Commodities going up?

[Bolkonsky]

Well, recently Silver and Gold have been going up, which is surprising because commodities usually go down around the end of the year.

Silver's at 29.13
and Gold is at 1381.40

This guy seems to think that people have been short selling silver:

http://www.silverbearcafe.com/privat...raccident.html

and that it's all gonna cave in, and finally destroy the dollar.

He might not be necessarily credible, but it raises some questions. Why are commodities so high if we aren't in a depression? (At least in the states, anyway.)

EDIT: And damn. I meant to post this in the Mudpit.

[Thorn777]

Because of all whats happening all over. First mortgages, walsteet in general, then cuz of debt and euro-crisis bonds are not regarded as the safest bet no more. Insecurity everywhere and continually, and its been rising steadily to record-heights so why it should stop this time of the year, I don't know.

And its not just gold, silver, etc its also stuff like art which prices are going trough the roof, thinking its a safe investment. Also for the same reason investments are pooring into Germany as well, with people looking for a safe haven and being more content ATM with less but safer returns.

Insecurity.

[Exarch]

gold's high now also cuz the middle classes in China and India are buying it up,

[Angrychris]

i like how you can get gold bars in middle eastern banks like dollars. Pakistan is crazy with the gold.

[Vizsla]

I blame China. The price of clothing went up recently because the Chinese started buying more cotton. The price of food is likely to go up for the same reason. The official inflation figure in China is basically a big fat lie. The true food price inflation is running at around 20% in China, for example.
China and India affect us because they make up such a vast proportion of the world’s population.
This will have serious implications for world economics and it may have political and maybe military effects. We’re the fishing boat and China is the 50ft high wave.

[Bolkonsky]

I'm not sure if that's good or bad. Considering the rest of the world is either losing their middle class, or just getting it for the first time. I just can't wait until people start clamoring to get all this silver they supposedly bought, and it's all been sold short.

[Thorn777]

China, India, Pakistan yes...but their not alone.

Countries:

So there it is. The US is the largest economy and the third largest gold buyer in the world, with India’s recent purchase from the IMF making it the number eleven gold buyer in the world. In between those two are Italy, Germany, the IMF, France, China, Switzerland, Japan, the Netherlands, and Russia.

http://www.suite101.com/content/top-...buyers-a177820

And among private buyers the paranoia is on the Germans too. Heard its among the top three private buyers recently, after China and India, couldnt find a source though(its all websites trying to sell the stuff).

[Exarch]

the lack of confidence in any reserve curency is forcing ppl to buy up commodities; the uncomfortable truth is that the USD may not be as secure as previously thought and until the euro gets its debtor nations sorted out, neither is the euro.

the thing now is to go for a basket of mixed currencies to hedge against any currency defaults

[Mr. Crow]

do you thing the loos of faith has something to do with the us downgrade in credit ranking? (rhetorical)