European & U.S. Printing Spurs the Precious Metals

Recent events in Europe and the U.S. continue to support the thesis that governments simply don't have the stomach to take the actions necessary to bring spending in line with income. Whether it be in good times or bad, "now" never seems to be the "right" time to cut spending, raise taxes and balance the budget. So the can gets kicked down the road again. Mind you, this can is growing bigger by the day. In the meantime, since solely borrowing is no longer an option, governments are resorting to ever increasing levels of QE (Quantitative Easing), or printing to make up the budgetary and bailout-induced shortfalls. The precious metals markets see this and react by moving higher as increasing numbers of citizens become uneasy about the future of their national currencies. This is particularly so in countries such as Germany whose citizens still remind themselves of the carnage wrought by the hyperinflation and total destruction of their precious Marks during the Weimar Republic days. So, Gold and Silver have now moved to new highs against most major currencies. Below is a chart of Gold versus the $US.