It’s one of those terms that shows up sometimes in conversations about precious metals, or buried in product descriptions: LBMA Good Delivery refinery. But what does it mean? The LBMA is the London Bullion Market Association. It’s an international trade association for those involved in the bullion investment market–particularly gold and silver–and includes refiners, dealers,…
Dollar-Cost Averaging: How to Start
It’s easy to fall into the habit of “chasing lows” — constantly looking for the bottom in silver prices, waiting to increase your position only to wind up missing the low. That kind of market-watching can be stressful, and with so many factors to consider, it isn’t the ideal way to effectively maximize profits. Precious…
Metals Drop in Response to Shutdown
This morning’s gold, silver and other-precious-metals plummet is, at first blush, surprising. The typical response to government uncertainty is an increase in the price of safe haven investments, including metals. Instead, the government shutdown has precipitated a quick drop. So what’s going on? Gold and silver in particular are considered hedges against inflation. But with…
Stocks Up and Down on Fear of Shutdown
It’s unclear at this point what is going to happen in the U.S. Capitol–will the Senate find compromise on the House budget bill? Will the debt limit be raised? Will the standoff continue?–and investors of all stripes are watching closely. Gold prices have been a roller coaster for the past week, spiking after news the…
The New American Dream
A recent poll conducted by GFK Custom Research for Credit.com found something that precious metals investors already know–the new iteration of the “American Dream” has less to do with home ownership and a lot more to do with being financially secure. Owning a home clocked in at third place on the list of American Dreams:…
Over Melt vs. Over Spot
Unlike other products you may buy, the price of precious metals changes by the minute. It can be complicated–and gets more complicated when you try to understand terms like “over spot” and “over melt.” It sounds complicated, but these terms aren’t too bad. In essence, spot prices are the price at which a particular precious…
