Light Trading - Little Change - Blessed Christmas to one and all.

Nothing exciting today about the precious metals. Both are up slightly. It is a short trading day and the volume is very light. The mining stocks are holding up very well. Most are trading at a higher level than that of 7-10 days ago. DROOY, HMY, & VGZ are in the process of establishing a new trading range - likely a higher plateau.

Gold is at 842.50 up 2.50 and sliver at 10.30 up 0.11. That is likely to be the story for today as the markets close shortly.

I sold out of Renminbi today and anticipate putting the funds into Everbank World Markets Metals Select Funds. But will wait until next week.

From Globe Docs:

Gold slips in thin holiday trade

HUMEYRA PAMUK

Reuters

December 24, 2008 at 6:39 AM EST— Gold slipped in thin holiday trade on Wednesday, shrugging off a weaker dollar, as crude oil prices fell over worries of deteriorating demand.
In light trading ahead of Christmas, spot gold was down at $835.10 (U.S.) an ounce at 1055 GMT versus $838.55 late in New York.

“We're seeing some choppy movements with the liquidity so thin,” said analyst Suki Copper at Barclays Capital. “It is more likely to remain range bound today,” she said.

Brent crude oil futures fell more than $1 a barrel on deepening worries that global recession would reduce oil demand. The U.S. dollar slipped against a basket of currencies in thin trade as investors braced for U.S. data that may add to the grim outlook for the nation's economy.

Read the article HERE.

From Bloomberg:

U.S. Economy: Home Prices Fall Near Depression Pace

By Bob Willis and Shobhana Chandra

Dec. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Sales of single-family houses in the U.S. dropped in November by the most in two decades and resale prices collapsed at a pace reminiscent of the Great Depression, dashing speculation the market was close to a bottom.

Purchases of both new and existing houses dropped 7.6 percent from the prior month, the biggest decline since January 1989, to an annual rate of 4.43 million, government and industry figures showed today. A 13 percent drop in the median resale price from a year earlier was the most since records began in 1968 and was likely the largest since the 1930s, the National Association of Realtors said.

“Housing is still in a free fall,” said Nariman Behravesh, chief economist at IHS Global Insight in Lexington, Massachusetts.

Read the article HERE.

From BCA Research:

10:26:00, December 17, 2008

U.S. Monetary Policy: Unconventional Easing Underway

The FOMC clearly crossed over the line into quantitative-easing territory by cutting the fed funds target rate virtually to zero, promising to hold it low for a long period, and committing to large purchases of mortgage-related assets and possibly long-term Treasurys.

Read the article HERE:

From Reuters:

Consumers close wallets as job market darkens

Wed Dec 24, 2008 9:29am EST

By Glenn Somerville

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Consumers cut their spending for a fifth straight month in November as a year-old recession tightened its grip, but with prices dropping, they got more for each dollar, a report showed on Wednesday.

A separate report showed initial claims for jobless aid last week hit the highest level in 26 years.

The Commerce Department said spending shrank by 0.6 percent last month after falling by 1 percent in October. However, a sharp drop in prices pushed inflation-adjusted spending up by 0.6 percent, the first increase since May.

Read the article HERE.

This is a time of celebration!

"Joy to the world, the Lord is come: Let earth receive her King; Let every heart prepare him room, And heaven and nature sign."

Not only has He come, but He lived a perfect life so He could be the lamb without blemish to die on the cross that we might be reconciled with the Father in spite of our sin. Through His blood, we have been washed as white as snow. Now He sits at the right hand of His Father to ever intercede on behalf of His people.

He will come again to judge both the living and the dead at the final judgment on the Great White Throne. His people will receive eternal life with Him and the others will burn in the fires of Hell forever. Forever is a long time.

Let us rejoice that our brother is the King. He rules over all and is working His will for the eventual benefit of His people. "Rejoice, and again I say, 'Rejoice.'"

This is a time of specific celebration of the perfect gift that God the Father sent to us through His Son. Praise Him daily and rejoice. Christ and His grace is truly the reason for this wonderful season. Do not let anything detract from this central fact.

A blessed Christmas to one and all, Doug