It's Friday the 13th. Do You Feel Lucky?

Today is Friday the 13th.

The concept that the 13th day of the month falling on a Friday has origins that possibly date back as far as the Last Supper, where Jesus Christ was betrayed by apostle Judas Iscariot, the 13th person at the table.

Such tradition may also have come from the Knights Templar, when, on Friday, October 13th, 1307, King Philip IV of France, in league with Pope Clement V, ordered all Templars to be rounded up and thrown in prison. The Knights were accused of numerous crimes including heresy and treason.

Also known as triskaidekaphobia, fear of the number 13 has also created traditions such as skipping the 13th floor in buildings in an effort to avoid bad luck.

For the majority of people, it's just another day. And, for people who enjoy trading stock certificates for digital fiat currency, it's an opportunity to cash in prior to the weekend, when markets are closed.

What fell off the table on Thursday might be picked up on Friday. Markets were spooked by rising number of cases of CV-19 popping up all over the place, though most intelligent people have determined that the pandemic fear-mongering is just another ploy by the mainstream media to distract and confuse people, subjugate them the will of some higher order. Judging by the number of people wearing masks these days, it appears the media hype has been quite the success.

Truth be told, CV-19, for what it's worth, is no more deadly than the common cold for 99.98% of the people walking the planet. Sure, it's more lethal in people over 60, 70, and especially those beyond 80 years of age, but the levels to which various municipalities and state governments have gone to prevent its spread has been nothing short of a massive failure. If masks, social distancing, closure of businesses, schools, banning public gatherings and other measures that have been employed over the past eight or nine months were effective, then why are "cases" spiking now?

The most reasonable explanation for the rising case counts is the increase in testing using tests that return many more false positives than actual infections of the virus. The widely-used PCR tests have been noted by experts to be miscalibrated, making them capable of picking up even the most minute traces of any coronavirus, of which there are hundreds, if not thousands, such as common colds and flu.

Meanwhile, the world is supposed to wait for Big Pharma companies to deliver a vaccine that will rid us of this scourge. Buying into the Bill Gates, Klaus Schwab, World Economic Forum's Great Reset mantra is a recipe for mass hysteria the likes of which the world has seldom, if ever, seen.

So, today, might be a good day to consider one's luck, in the reality that wealthy madmen with a global dominance agenda haven't yet succeeded in convincing everybody that their plans are for the good of humanity. A good place to start understanding the machinations of the Davos crowd of billionaires and policy makers is the book, published in July, COVID-19: The Great Reset authored by Klaus Schaub, founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum (WEF), and Thierry Malleret, co-founder and principal author of the Monthly Barometer, an analytical and predictive newsletter on macro issues for high-level decision-makers.

Within the pages of the book, readers can discover what plans these globalists have for the world's "peons." It's almost medieval in its design.

A recent Gallup poll found that a third of respondents in the United States would be unlikely to comply with new lockdown orders should governments re-impose the stringent guidelines that prevailed in the Spring. While that 1/3 of people may have had enough of the entire pandemic scenario that's being forced upon the citizens of the world, that still leaves two-thirds of the population ready and willing to have more of their civil rights and freedoms violated with non-binding guidelines, restrictions, and lately, "recommendations."

At the top of the pandemic food chain of command are people, like Dr. Fauci, who less than a month ago warned that Americans may have to cancel Thanksgiving gatherings because of the threat of CV-19. These kinds of warnings and scare tactics may work on a certain malleable portion of the population, but most people are still going to dine on turkey with gravy, stuffing, mashed potatoes and all the fixings of a traditional holiday dinner.

It's likely better for one's mental and physical health to ignore the warnings and droolings from people like Anthony Fauci and other mad pseudo-scientists, who, to a man or woman, have yet to issue guidance about strengthening one's immune system through proper diet, exercise and use of vitamins C, D3, Zinc, and Quercetin. None of these experts have expressed any inclination toward consumption of green tea, honey, elderberry extract or any other known holistic preventatives.

So, this Friday the 13th shouldn't be unlucky for many, though surely any number of bad things could - and likely will - happen. People are just prone to error. Some will stub their toes, others will lose their car keys, some may have bad hair days. Whatever happens today or any other day will happen. There's little anybody can do about the regular ups and downs of human existence.

So, today, as Clint Eastwood, playing Harry Callahan in the 1971 film classic Dirty Harry poses the question, "do you feel lucky?"

At the Close, Thursday, November 12, 2020:
Dow: 29,080.17, -317.46 (-1.08%)
NASDAQ: 11,709.59, -76.84 (-0.65%)
S&P 500: 3,537.01, -35.65 (-1.00%)
NYSE: 13,551.46, -173.32 (-1.26%)

S&P 500, Dow Industrials Fall Short of Record Closing Highs As Political, Economic, Medical Pressures Mount

Wednesday's 27-point rise on the S&P 500 left the broad index just below its record close of 3,580.84, attained on September 2nd of this year, leaving the S&P less than three percent from a record mark.

The index came close to the record intraday, hitting 3,581.16 mid-afternoon, but late day selling prevented a record close.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was poised to reach a record closing high, but failed to do so, losing 23 points on the day, seeking a close above 29,551.42, the level it closed at on February 12, just prior to the late winter corona-crash.

Stocks came under pressure late in the session as Monday's rally, spurred by the potential Joe Biden presidential victory and Pfizer's announcement of successful COVID-19 vaccine testing began to fade as President Trump ramped up efforts to overturn unofficial counts in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Michigan. The president was awarded North Carolina and Alaska during the day, pushing his electoral vote count closer to the necessary 270 needed to retain his position as leader of the free world.

Georgia's too-close-to-call presidential tally triggered an automatic recount and Wisconsin is within the one percent threshold for a candidate to request a recount. Outlier counties include Dane and Milwaukee, which include the cities of Madison and Milwaukee, where Joe Biden took 76 and 69% of the vote, respectively. The results appear skewed, as Trump won handily in other Wisconsin cities, Green Bay, Waukesha, Appleton, and Racine. Biden's lead is just over 20,000 statewide.

Just the fact that Trump is calling for recounts and has filed suit in various jurisdictions raises the specter of fraud having been committed by parties loyal to Biden. Election results looked suspicious even the night of the election, after Trump won Florida, Ohio, and Iowa easily. Vote counting was suspended election night in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Nevada and elsewhere the night of the election. Democrats and the mainstream media insist that the president has no evidence of widespread voter fraud even though such evidence continues to pile up across the country.

Essentially, the remarkable stance taken by the media to shut down any questioning of a Biden victory simply does not pass the smell test. Biden, despite running a campaign mostly from the comfort of his basement and drawing sparse crowds (while Trump drew tens of thousands to rallies) at events, supposedly won more votes than any candidate in history, including surprassing the record set by Barack Obama in 2008. On the surface, that result stretches reality to a point of unbelievability.

Thus, Biden's media-imposed victory may have to at least wait a while, and the possibility that President Trump will eventually be declared the victor on December 14 when state electors are certified, is growing. With considerable doubt being cast on the election front, investors may take a wait-and-see approach and if it appears that Trump gains an upper hand, markets could reverse in a hurry.

On the vaccine front, following the release of Pfizer's rushed press release Monday, the shine is fading on their story. The vaccine in question has to be isolated and kept at a temperature of -112 Fahrenheit and experts suggest that widespread distribution - considering the logistical issues ahead - may not occur until later in 2021. Additionally, rising numbers of COVID cases are prompting many states to begin issuing renewed restrictions on work, travel and assemblies, a negative for the economy and stocks.

These factors are contributing to a healthy degree of reservation and skepticism on the part of investors, to say nothing of the high valuations currently offered on popular stocks. Adding to the worry wall is the upcoming holiday season, that, with retailers already having been splattered this year, may not be as brisk as some might like due to coronavirus fears and government restrictions, though it will likely be a huge positive for online retailers and delivery services.

Altogether, political turmoil, virus fear, crippling government actions, and slowing retail trade may be too much for an already frail market to handle, possibly resulting in a December like that of 2018, when a meltdown crash was averted by a phone call from Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to Fed Chairman Jay Powell and his subsequent reaction.

As they say on the front lines, keep your powder dry.

At the Close, Wednesday, November 11, 2020:
Dow: 29,397.63, -23.29 (-0.08%)
NASDAQ: 11,786.43, +232.58 (+2.01%)
S&P 500: 3,572.66, +27.13 (+0.77%)
NYSE: 13,724.78, +16.79 (+0.12%)

Stocks Look To Extend Gains On Back Of Election Fraud, Sold Out MSM

Joe Biden is about to go down in flames.

The Trump team is filing lawsuits faster than a swarm of bees collects pollen. They're likely to prevail in Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, win Georgia, and Arizona. Alaska (8 days? Good grief) and North Carolina were declared for Trump (and senators Tom Tillis, NC, and Dan Sullivan, AK) overnight, so, when the recounts, audits, and court challenges are satisfied, President Trump will have 305 electoral votes, more than enough for another four years in the White House.

Anyone with an inquisitive mind and more than half a brain (qualifications that exclude BLM and ANTIFA protesters, all AOC voters, most pollsters, and a majority of the mainstream media open mouths) can clearly see that election fraud was widespread, not only in battleground states, but nationwide.

(Editor's note: Yes, we've departed from the usual plain facts reporting to today's partisan giddiness. Worry not, this level of creative writing will only last until January 20, 2021, or until President Trump fires Dr. Fauci and tells the American people to take off their stupid masks.)

The pollsters had it all wrong. The mainstream media continues to assert that team Trump's claims of election fraud and interference is either false, unfounded, or "disruptive to fair election practices" all the while damning videos, lawsuits, affidavits, and challenges proliferate. If the judiciary in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan have any sense of propriety and fairness, Trump will win all three states handily.

Possibly the biggest fraud was committed in California, which isn't going to be disputed, though there's ample evidence coming soon that the 64-34% edge - the highest in the country - handed to Joe Biden is only off by about 4 million illegal or somehow illicit votes. Voters in California rejected an affirmative action referendum but voted overwhelmingly for liberal Joe Biden? That’s a tough sell.

Meanwhile, in the la-la land otherwise known as Wall Street, stocks look to move higher as the Dow Jones Industrial Average seeks a new all-time high. The criminally-insane bankers just can't get enough to shield themselves from the coming avalanche of election recounts, audits, lawsuits, and, yes, protesting, looting, and rioting by the left.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average needs to close above 29,551.42 to exceed the all time closing high from February 12 of this year.

Today is Veterans Day. The stock market is open regular hours. The bond market is closed, as are banks, schools, and the USPS (hey, they need a break after delivering all those ballots the past few weeks). Veterans Day is the current name for Armistice day, which was celebrated on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, when World War I ended. The holiday’s name was changed to Veteran’s Day in 1954 to honor all veterans, not just those that fought in the first world war.

Act accordingly.

At the Close, Tuesday, November 10, 2020:
Dow: 29,420.92, +262.95 (+0.90%)
NASDAQ: 11,553.86, -159.93 (-1.37%)
S&P 500: 3,545.53, -4.97 (-0.14%)
NYSE: 13,707.99, +96.35 (+0.71%)

Markets Soar on Biden Ascension, Pfizer Miracle Vaccine; Precious Metals Crushed Once Again

Fake news, fake pandemic, fake president, why not a fake stock market rally?

Looks like we have one as stocks soared to new all-time highs on the first trading day since the media coronated Joe Biden as the next US president, kicking Donald J. Trump and his horde of deplorable supporters to the curb like cast off packaging thrown out the car window after a Big Mac meal. No longer needed. Out of the way.

Gold and silver were also discarded, beaten down mercilessly, probably by the same people responsible for more than 600,000 Biden-only ballots found in Pennsylvania.

While the election remains in dispute, the moving pieces and intricacies of post-election investigations - now including the DOJ after Attorney General William Barr sent a memo to prosecutors to investigate instances of fraud - are too many for most blogs and independent journalists to stay abreast of, Money Daily strongly advises interested readers to consult the Epoch Times Election Special, having, hands down, the best coverage of the situation on the planet.

In terms of financial markets' response to the attempted calling of the elected by the mainstream media and "miraculous" news that Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine has proven 90% effective in individuals testing the vaccine. Not the least of concerns are the requirements that two shots be given three weeks apart and that the compound must be stored at a temperature of -80 degrees Celsius (-112 F). Achieving and maintaining that temperature seems a long shot for global distribution.

Even with those challenges to a potential vaccine and the challenges to Biden's premature media escalation to president, Wall Street largely didn't care, boosting stock prices at the open, though the euphoria was tempered greatly as details on both the vaccine and election fronts emerged and stock prices declined in the afternoon trade.

Specifically, the NASDAQ, which actually ended the day lower, was up more than 200 points an hour into the session, but ended down more than 180 points. The high point of the session (12,108.07) was an intraday record though it failed to inspire confidence through the session. The all-time high closing mark for the NASDAQ was attained on September 2 of this year when the index ended the day at 12,056.44.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average soared to an intraday record (29,933.83) at the open, only to close nearly 800 points below that though still sporting a nearly three percent gain on the day and settled less than 400 points from the all-time closing high (29,551.42, 2/12/2020).

On the S&P, a similar pattern emerged, with the index reaching a level of 3,645.99, an intraday record, only to close the session at 3550.50, 30 points below the record close from September 2nd of 3,580.84.

Taking into account the absurdly high levels of excitement in the algorithms caused by developing stories, market forces showed declining confidence in the staying power of this rally, which, non-inclusive of the NASDAQ, will eventually be remembered as a loud noise from a dud.

What the internal players of fraud did manage to achieve was yet another blow to the precious metals complex, sending gold down nearly $100 and silver down more than $2.50 on the day. Rigging the price of precious metals continues to plague price discovery mechanisms. Reliance upon the futures prices to set the actual day-to-day prices for gold and silver is akin to allowing options trading to control the price of individual stocks, something some analysts say is already occurring in equity markets.

As pernicious as these beatdowns have become, there is little doubt as to their sources. Almost every major banking operation - from JP Morgan to Deutsche Bank to Societe Generale - has been found guilty of rigging markets as widespread as LIBOR, oil, gold and others. Specifically, JP Morgan was found to be criminally guilty of rigging the metals markets and paid fines in that case and other cases involving spoofing and other market rigging activities.

What the suppression of precious metals does for the fraudsters is lower the public perception of the value of real money while boosting the perceived value of the near-worthless US dollar fiat currency. The entire operation can easily be viewed as a global psy-op, similar to the plandemic and election fraud that has put a criminal - Joe Biden - at the cusp of being elevated to the world's most powerful position.

Thus, as public rage seethes and grows increasingly restless over what appears to be an overt and covert effort to undermine the integrity of the election process and anti-mask, anti-virus sentiment ratchets up in the US and in Europe, covert market participants continue to fan the flames of inequality with soaring stock prices.

What the stock market glory rise and the inverted reaction in precious metals cannot hide is the action in the bond market. Treasury yields absolutely blew out on Monday, with the 10-year note exploding 13 basis points higher, from Friday's close of 0.83% to Monday's 0.96%. The 30-year bond also gained 13 basis points, to 1.73%. Hot currency flowed out of bonds directly into stocks in a well-coordinated, organized financial scheme.

If anything is certain, higher interest rates will crush the economy from the inside out. This is one of the unintended consequences of absurd policy at the Fed and its insistence on buying any and all debt on the market. Being that stock market gains must come from somewhere, when the dam breaks and holders of debt sell, the resultant spikes in bond yields will trigger a massive chain reaction in global financial markets.

The stock market rally that took off in earnest last week appears to have come close to a peak on Monday. Tuesday's futures are mixed and international equity indices are extending gains, though this certainly looks to have all the qualities of a very short-term advance. How big a decline will depend largely upon how the major big money players inside the system want to manipulate public perception when Joe Biden's fake presidential results enter the courts and widespread election fraud is revealed everywhere except the mainstream media.

There's little doubt that public backlash will be extreme, and the media will continue to portray President Trump as a sore loser, bully, and proximate cause of public and market mayhem. In the coming weeks, look for extreme volatility, as Money Daily has previously mentioned.

When the truth is exposed, Monday's "miracle" rally will appear as a tiny blip in the greater picture.

Whenever the phrase "we're all in this together" is spoken or written, think central banking cabal, medical profession collusion, mainstream and social media obfuscation and censorship, government corruption, the BIS, and the Davos' crowd World Economic Forum (WEF). They are all in it together. We, the people, are being left to fend for ourselves in a world of mistrust, anti-trust, fake news, purchasing-power-poorer, phony data-driven information overload.

At the Close, Monday, October 9, 2020:
Dow: 29,157.97, +834.57 (+2.95%)
NASDAQ: 11,713.78, -181.45 (-1.53%)
S&P 500: 3,550.50, +41.06 (1.17%)
NYSE: 13,611.65, +392.97 (+2.97%)

Media Pushes Biden Presidency; Stocks, Bullion Soar; Oil Remains Below Trend As Fed Promotes Inflation

To say that the week of November 1-7 was dominated by politics would be the understatement of the century.

As of this writing, the mainstream media has proclaimed that Joe Biden has defeated Donald J. Trump in the 2020 presidential election.

The publisher, editors and employees of Downtown Magazine and Money Daily reject the legitimacy of this proclamation, claimed under the most dubious of circumstances with vote counting in at least seven states - specifically Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Georgia, North Carolina, Nevada, and Arizona - proceeding well past election day and every one of these states erasing large leads by President Trump on election night, the vote counts swinging to Joe Biden as mail-in ballots were added to the totals.

In the case of Pennsylvania, the state which pushed Biden past the 270 electoral college votes needed to ascend to the presidency - Trump's lead of more than 600,000 votes vanished from Tuesday evening through Saturday morning.

Besides the compelling evidence that Joe Biden, while Vice President under Barack Hussein Obama, used his prestige and influence to financially enrich himself and members of his family in suspect business deals with Ukraine, Russia, China and other countries, evidence of widespread vote rigging, vote harvesting, destruction of ballots, insufficient security and and identity verification of mail-in ballots, voting machine irregularities, denial by vote counting entities to allow partisan or independent observers, and extensive election interference and censorship by mainstream and social media companies including consistently misleading "polls" throughout the election cycle point to the a massive fraud perpetrated against President Trump and the American people.

The people who masterminded wholesale destruction of the integrity of the election process are not entirely known, though it is the hope of every patriotic American that the corruption be rooted out and the perpetrators dealt with the most severe justice possible. It is unconscionable to think that unelected and elected officials would sink to such levels of skullduggery and deceit in their quest to rid the government of a president that these same people have harassed, harangued, ridiculed, lied about, and created false narratives to finally defeat by rigging a national election, but it appears that is what has happened.

These devious, divisive actions threaten not just the integrity of our voting process, but the legitimacy of institutions and the nation as a whole. President Trump has vowed to challenge the results of the election and root out the criminal connivers who have subverted a cherished institution and used their power to undermine the democratic process. Downtown Magazine and Money Daily fully support the efforts of President Trump and any investigative individuals and agencies assisting in the process.

While the mainstream media wishes to project the appearance of confidence and reliability in naming Joe Biden the 46th president of the United State of America, the truth is wildly divergent from this characterization and will hopefully be revealed. Media collusion with its false narrative was fully on display Saturday when the major networks broke away from scheduled programming - including the middle of the highly-anticipated Clemson-Notre Dame game - to air what can only be described as a "made for TV" acceptance ceremony, complete with socially-distanced honking cars, a sparse crowd of well-wishers, an over-abundance of American flags (wasn't this victory supposedly about denying the impact of America first policies?), fireworks, dancing, an appearance by Hunter Biden, and the vapid Kumala Harris introducing the jarring, shouted message of healing by the imposter-in-chief, Joe Biden.

For now, that is all there is to say from this perspective.

Stocks rode an election euphoria wave to uncanny heights during the week, eviscerating the losses of the previous week - which was the worst performance for the major indices since March - sending stocks screaming toward new highs. With a gain of nine percent, the NASDAQ closed within less than one percent of a new all-time closing high, while the S&P's seven percent gain for the week left it two percent lower than the September 2nd closing high of 3,580.84. Even the lagging Dow and NYSE Composite made extraordinary gains of more then six percent over the five trading days.

What fueled this most recent bout of irrational exuberance was twofold in the main. A Biden victory signaled a continuation and expansion of inflationary, dollar-destructive deficits and fiscal policy by the US government. Adding fuel was Thursday's unanimous Federal Reserve FOMC policy vote which promoted higher inflation at an accelerated rate and further diminution of the dollar's purchasing power through extensively adding to the central bank's balance sheet through asset purchases and quantitative easing.

The key takeaway from the FOMC statement was the following:

The Committee seeks to achieve maximum employment and inflation at the rate of 2 percent over the longer run. With inflation running persistently below this longer-run goal, the Committee will aim to achieve inflation moderately above 2 percent for some time so that inflation averages 2 percent over time and longer-term inflation expectations remain well anchored at 2 percent. The Committee expects to maintain an accommodative stance of monetary policy until these outcomes are achieved. The Committee decided to keep the target range for the federal funds rate at 0 to 1/4 percent and expects it will be appropriate to maintain this target range until labor market conditions have reached levels consistent with the Committee's assessments of maximum employment and inflation has risen to 2 percent and is on track to moderately exceed 2 percent for some time. In addition, over coming months the Federal Reserve will increase its holdings of Treasury securities and agency mortgage-backed securities at least at the current pace to sustain smooth market functioning and help foster accommodative financial conditions, thereby supporting the flow of credit to households and businesses.

What's interesting about the statement is the Fed's openly aggressive policy of price inflation, notably not one of the the Fed's dual or triple mandate of maximum employment, stable prices, and moderate long-term interest rates. Couched in those terms, the Fed has failed on all three fronts. Employment is nowhere near maximum (though under President Trump it had been, prior to the CV-19 pandemic), interest rates well below historical norms have persisted in the 10-year note and 30-year bond for the past two decades and are currently near historic lows, and as far as stable prices are concerned, promoting inlation beyond two percent - or even any inflation at all - will by definition fail to achieve stability in prices. Somehow, the financial wizards on Wall Street believe Fed policies which pointedly decrease the purchasing power of the dollar currency are good for stock market investments.

In the bizarro-world that is the Wall Street economy, a fake currency based entirely upon ever-increasing levels of debt, combined with a newly "elected" fake president and three swings and misses on policy objectives is good enough to drive the stock market to dizzying new heights. Whatever it is that the Wall Street bankers, brokers, and businesses are smoking, they appear to be sharing it with large swaths of willing participants in the media and the public.

With election noise drowning out just about all other news, the dollar was battered to fresh lows along with oil, while competing "safe-haven" currencies such as Bitcoin, gold, and silver took note, proceeding higher.

Long-dated treasury yields were whipsawed from election day (Tuesday) highs to to FOMC announcement (Thursday) lows before settling out at lower levels on Friday. the 10-year yield peaked at 0.90%, the highest since March 20, fell as low as 0.78% before settling out at 0.83%, a decline of five basis points over the week. Yield on the 30-year followed a similar pattern, peaking at 1.66% before declining as low as 1.54% and settling out at 1.60%. The 1.66% level was - with the exception of the October 22 reading of 1.67 - the highest since March 19 (1.78%). The seven month peaks in yield are likely to be benchmarks going forward. While policy directives indicate a desire for higher rates, instability in the underling economy is not likely to produce higher yields. Rather, wholesale dollar destruction is likely to push rates lower, producing, as inflation roars, real negative yields or a complete bust of the treasury complex. No sane person or institution would lend at low interest to an entity bent on massive debt overreach such as the US government is currently. However, with the world upside down due to CV-19 and a willing rush toward a "Great Reset" bond buying is poised to accelerate interest rates into uncharted territories.

The price of crude oil may be the biggest story not reported. On October 30, the price of WTI crude fell to a five-month low of $35.79 per barrel. During the most recent week it gained, though the price rise was slight. Settling out at $37.14, an ongoing global glut is being supported only by China's buying as Europe appears destined for widespread shutdowns which undeniably crimps demand. If the United States - or even large portions of it - re-institute CV-19 lockdowns or restrictions on movement and business, the price of oil will crater back to levels seen during the stock market rout of February and March, into the 20s and possibly the teens.

Cheap oil has traditionally been a harbinger of economic progress and a low price for energy was always seen as sustaining a vibrant economy. However, low energy prices will deflate the price of everything in its path, exactly the opposite of the Fed's intentions to inflate. While the Federal Reserve is certainly good at faking everything, including their power, they eventually cannot control market forces. Lower energy prices based upon supply and demand economics threatens to push against their narrative, producing deflation, lower prices and stagnation if not an outright depression.

With the diminution of the global economy well underway, only a few things would be capable of attaining higher oil prices, one of them, war, may be on the minds of policy leaders.

Bitcoin continued to surge, surpassing $15,000 this week, after rapidly advancing beyond $13,000 the week before.

Precious metals finally caught a bid after months of suppressed prices. Gold rocketed from $1,878.81 to $1,951.35 by week's end, a rise of four percent. Silver, on October 30, was priced at $23.76. A week later, on November 6, silver priced at $25.73. The nearly two-dollar gain was a 8.29% increase.

While prices for precious metals had a solid week, they are still well below the summer highs. This is reflected by the continued sourcing scramble for all manner of minted gold and silver, and by high premiums demanded by dealers. The following are the most recent prices for common gold and silver items on eBay (numismatics excluded, shipping - often free - included):

Item: Low / High / Average / Median

1 oz silver coin: 30.00 / 49.00 / 40.57 / 39.25
1 oz silver bar: 31.00 / 45.00 / 36.17 / 35.43
1 oz gold coin: 2,050.05 / 2,097.49 / 2,074.24 / 2,070.23
1 oz gold bar: 1,955.00 / 2,450.00 / 2,065.22 / 2,050.27

That's a WRAP!

At the Close, Friday, November 6, 2020:
Dow: 28,323.40, -66.78 (-0.24%)
NASDAQ: 11,895.23, +4.30 (+0.04%)
S&P 500: 3,509.44, -1.01 (-0.03%)
NYSE: 13,218.67, +19.55 (+0.15%)

For the Week:
Dow: +1821.80 (+6.87%)
NASDAQ: +983.64 (+9.01%)
S&P 500: +239.48 (+7.32%)
NYSE: +789.39 (+6.35%)