGE), and the two types of SGE accounts that are available. Basically if you are a small “investor” your annual physical #Gold withdrawal upper limit from the SGE is 5 million RMB Yuan worth of physical - Eric Yeung
China Official Gold Purchases Through August 2025…
From China sends ripples through the global gold bullion market, and no one notices
The PBOC opened the facility for citizens to convert renminbi cash savings held in the public’s own bank accounts to be converted into physical gold at the click of a button….
Therefore, these purchases constitute real bullion held in the name of each client's personal account rather than unallocated bullion.3
When the Southeast Asian financial crisis hit in 1998, people in Taiwan, South Korea, and Hong Kong all enthusiastically donated gold to support their countries to weather that crisis and rid themselves of the IMF.
One of our mainland sources believes the top leaders of the Chinese Communist Party paid close attention to this and concluded their own people could also be counted on to exhibit that kind of nationalistic support as well. This was at the forefront of their thinking as they decided since then to liberalize Gold ownership among their own people starting in 2001.
For perspective, German citizens did the same in 1914 by donating their Gold to the country and receiving an iron ring in return
Taken together and in combination with every single action China does, China has democratized Gold and Silver ownership using nationalistic principles and an existential need to minimize economic threats from the US in anticipation of a multipolar world where the Western hegemony may weaken chaotically
There are many ways to frame these events:
Democratizing Gold ownership
Taking gold public
Buying the People’s gold
Decentralization of money
Nationalist Populist pride
But no matter how you slice it, there is no room for American bonds or USDollars in this situation. do not expect these people to ever loan money to the US again. There is only one way that will happen, thought economic coercion, and our ability to execute that on China is long gone.
Full Note at Bottom….
Micheal Oliver Comment
“New all-time high for the S&P 500!“
No doubt that will be the headline on Fox Business and CNBC today. 6100 intraday was just traded on the S&P 500, taking out the prior high just decimals below 6100 the first week of December. All eyes are of course on the stock market, and sentiment is extremely hot there— the assumption being that the stock market will go much higher thanks to Trump’s policies. Little attention (or even awareness) is being paid to the fifteen year-old asset bubble and its accumulated errors
Meanwhile…Gold is only a percent below its all-time high. Why isn’t it collapsing? After all, “inflation”—so narrowly defined by many—is going to be ended, right?
To Add: Whereas once upon a time the press would note Gold’s new highs with derision and proclaim the dollar correlation gods would soon put Gold in its place, now, that having failed to materialize for over two years, the legacy media must blithely ignore it, and hope it just goes away. But it will not. The lack of proper media interest is a a confirmation this market is nowhere near being overbought. MSM denial is only the first step in this Precious metals bull market
Silver Comment at bottom…
News/Analysis:
Markets Recap:
The S&P 500 reached a record high on Wednesday as investors assessed corporate earnings results and President Trump's policy announcements. Large caps bested small caps: S&P 500 (+0.61%) vs. Russell 2000 (-0.61%). MSCI Emerging Markets (EEM) added 0.07% and MSCI EAFE (EFA) lost 0.23%.
Market News:
"House Republicans are in talks over raising the cap for state and local tax deductions after winning pledges from President Donald Trump and congressional leaders to include the measure in a must-pass tax bill this year. New York Republicans are having discussions about how to raise the $10,000 SALT cap so that their constituents can deduct more local income and real estate taxes from federal bills. Lawmakers are hoping to come up with a figure for the deduction cap in the coming weeks — potentially as soon as February, GOP Representative Nicole Malliotakis said." Source: Bloomberg
"Google has agreed to a new investment of more than $1 billion in generative AI startup Anthropic... CNBC
"OpenAI and Microsoft have hit back at Elon Musk’s criticism of Stargate, the new $500bn artificial intelligence infrastructure project hailed by Donald Trump as a “resounding declaration of confidence in America’s potential under a new president”. : FT
"JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon on Wednesday called the U.S. stock market inflated and said he felt more cautious than others in the business world because of the risks from deficit spending, inflation and geopolitical upheaval... Dimon also noted that parts of the bond market, like sovereign debt, are “at all-time highs"." Source: CNBC
"Data analytics software startup Databricks said Wednesday that Meta has signed on as an investor... CNBC
"Santee Cooper, the big power provider in South Carolina, has tapped financial advisers to look for buyers that can restart construction on a pair of nuclear reactors that were mothballed years ago. WSJ
"A group of U.S. pensions and other institutions is pushing private-equity firms to share more information on their fees and investment returns,WSJ
Geopolitics/ Politics
via Newssquawk
Data on Deck: Unemployment Rate
MONDAY, JAN. 20None scheduled, Martin Luther King Jr. holiday
TUESDAY, JAN. 21None scheduled
WEDNESDAY, JAN. 2210:00 amU.S. leading economic indicatorsDec.0.1%0.3%
THURSDAY, JAN. 238:30 amInitial jobless claimsJan. 18215,000217,000
FRIDAY, JAN. 2410:00 amExisting home salesDec.4.2 million4.15 million10:00 amConsumer sentiment (final)Jan.73.273.29:45 amS&P flash U.S. services PMIJan.--56.89:45 amS&P flash U.S. manufacturing PMIJan.--49.41
Final Market Check
