(Kitco News) - The popular cryptocurrency bitcoin is just a “greater fool theory” that doesn’t produce anything and “if there was an easy way to do it,” Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates says he would short bitcoin.Gates revealed his thoughts about the digital currency to CNBC on Monday, saying that bitcoin is purely speculative.“I would short [bitcoin] if there w...Read More
How do you know when to underweight or overweight gold or silver? Mike Matousek, head trader at U.S. Global Investors, explains how he looks at the gold and silver price ratio to determine the opportune time to adjust weightings. Mike also explains silver's seasonal trading pattern and that historically returns are higher in the months of June, July and August.For Mike's full explanation of these...Read More
(Kitco News) - Even though a drop below $1,300 is not ruled out for gold just yet, TD Securities views a move to $1,350 as a more likely one for the precious metal.“While a move toward below $1,300/oz is possible in the not too distant future, we think there will be a steadier rebound toward $1,350s in the latter half of 2018,” TD Securities head of commodity strategy Bart Melek said i...Read More
Considering outside market forces such as dollar strength and higher U.S. equity pricing, gold pricing has held up rather well. In an environment which strongly favors the risk-on asset class over the safe-haven class, gold has traded with a higher daily low for the last four consecutive trading days. Today’s trading range was modest, but pricing did trade to a more elevated high than it did...Read More
Oil prices topped the $70 mark, but lost some steam after a Trump tweetA strong rise in oil prices sparked strong early trading for U.S. stocks, though the Dow and S&P 500 closed well off their intraday highs. Crude futures burst through the $70-per-barrel level on expectations of fresh sanctions on Iran, but lost some steam after President Donald Trump tweeted that he'll make a decision on the Ir...Read More
FAIRFAX, Va (Reuters) - The U.S. economy is remarkably strong but the strong jobs market is not causing outsized wage pressures, the Federal Reserve’s newest regional Fed president said on Monday in his first major speech on monetary policy since he was appointed.“The economy’s performance as we sit here today is remarkably strong: above trend growth, low unemployment, inflation...Read More
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said in a tweet on Monday that he would announce his decision on whether to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal at 2:00 p.m. EDT on Tuesday.Trump has threatened to withdraw from the deal, which provided Iran with relief from sanctions in exchange for limiting its uranium enrichment capacity, unless European signatories to the accord fix what he ha...Read More
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - China’s top economic official will visit Washington next week to continue trade talks with Trump administration officials, the White House said on Monday, after two days of talks in Beijing last week failed to produce a breakthrough.“We are working on something that we think will be great for everybody,” White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told reporters....Read More
Jonathan Stempel, Jennifer AblanNEW YORK (Reuters) - Billionaire investor Warren Buffett on Monday said buyers of bitcoin, which he has characterized as “rat poison squared,” thrive on the hope they’ll find other people who will pay more for it.Likening bitcoin demand to the tulip bulb mania in 17th century Holland, Buffett, the chairman and chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway...Read More
FAIRFAX, Va. (Reuters) - U.S. interest rates have room to rise further given the remarkable strength of the U.S. economy, the Federal Reserve’s newest regional Fed president said on Monday in his first major speech on monetary policy since he was appointed.“Monetary policy is still pretty accommodative...when unemployment is low and inflation is effectively at our target, we probably o...Read More
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump and conservative Republicans in the U.S. Congress were edging away on Monday from a threat to pick a new budget fight with Democrats, with the White House expected to propose spending cuts much less severe than previously planned.Trump’s budget “rescissions” will likely encompass cuts in the range of $11 billion to $15 billion, said s...Read More
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday defended his pick to run the CIA after sources said she had sought to withdraw from the nomination over concerns about her involvement in the agency’s interrogation program.Gina Haspel is expected to face a challenging confirmation hearing in the Senate Intelligence Committee on Wednesday. Two sources familiar with the matter told...Read More
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The dollar rose to fresh 2018 highs on Monday while oil prices surged to their highest since late 2014, driven by declining Venezuelan crude production and worries the Unites States could re-impose sanctions on Iran.The crude surge lifted energy stocks in Europe and on Wall Street, with European shares supported by strong results and gains in Nestle after the Swiss company agr...Read More
The best mantra is 'Buy cheap, sell expensive'After a slow churn higher for stocks in 2017, volatility has re-emerged with a vengeance in 2018. What's more, we're currently at the heart of earnings season, with major players like Apple (AAPL) recently reporting, and several more still on deck. Against this backdrop, I sat down with Schaeffer's Senior Options Strategist Bryan Sapp to look at one o...Read More
(Kitco News)- Forget overvalued tech and blue-chip stocks; one former BearStearns analyst has his eye on major gold producers as this sector issignificantly undervalued.In a report last week, Jesse Felder, creator of the FelderReport, said that he is calling his pick of major producers his BANG stocks: BarrickGold (NYSE: ABX,TSX: ABX),Agnico Eagle (NYSE: AEM,TSX: AEM),Newmont Mining (NYSE: NEM)and...Read More
(Reuters) - European Central Bank governing council member Jan Smets said the bank is likely to phase out its bond-buying program over the summer, possibly announcing a decision after its July 26 policy meeting, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.The Belgian official said that investors might be right to push back their forecasts for when the ECB would increase interest rates for the first...Read More
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Alphabet Inc’s Google (GOOGL.O) on Monday launched a spinoff of its Android operating system for home appliances and other machines, following mixed results with Android offshoots for cars, smartwatches and televisions.‘Android Things’, which arrives as Google opens its annual conference for developers, could bring its Google Assistant virtual helper to...Read More
Del Frisco's first-quarter earnings report fell short of expectationsStocks are outperforming today, thanks to a surging energy sector. While penny stock Blink Charging Co (NASDAQ:BLNK) is red-hot, shares of restaurant name Del Frisco's Restaurant Group Inc (NASDAQ:DFRG) and department store concern Kohl's Corporation (NYSE:KSS) are trending lower. Here's a closer look at what has shares of...Read More
Tesla's volatile intraday trading last week resulted in a fractional net gainLast week was a volatile one for Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) in terms of intraday trading, as the stock reacted to a disappointing earnings call from CEO Elon Musk -- which sparked a back-and-forth with Warren Buffett over the weekend on the importance of "moats." The swings resulted in a fractional net gain for the car stock...Read More
Options trading hints at bullish expectationsCloud stocks Box Inc (NYSE:BOX) and Pure Storage Inc (NYSE:PSTG) are soaring today, with no clear catalyst behind the surge. What's more, call volume is exploding on both, with options traders seemingly betting on more upside for shares of BOX and PSTG. We'll take a closer look at the data on each name below. BOX Bulls Bet on a Breakout to $29Box stock...Read More