Precious metals sold off violently on Friday after President Donald Trump announced Kevin Warsh as the next Federal Reserve chairman, ending a powerful rally that had stretched for weeks. • SPDR Gold Shares stock is showing notable weakness. What’s behind GLD decline?Silver prices plunged as much as 33% to $78 an ounce during midday trading in New York, marking a historic reversal from the explosive gains the metal had posted earlier in the month. If the session closes near these levels, it would be silver' ...

President Donald Trump on Jan. 30 nominated Kevin Warsh to lead the Federal Reserve and an increasingly divided Federal Open Market Committee once Chair Jerome Powell’s term ends in May. Warsh served on the Fed’s Board of Governors for five years from 2006 to 2011, including during the U.S. financial crisis. During that time, he was seen as a bridge to Wall Street and pegged as a hawk, meaning he favored keeping interest rates high to curb inflation. However, Warsh has recently appeared more dovish, sidin ...

Like a chain of dominoes falling one by one, a rate cut (or hike) from the Fed translates to cheaper (or more expensive) borrowing costs on almost every purchase a consumer finances: from credit card spending and auto loans to mortgages and home equity lines of credit. A silver-lining for consumers as interest rates rise, yields on certificates of deposit (CDs) and savings accounts also grow. On the flip side, though, lower interest rates from the Fed weigh on depositors’ earnings.When economists or investo ...

Silver prices have surged 250% over the last year. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)Copyright 2012 AP. All rights reserved.By one measure, silver has caught up to gold. And then some.The gold-to-silver ratio (the price of an ounce of gold divided by the price of an ounce of silver) has dropped below 50 for the first time since March 2012. In simple terms, that means silver is trading at its highest level relative to gold in nearly 14 years amidst a rally that has seen gold rise by more than 80% over the last year to $ ...

Joining us now is former Kansas City Fed President Thomas Honig. It's great to have you back, Thomas. So, I actually want to start with what what I think is the biggest market story today, which is the strength in the Japanese yen on rumors and speculation of intervention by potentially the US here at the same time where gold is making new highs and up another 2%.Is is this something that you think will get discussed at the Fed meeting this week. I'm almost certain it will be discussed at the Fed meeting bo ...

Core Viewpoint - President Trump announced that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will purchase an additional $200 billion in mortgage bonds to lower mortgage rates and make home ownership more affordable [1]. Group 1: Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs) Actions - Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are instructed to buy $200 billion in mortgage bonds, which is expected to drive down mortgage rates and monthly payments [1]. - The GSEs have already increased their retained mortgage holdings by approximately $69 billion in the second half of 2025 [6]. - If the GSEs add another $200 billion in mortgage bond holdings in 2026, they would approach their legal limit of $450 billion, with $225 billion for each [7]. Group 2: Market Dynamics - Long-term yields, such as the 10-year Treasury yield and the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate, are influenced by the demand for underlying bonds, with yields moving inversely to bond prices [1]. - The "mortgage spread," which is the difference between the 10-year Treasury yield and the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate, peaked at 2.96 percentage points in June 2023, significantly above the historical average of 1.76 percentage points since 1972 [5]. - The goal of the $200 billion purchase is to accelerate the compression of the "mortgage spread," which has already decreased to 2.05 percentage points by December 2025 [6]. Group 3: Historical Context and Federal Reserve Actions - Prior to the Great Financial Crisis, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were significant buyers of mortgage-backed securities (MBS), providing stability to the market [9]. - The Federal Reserve took on the role of market stabilizer after the GSEs went into conservatorship, purchasing $1.25 trillion in agency MBS between January 2009 and March 2010 [9]. - The Federal Reserve's pivot to quantitative tightening in March 2022 removed a major buyer from the MBS market, leading to increased volatility and higher mortgage rates [11].

The mainstream media will try to trick you about Bitcoin. They will make you believe that this crypto bloodbath will never end when in fact it will end. People are fearful.Last time we saw levels this fearful was actually near the end of the 2022 bare market when FTX was collapsing. I've lived through multiple bare markets, multiple bull markets. You buy when there's blood in the streets, when people are fearful. You sell when people are greedy. people are euphoric.But of course, the other thing that I real ...

The party might just be getting started for gold and other precious metals. - Getty Images He’s bullish on something — and less bearish on U.S. stocks than you’d imagine. Albert Edwards, the notoriously bearish global strategist from Societe Generale, is bullish on precious metals and thinks that, far from resembling a classic investment bubble, the party might just be getting started. Most Read from MarketWatch In his weekly strategy note published Wednesday, Edwards is especially focused on gold and ...

Core Insights - Major North American gold miners have reached record highs due to the Federal Reserve's third consecutive interest-rate cut, fueling a significant rally in precious metals [1][6] - Newmont Corp. and Barrick Mining Corp. have seen substantial year-to-date gains of 168% and 180%, respectively, with the VanEck Gold Miners ETF rising 155% [1][2] - Gold and silver prices have surged, with gold reaching $2,230 per ounce (up 62% year-to-date) and silver at $64 (up 119% year-to-date), marking their strongest annual performance since the late 1970s [3] Company Performance - Newmont Corp. experienced a 6.1% increase in stock price, achieving all-time highs and its strongest single-day performance since July [1] - Barrick Mining Corp. rose by 4%, marking its third consecutive session of gains and also reaching new records [2] Industry Trends - The broader precious metals market is experiencing a powerful rally, with the VanEck Gold Miners ETF setting new records [2] - The Federal Reserve's recent rate cuts and plans for technical purchases of Treasury bills indicate a supportive macroeconomic environment for precious metals [6][7] Expert Opinions - Analysts suggest that the current rally in gold prices is part of long-term cycles driven by macroeconomic imbalances, indicating that the cycle may still be in its early stages [8][9] - Continued central bank demand and the adoption of gold in portfolio allocations are reinforcing the recovery in gold prices [10]

Federal Reserve Insights - The Federal Reserve's stance on interest rates and the US economy will be clarified through comments from Jerome Powell and the Summary of Economic Projections (SEP) [2][4] - Key figures to watch include Jerome Powell, Steven Myron, Michelle Bowman, and Christopher Waller, with a focus on potential dissenters within the FOMC [3][4] - The market anticipates a 25 basis point rate cut, with discussions around the possibility of starting quantitative easing following the end of quantitative tightening [5][6] Earnings Reports - Significant earnings reports are expected from major companies such as Adobe, Oracle, Broadcom, Costco, and Lululemon on Wednesday and Thursday [3][7] - Broadcom is highlighted as a key player in the AI sector, with expectations of strong performance despite Nvidia's recent post-earnings decline [7][8] - Lululemon and Costco's earnings will provide insights into the US consumer market [8] Netflix and Warner Brothers Merger - Netflix has won the bid to move forward with the Warner Brothers acquisition, but the deal is expected to face extensive scrutiny and could take a long time to finalize [10][11] - Paramount Sky has launched a $30 all-cash tender offer for Warner Brothers, raising the stakes in the bidding war [12][13] - The enterprise value of Warner Brothers has escalated to approximately $108.4 billion, indicating a competitive environment for the asset [14][16]