Why This Billionaire Just Bought Gold for the First Time in His Life

Thursday, January 24, 2019
By Paul Martin

By: Frank Holmes, US Funds
GoldSeek.com
Thursday, 24 January 2019

Billionaire Sam Zell just announced that he bought gold for the very first time in his life because, as he puts it, “it is a good hedge.” In a recent Bloomberg interview, the Equity International founder and creator of the real estate investment trust (REIT) admitted to seeing an opportunity in gold’s increasing supply shortage.

“For the first time in my life, I bought gold because it is a good hedge,” Zell, 77, told Bloomberg. “Supply is shrinking, and that is going to have a positive impact on the price.”

He added: “The amount of capital being put into gold mines is at most nonexistent. All of the money is being used to buy up rivals.”

I believe Zell’s reasons for investing in gold are sound, and I’ve discussed them in detail a number of times before. Supply is indeed shrinking. The “low-hanging fruit” has likely already been mined, and it’s become prohibitively expensive for many companies to look for large-scale deposits, to say nothing of developing them. As you can see below, the number of ounces in major discoveries has been falling for years, and exploration budgets are still far below the 2012 peak.

We Believe Supply-Demand Fundamentals Look Constructive

As if to confirm Zell’s reasoning, the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) forecast in a report this week that a gold deficit will emerge in 2019 “on the back of stronger demand over the next two years, primarily from bar hoarding, net central bank buying and exchange-traded products (ETFs).” Peak production, according to the bank, will occur in 2021 at close to 34 million ounces, but then decline to under 16 million ounces by 2030.

Demand isn’t abating, though. We’re seeing appetite grow for the precious metal, not just from investors but also central banks, which have been net buyers since 2010. According to CIBC, several central banks stepped back into the market last year, most notably the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which until recently “has expressed negative sentiment around gold purchases.”

CIBC raised its gold price forecast this year to $1,350 an ounce, up from $1,300. The bank is also looking for $1,400 an ounce in 2020.

But These Gold Miners Could Be Even More Effective as a Store of Value

As attractive as I think gold bullion looks right now, there could be some incredible opportunities in gold equities, which are extremely discounted compared to the S&P 500 Index.

Among CIBC’s favorite gold equities are Agnico Eagle, Wheaton Precious Metals, B2Gold and SSR Mining—all of which we own in either our Gold and Precious Metals Fund (USERX) or World Precious Minerals Fund (UNWPX).

And in an article dated January 22, Bloomberg analysts David Stringer, Ranjeetha Pakiam and Danielle Bochove point out that a good place to look for gold equities could be mid-sized producers, which have outperformed both bullion and the entire global mining industry. For the 12-month period as of January 18, four miners in particular—Kirkland Lake Gold, Northern Star, Evolution and OceanaGold—all posted double-digit performance. By contrast, the Bloomberg World Mining Index was down more than 20 percent.

The Rest…HERE

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