By. Peter Schiff - May 30th, 2008 - http://www.europac.net
Video of Peter Schiff May 28 2008 Fox Business News - Bulls & Bears
As the price of gold has taken some lumps since it crashed into the symbolically significant $1,000 per ounce mark back in March, those on Wall Street who had consistently underplayed its potential on its way up are now assuring its continued retreat. According to these gold market spectators, prices have risen solely as a result of financial panic, and now that the fear has apparently subsided, gold’s gains will evaporate as well.
I have been buying gold and gold stocks for myself and my clients since 1999 and not once did I buy out of fear. In fact, from my perspective the only fear I’ve observed in the gold market is from those who have been too afraid to buy.
While fear may from time to time play a role in creating price spikes in gold, the underlying bull market has been driven by solid fundamentals. Those who have been too afraid to buy simply do not understand the underlying dynamics and have instead decided that the market is irrational. As a result, gold continues to climb the classic wall of worry as any dip in its otherwise upward trajectory causes the speculative investors to jump ship.
Gold’s ascent from less than $300 an ounce to its current level was, and is, being driven by those who prefer it as a store of value to the paper alternatives offered by governments. As the Federal Reserve’s dollar debasement policy kicks into high gear and other central banks around the world are forced to follow suit to maintain their pegs against the dollar, the rational choice for long term investors is gold. Thus, the decision to buy is not rooted in fear but reason. On the other hand, the decision not to buy is not only rooted in fear, but ignorance as well.