Last week we reported that el Petro was officially out in the market place and we ask how this would impact the overall markets and, more specifically, how it would impact the oil markets. We should’ve also ask about the gold, diamond and steel markets as el Petro is tied to all of these commodities as well.
Today, we learn el Petro is in fact impacting the gold market. What ripple effect this will have over the next 2-3 months will be interesting to watch. In the meanwhile Venezuela now joins Poland, India and Hungary in adding physical gold to their national bank vault. No, the Venezuelan gold is not “new gold” but it is equally as important as any other gold that is moving from one location to another. If “new gold” is mined and comes to market that is additional ounces. If “old gold” moves from one vault to another it is not additional ounces, however, it is a shift in money, resources and monetary reserves, in my opinion this is equally as important as new ounces coming to market.
CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuela is seeking to repatriate about $550 million in gold bars from the Bank of England because of fears it could be caught up in international sanctions on the country, two sources with direct knowledge of the effort told Reuters.
Venezuela’s hard currency holdings have dwindled as existing U.S. financial sanctions have effectively blocked President Nicolas Maduro’s government from borrowing on international markets.
The Trump administration on Thursday issued a new round of sanctions banning U.S. citizens from having dealings with anyone involved in “corrupt or deceptive” gold sales from Venezuela, as part of efforts to boost pressure on Maduro.
Maduro’s government is seeking to bring 14 tonnes of gold held in the Bank of England back to Venezuela, according to two public officials with direct knowledge of the operation, who asked not to be identified.
The Bank of England has sought to clarify what Venezuela wants to do with the gold, one of the officials said.
Venezuela’s central bank did not respond to a request for comment. The Bank of England declined to comment.
The plan has been held up for nearly two months due to difficulty in obtaining insurance for the shipment, needed to move a large gold cargo, one of the officials said.
“They are still trying to find insurance coverage, because the costs are high,” the official said. Source / Reuters
I love it. Every time gold moves out of a centralized location, and back to the country of origin, the banking cabal has less gold to work with in their, now well documented, schemes and scams to manipulate the gold market. While 14 tons is not a lot gold in the big picture it is a significant amount of gold to Venezuela and that’s all that matters.
If the 14 tons of gold helps Venezuela keep el Petro floating for another month while Maduro works out details of an oil contract between Russia, China and Venezuela I say – good for you. This does not mean I support Maduro’s madness or his socialistic programs, it simply means I am happy the country of Venezuela is moving in the right direction to shore up their economy, introduce a new currency outside the Federal Reserve Note and develop new alliances that will help their nation get back on their feet. Not sure how any of this can be a negative.
Venezuela is still operating under “sanctions” by the U.S. and this could hinder the gold movement. And people still think gold is not important and doesn’t play any role in the global monetary system!! Well, if that’s the case explain this to me please:
The government has promised to auction 2 billion euros in foreign exchange over an unspecified time frame, without saying where it plans to obtain those funds.
But even if Venezuela manages to repatriate the gold, the new U.S. sanctions could make selling it to raise hard currency difficult.
“If the government wants to carry out operations with the gold that it plans to bring, it would have to be done with allied countries because of the sanctions,” said Tamara Herrera, an economist with Sintesis Financiera.
Venezuela has been exporting gold to Turkey in the last year, a business that has grown as Maduro has built up ties with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan.
Selling the gold directly from the Bank of England to a foreign buyer would be logistically easier than shipping it, but could also risk running foul of sanctions. Source / Reuters
If gold is of little to no value or concern why would any bank care two-cents about it’s movement? Would not a bank actually wish to see the gold leave their bank to cut down on security cost, maintenance and storage space? Why would a bank want to see sanctions enforced to stop the movement of gold? Well, must be something to having physical gold in your possession, otherwise, the 5 paragraphs above would simply read – “Bank of England shipped out the last of Venezuela’s gold today and said ‘good riddance’ as it left the building.” Got physical in your possession?
