American families are now battling a 2.7% inflation rate this year.

Inflation jumped 1.6% just this week. Have you bought gold yet?

This was the biggest drop since 1990. The administration is saying the consumer spender will lead us out of the recession.

With 15.3 million unemployed, the jobless consumer spender? With a 2.7 percent rise in the consumer price index? With energy prices during this cold winter shooting up 18.2% – the biggest rise since ‘79?

Though as Theresa Bryan told the Assoicated Press when they asked her how she had been affected by inflaction, “”I don’t notice anything because I’m so broke.”

Again, gold hit a new record high today, December 2nd, 2009, soaring past the $1200 mark and ending at $1219.84. The news of gold’s record highs is everywhere, as is it’s affects on international economies.

According to both Felix Salmon, at Reuters, as well as Matt Walcoff at Bloomberg, gold prices were responsible for massive gains in the Canadian Stock market today:

Canada Stocks Rise on Record Bullion Prices…. Canadian stocks rose for a second day, led by materials producers, as gold prices climbed to a record on demand for an alternative to the U.S. dollar.

Similar sentiments were echoed in articles and commentary on Australia’s markets. David McIntyre over on The Sydney Morning Herald, in his Article, Gold Price Boosts Australian Stocks, proclaimed gold’s new record highs as the reason for the rapid growth of gold mining company stocks based in Australia:

Australian shares closed at a five-week high on Wednesday, up one per cent on the day, after record gold prices prompted a rally by miners of the precious metal.

There is still tremendous fear regarding the economy in general and the U.S. dollar (as well as other national currencies – but particularly the dollar) and that has caused this uptick in gold’s price. But, nothing has changed, we still have a record amount of national debt, little personal savings, and we just increased the money supply. Additionally, we have yet to see the effects of inflation and this increased money supply.

With a mass exodus of retiree baby-boomers on the horizon (and the monetary ripples this will cause with healthcare AND social security), we believe gold is going up!

The US Mint has suspended sales of one-ounce silver and gold bullion American Eagle coins! Sales have been so strong that the reserves have run out, the Mint announced in a memo to their authorized bullion purchasers today:

The United States Mint has depleted its current inventory of 2009 American Eagle 1-0unce gold bullion coins due to the continued strong demand for this product.

Last year the US Mint took similar measures when faced with an avalanche of demand for bullion and suspended production of fractional gold coins. The Mint is attempting to find enough gold blanks to manufacture more coins to satiate investors.

A number of coin shops have reported difficulty finding gold Krugerrands this month as bullion demand skyrockets, and the South African government is shipping more.

November gold prices are breaking records!

The run on gold is just steps away from breaking through the $1200/oz mark!

Spot gold hit a price of $1190.20./oz today.

Gold prices have gone up 15% this month as the dollar sits at 15-month-low. The fundamentals are strong as investors pour into the market. Central banks are buying gold in massive amounts. The world’s most successful investors are creating hedge funds devoted to gold. Bank of America/Merrill Lynch released a report this week on expectations of gold hitting $1500. Don’t sit this one out! Even Forbes is now encouraging its readers to “put a little sparkle in your portfolio.”

Sri Lanka purchased 10 metric tons of gold from the International Monetary Fund today.  The purchase was made with SDRs, the IMF’s currency denomination, but the price is equivalent to about $375 million.

Sri Lanka is cointinuing the trend among Central Banks this year, who are snapping up gold as soon as it becomes available. India and Mauritas have also purchased gold from the IMF this fall, and China and Russia have both increased their gold reserves substantially this year.

Don't be like this guy

Congratulations! You made the choice to rollover your 401K! The last thing you want is to lose more than half of it to taxes. Watch out for these pitfalls:

1. The Same Property Rule – If you take a rollover distribution from your 401K in a certain asset class, you need to reinvest into the new retirement vehicle the same amount and type of asset. For example, if your 401K is distributed to you in cash, you must roll cash into the new account. You cannot take the cash and buy a mutual fund and then put the fund shares in the IRA.
2. The 60 Day rule – Once you take the rollover distribution, you have only 60-days to invest that money in a qualified retirement account. If you miss this deadline, the IRS will be at your door. 60 days may seem like a lot of time, but the Employee Benefits Research Institute reports that 60% of people who take an early distribution do not get it into another qualified account within the time limit.
3. The 12-Month Rule – You are only allowed to do one rollover from or to an IRA within a twelve month period. The exception to the rule is a conversion from a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA.

A 401K Rollover can be complicated to do on your own, especially as most Americans will only have to do it once or twice in their lives. You may want to check out our information on IRAs and 401Ks. Many people don’t even realized that they can own a gold IRA.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is in talks with the International Monetary Fund to purchase the remaining 201.3 tons of gold that the IMF has offered for sale. However, there may be some competition as other Central Banks look to strengthen their reserves.

An Indian government official stated

RBI is an independent body, and the government does not interfere in its affairs. It will get the gold if its bid is successful and at the price it has offered.

The RBI purchased 200 tons three weeks ago from the IMF and already has seen a gain of $800 million from that investment!

The Reformed Broker has put together this graphic to determine just how much gold the Man Who Made Too Much owns. The data is extrapolated from World Gold Council statistics and Paulson & Co’s SEC filings. The Reformed Broker provides a disclaimer about the accuracy of the claim, but his analysis sure provides a fresh way of looking at the concentration of wealth John Paulson’s hedge fund holds in gold.

Dr. Marc Faber

In an interview with CNBC, Dr. Marc Faber, economist and investment strategist, stated that gold’s shiney new price label is here to stay:

Basically we had a good move in gold whereby we had fluctuated for two-years between USD 800 per ounce and USD 1000 per ounce and now we’ve broken through the USD 1000 per ounce level with quite conviction and heavy volume. I believe that whereas in the past the USD 1000 per ounce level was kind of a resistance level, now it becomes a support level. I don’t think that you’ll see gold below a USD 1000 per ounce probably ever again So I’m actually quite positive. Maybe gold at this level is a better buy than it was at USD 300 per ounce in 2001.

Now, Dr. Faber predicted the 1987 crash and safely herded his clients out of the market. He is known for his uncanny insights and investment prowess. In the same interview he warns off the stock market, which may drop another few hundred points. Faber also is short on the US dollar.

The FDIC keeps a record of troubled banks called the “Problem Bank List.” These are the banks that are in danger of failing, and the list is confidential. Calculated Risk maintains an Unofficial Problem Bank List, which compiles the banks named in press releases and other public sources as being on that list.

In today’s Quarterly Banking Profile, a report on the health of banks in the third quarter, the FDIC stated that 552 banks are on the problem list, with $345.9 billion in assets. This is an increase from the second quarter, which only had 416 banks on the list with $299.8 billion in assets. Keep in mind that there were quite a few takeovers of banks during the third quarter already, as the number of banks the FDIC has stepped in on this year has already reached 124.

If you haven’t protected your money yet from potentially losing it in a failed bank, please make sure that your bank is insured by the FDIC. Diversify the way in which you hold your savings. Times like these necessitate an emergency fund. Cash in an account will do little when inflation rises, but it will be a great backup plan should you suffer a lay off or an unplanned medical procedure. Gold is a liquid means of holding your cash in which you can gain the safety the metal offers while still making som returns. Gold can also be very quickly traded, in any country, in any amount, into any currency. Just because your banker may have made bad choices, you should not be penalized.