As seen on:
CBS moneywatch ~ The Miami Herald
Upcoming shows:
May 8-10th, Uruguay Offshore Investment Conference 2013 | May 13-16th, Moneyshow, Las Vegas 2013 | May 15-18th, Wealth and Liberty preservation 2013, St Kitts | June 2-4th, Private Wealth Management Summit Spring 2013, Ritz Carlton, Atlanta | October 9-13th, 2013 Total Wealth Symposium
Offshore Investing in Rare and Precious Metals
Rare Strategic Metals
If you are a retiree looking to invest your money offshore, you can do so by investing in rare metals. Ownership of precious metals such as silver and gold is also another way of investing nowadays instead of doing it the old fashioned way. Metals gain value over time, sure money will earn interest overtime but metals are more likely to bring higher returns. This is a long term strategy of protecting your assets to ensure that they are always safe.
It is also safe to go for the more common metals such as silver and gold. Converting liquid cash into metal assets ensures that your wealth is secure even in times of financial crisis. These metals are tangible assets that are not affected by normal financial trends.
Gold is one of the more common investment options and it has been used to show wealth for a long time. The reason why it is the investment metal of choice for many is that is its malleability and indestructibility. It is quite heavy but still relatively easy to transport. The gold rate is usually stable most of the time and when you choose to sell, it is more likely to be at a higher price than you bought it.
There are many ways of offshore investing in metals; it can be done in physical form i.e. you buy jewelry, coins and bullions which you can store. You can also invest in terms of stocks where you just own shares to a metal company without the risk of holding the metal for yourself. However the other types of strategic metals that you can invest in include;
- Indium
- Gallium
- Tantalum
- Bismuth
- Tellurium
By buying these metals you can be in possession of a range of metals which are valuable to the industry currently and in the future. These metals are a safe and lasting way of protecting your assets.
Why invest in metals?
Money is affected by inflation but precious metals are not. Concerns over future inflation highly affect people’s decision to invest in metals. Buying precious metals will therefore provide a safe haven against inflation. Another reason why people are investing in metals is because they have high liquidity. This is how fast they can be converted into cash; other common assets are not liquid. The most liquid metals include gold and silver and this is a desirable factor to investors.
Privacy is also a good reason to invest in metals. Most people do not like parading their wealth or for their wealth to be public knowledge so this metals enable them to keep their assets a secret. It is kept a secret because there is no reporting of asset transaction prices under ten thousand dollars. It is also safe to invest in metals because their value remains intact, they do not depreciate.
In a nutshell the benefits of investing in metals include;
- Safety
- Privacy
- Liquidity
- They are safe from inflation
Do You Need to be Wealthy to Worry about Wealth Preservation
Wealth (Photo credit: Patrick Streule)
Wealth preservation is not a subject that only the extremely wealthy need concern themselves with. In fact, when viewed in a purely logical fashion, being proactive in preserving the value of wealth is even more important for those working themselves up the economic scale. The losses incurred by inflation eating away at their savings and investments matter more because they have less to lose as compared to those in the upper echelons of the financial scale.
Current economic and political trends across the globe indicate strongly that everyone need concern themselves with wealth preservation. Governments throughout the world are struggling with massive amounts of debt, with many nations teetering on the edge of insolvency. Ramping up the national currency printing presses is all too often a significant part of governmental ‘solution’ to such economic difficulties. Naturally, that whittles away at the value of currency via inflation, stealing away the value of the wealth that savers at all economic levels have tried to lay aside.
This is nothing new. In fact, it is a centuries old pattern. That is why metals, most famously gold and silver, have been the traditional means of wealth preservation during economic eras when currency couldn’t be trusted to hold its value in the short-term or the long-term. With the technologies of today, the field of wealth preserving metals has expanded to include those rare earth and strategic metals that are essential to industry and to various technological applications. These types of investments are a smart move for those at just about any point on the wealth measurement scales.
Often people don’t consider wealth preservation because they do not think of themselves as having enough assets to make value preservation a priority. That simply isn’t the case. Wealth preservation is a key component of increasing assets and achieving generational wealth status. And, the bottom line is a simple one. The wealth you’ve accumulated is worth preserving simply because it is yours, no matter how it compares in worth to the wealth of other people. Metals, traditional and rare earth, offer a smart and comparatively safe means of accomplishing exactly that.
Learning about metals and how they can aid in wealth preservation can limit the degree that fiscally irresponsible governments and other asset value hazards can reduce your wealth. Rare earth metals are essential to the production of the various computer and electronic technologies we use today, as well as to many industrial and defense projects. Becoming familiar with these investment opportunities, as well as the traditional wealth preserving metals like gold and silver, can help you to retain more control over your future, financial and otherwise.
How Does Owning Rare Metals Protect You From the Fiscal Cliff
The Fiscal Cliff
In less than a month (January 2013), the so-called ‘fiscal cliff’ is expected to emerge from the largely unwanted but seemingly unstoppable junction of governmental spending and taxation policies. Several tax issues, including
- elimination of Bush tax cuts for the wealthy,
- potential additional 3.8% taxes on incomes in excess of $200,000.00,
- a 5% tax increase on capital gains, and
- additional 2% social security taxes on worker salaries should take effect. These will combine with the new ‘sequestration’ of government spending (Budget Control Act), designed to generate cuts of about 10% in the majority of federal discretionary programs, causing:
- cessation or diminution of multiple federal contracts, likely including
- slowdowns in manufacturing output and business investment,
- extensive layoffs or unpaid leaves, potentially adding to unemployment totals.
Although one cannot say for certain to what extent the fiscal cliff will develop or its overall impact on economic performance, asset protection strategies seem advisable for investors. Owning precious metals is a good way to protect you from the fiscal cliff.
Growing Wealth Despite the Fiscal Cliff
If the economy falls off the fiscal cliff and record debt is created, a proactive approach to protecting your assets from inflation and taxation is essential. Asset protection strategies are devised to ensure stabilization or growth of wealth even if the worst projections of the fiscal cliff prevail. Although one can expect prices of commodities like gold, silver and other precious metals to decline in the first months of next year, if fiscal cliff projections hold true, their diminished value is not forecast to be of longer-term.
Gold, currently over $1,700.00/ounce may decline to around $1,500.00 in the very short-term (45 days), and silver from $33.00/ounce to around $30.00. Rather than signaling bad news for investors, they can actually come out well ahead by purchasing these metals at their lower prices and waiting for the increases certain to follow. Although some projections, with gold rising to $5000.00/ounce, and silver to $500.00, are no doubt rather excessive, the opportunity for sizable gains is present.
In this environment, precious metals represent bargain assets offering higher returns for lower investment costs, particularly in relation to stocks and bonds, suspected to be hardest hit by fiscal cliff problems. If these problems don’t emerge, and the economy remains relatively stable, precious metals retain their value. The recent record has not shown either wages or most other forms of personal income growing at a similar pace with inflation or consumer debt. This is precisely the kind of fiscal environment that demands appropriately proactive asset management strategies, regardless of the existence of a fiscal cliff. Projected gains in the price of precious metals, following a swift decline in prices, could lead to substantial returns.
Asset Protection Strategies in 2013
Of course, whatever Washington can do to avert next month’s looming financial crisis may render fiscal cliff worries superfluous. Gold’s price is expected to gain – to a level between $1,800.00 – $1,900.00/ ounce – through the end of the year.
While following this logic, appropriate asset protection strategies suggest it may be better to wait until after January to buy some precious metals, rare metals from Swiss Metal Assets offer an exceptional opportunity right now. We are offering a special designed to protect to against the fiscal cliff while giving incentives that should help offset any projected decline if the cliff does loom (and give you the advantage of subsequent price gains following in mid-February).
Unfortunately our Christmas special has expired. But, Strategic Metals still makes an excellent choice for asset protection. Why not learn more for free by clicking below?
Why Owning Rare Metals and Storing them Offshore is a Brilliant Strategy
Rare Strategic Metals
As someone concerned about future financial stability, you may have considered offshore investing. Even the wealthiest are becoming more and more worried about protecting their investments and wealth under a U.S. government that is going further into debt every single day. Protecting your future and that of your family is one of your biggest concerns, so how can you ensure that your investments and assets are protected, and won’t be worthless a decade from now due to inflation and/or other factors?
Ownership of gold, silver and other rare metals is one of the smartest things you can do to ensure your financial future. Storing them offshore is one of the smartest decisions you will make. Unfortunately, the term “offshore investing” strikes many individuals as something almost illegal, not quite above board. While the media does tend to paint a shade, dark picture of it, the fact is the majority of these investments are perfectly legal, and the advantages over investing in the U.S. many.
If you’re reading this, chances are you are approaching retirement or simply giving it some thought if it’s still a few years away. Can you trust the government? As social security and programs such as Medicare seem to become precariously close to being in jeopardy, it’s hard to know for certain just what your future holds, even when you have sound investments and are fairly well off. Purchasing rare metals and storing them offshore is a way to build your assets and wealth in a way that is private and protected. The government has their fingers in every other aspect of your life; through offshore investing, you will enjoy a safe alternative to the risk of main stream investing.
The fact is, there are numerous advantages in owning gold, silver, and other rare or strategic metals in an offshore “safe harbor,” so to speak. When you purchase strategic metals, you are not investing in paper backed securities, but valuable rare metals which are fully vested with you once purchased, and that will continue to increase in value year after year. Why not “stockpile” the most valuable assets in the world, something that has shown historically to rarely decrease in value, to ensure the financial security of your future?
What is the purpose of offshore investing? Simply stated, your assets are protected, you can invest privately and enjoy the confidence of knowing you will never “lose your butt” when the market takes a nose dive, and your wealth will never be eaten away by taxes as is the case with many other types of investments.
Those who are looking for long term investments that offer growth potential and want to expand their portfolios in order to enjoy a fulfilling retirement should consider offshore investing. This is one way (and perhaps the only sure way) to ensure that you are financially comfortable in your golden years!
India’s rich eye gold
Precious Metal Gold
The emergence of young, entrepreneurial high networth individuals in India is leading to a more diverse investment appetite, with gold linked debentures and gold ETFs high on the list.
The amount of wealth held by high networth individuals in India has reportedly increased faster than that held by rich people globally, according to a report, which notes that India’s elite are looking to invest their cash in gold.
With Indians holding more than 18,000 tonnes of the precious metal, the report by Indian wealth management firm Karvy Private Wealth has noted that the demand for gold has risen by 13% on average over the past 10 years, and is likely to increase by 30% this year.
The report found that while the fortunes of high networth individuals internationally grew by around 9.7% during 2011, money held by India’s rich increased by more than 18%. The growth made India one of the fastest growing high networth populations in the world, accounting for 1.6% of global wealth, according to the report.
Even as these rich Indians look for risk averse ways to invest their cash, the rising demand for gold from this class has not gone unnoticed. Though much of the growth in wealth was thanks to the increase in investment in fixed deposits, bonds and equities, the most popular alternative asset was structured products in the form of equity and gold-linked debentures, which constituted nearly 72% of the total wealth invested.
Individual wealth of Indians surged to $1,683 billion (Rs 86.5 lakh crore) in 2010-11 fiscal. Investment in alternative assets has increased significantly, boosted by investors’ rising confidence and interest in a relatively newer class of assets, the report states. According to Karvy, total assets under management (AUM) in equity-linked debentures was estimated to have grown 21% year on year.
According to R Parandekar, group head of the Wealth Management and Asset Management team at Karvy, “India’s individual wealth in alternative assets is 0.34% of her total wealth in comparison to 6.2% globally. We believe that alternative assets will be a major investment avenue in India over the next few years. Alternative assets including Gold ETFs, structured products, private equity and venture capital funds, etc. which are expected to grow at a rapid pace of 100% per annum.”
Gold exchange traded funds (ETFs) have also seen a steady increase in interest. The asset base of gold ETFs, as per data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India, has surged 167% between January and November 2011 to $1.8 billion (Rs 9658 crore). In the last two years, gold mutual fund assets have grown nearly 570%.
Analysts say the gold fund category is the only one that has generated significant returns for investors in 2011, ending the year generating over 30% returns. Gold funds gained 27% to 31% over the past one year, as compared to large cap equity funds, short term bond funds and income funds which on an average returned minus (-) 23%, 9.04% and 8.2% respectively during the same period, according to data from Value Research.
Between now and 2016, the wealth of India’s richest is also expected to treble. As per the Karvy report, with current annual household savings of about 34%, and expected to grow 8% on average, India is well poised to lead wealth creation in the global arena.
Source: http://www.mineweb.com/mineweb/view/mineweb/en/page34?oid=143379&sn=Detail
The 2011 Silver Quiz
CPM Group recently released their 2011 Silver Yearbook, one of the industry’s most comprehensive sources of information on the silver market. Though mostly a reference book, I uncovered some interesting facts that paint a decidedly bullish picture for the metal going forward.
If you’re a silver investor, or are concerned about the recent sell off, you may find the following data very compelling. It provides an inside track on the market and will certainly make us all more knowledgeable investors.
For fun, I put what I read into the form of a quiz. See how many you can get correct…
1) The #1 driver for silver’s price increase in 2010 was:
a) Investment demand
b) Fabrication demand
c) Lower supply
While both fabrication demand and supply rose last year, investors bought 142 million ounces of silver – the third highest level on record, and the highest since 1980. This pushed the price into record territory.
It’s noteworthy that investment demand was higher last year than during the recession year of 2009. This suggests that investors buy silver more out of dollar devaluation and inflation fears than simply due to an economic contraction.
2) Silver mine production:
a) Exceeds demand
b) Matches demand
c) Falls short of demand
Silver produced from worldwide mining totaled 667 million ounces last year – but total demand hit 986 million ounces. Despite the fact that mine production has increased 33% since 1999, it falls far short of supplying the market’s needs. While scrap coming to market makes up the difference, this gap is one of the more critical issues going forward. The delicate balance between supply and demand will become increasingly precarious as overall demand continues to grow.
3) Household demand for silver (cutlery, flatware, and candlesticks) hasn’t risen in ten years. Jewelry fabrication is up but a blip. Silver use in photography continues to fall. So, true or false?: Total demand is falling.
False. Industrial use has more than made up the difference from declines in other uses, and is pushing demand to new levels. Since 1999, consumption in electronics has increased 120%. Silver usage in solar panels began in 2000 and is up 640% since then. Silver was first used in biocides (antibacterial agents) in 2002 and, while a small niche, it has already grown sixfold. In fact, new uses for silver are being found almost every day, particularly in the biocide arena, making it increasingly difficult to catalog all its growing applications.
The Silver Institute forecasts that total industrial use of the metal will rise 36% over the next five years, to 666 million troy ounces annually. That’s a lot of silver, meaning this portion of demand – which is roughly 60% of all fabrication – isn’t letting up any time soon.
4) Silver represented what percent of global financial assets at the end of 2010?
a) 1.7%
b) 0.7%
c) 0.07%
d) 0.007%
D. In spite of last year’s record-high prices, silver is, by any account, a miniscule portion of the world’s wealth. The ratio’s high occurred in 1980, reaching 0.34% of financial assets. Silver as a percentage of global assets would have to grow over 48 times to match the record. It is true that many more paper assets exist today than 30 years ago, but the renaissance in silver will continue to increase its portion of worldwide assets.
5) The largest manufacturer of silver coins is the U.S. Mint, which sold 34.7 million ounces last year, about 46% of the world total. What country is the second largest?
a) Austria
b) Canada
c) U.K.
d) South Africa
The Austrian Mint contributed 15% of total silver coin sales last year (11.4 million ounces), an increase of 26% over 2009. Still, the American Silver Eagle rules the global roost. Given how recognizable it is around the world, it’s what to buy if you don’t own enough metal.
6) Of the following groups of countries, which is increasing silver production and which is in decline?
a) Mexico, Australia, China, Argentina
b) Peru, U.S., Canada
Countries in group A are increasing production, while to the surprise of many, each one in group B is in decline. This has direct ramifications for your silver stock investments. Total newly refined supply is expected to surpass one billion ounces for the first time in history this year, so make sure you have some exposure to countries where production is growing.
7) The average cash cost to produce an ounce of silver from primary silver mines is:
a) $7.16
b) $6.16
c) $5.16
d) $4.16
Of the 30 primary silver mines in the world, average cash cost range in at $5.16 per ounce (net of byproduct credits). This is almost double 2002 levels. The silver price has risen 650% in the same time frame, however, so margins have risen in spite of higher costs.
8) The only governments that hold silver in inventory are the U.S., Mexico, and India. How many combined ounces do they hold?
a) 55 million
b) 155 million
c) 255 million
d) 355 million
Only 55 million ounces are estimated to be stored in these three countries. This equals only 5.6% of annual global demand. Governments held approximately 355 million ounces in 1970, but this has diminished largely due to the U.S. decision to stop using silver in its currency in the 1960s and other governments following suit. No other countries are believed to hold any silver in inventory. Mine production and scrap supply had better keep up, because there is no backup source.
9) China accounts for how much of worldwide mine production?
a) 9%
b) 11%
c) 14%
d) 16%
Chinese mine supply totaled 102.7 million ounces last year, 16% of global production. China is the third largest silver producer, behind Mexico and Peru.
Mine production in China has more than doubled just since 2000, largely due to Beijing’s decision to deregulate the state-controlled market the year before. This trend is certain to continue, due to rising silver prices and the fact that many parts of the country are under explored. If you don’t own a Chinese silver producer, you’re missing out on some of the most explosive growth around the globe.
10) What is the weakest month of the year for the silver price?
a) January
b) June
c) July
d) October
Summer is usually the most sluggish time of the year for silver, and July is historically the weakest. Got your dealer’s number handy?
It’s clear that the forces underpinning the silver bull market aren’t going away any time soon. Demand is high, but it’s not an anomaly when viewed through an historical lens. Silver has been used as money for over 3,000 years, and the word for “money” in many languages is “silver.”
Meanwhile, our current monetary issues are far from over, won’t be easily resolved, and will take years to play out. Precious metals are proven forms of protection for this environment. Silver, along with gold, is your best defense against unsustainable fiscal imbalances and massive currency debasement, and will be a profit center for years to come.
Jeff Clark, BIG GOLD
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