SEMI-MONTHLY FISCAL/MONETARY UPDATE – WE SUGGEST: THE FOUR MONTH CONSOLIDATION IN GOLD IS OVER

The US debt at 9/30/00, excluding unfunded entitlements,  just before President Bush took office was $5.7 trillion. Eight years later, at 9/30/08, just before President Obama, the debt was $10.0 trillion. Eight years later, at 9/30/16, just before President Trump, the debt was $19.6 trillion. Four years later, at 9/30/20, just before President Biden, the debt was $26.9 trillion.

Quoting the most recent Congressional Budget Office (CBO) update :

“At 14.9 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), the deficit in 2020 was the largest it has been since the end of World War II. Much of that deficit stemmed from the 2020 coronavirus pandemic and the government’s actions in response—but the projected deficit was large by historical standards ($1.1 trillion, or 4.9 percent of GDP) even before the disruption caused by the pandemic. In the CBO projections, deficits as a percent of GDP fall between 2021 and 2027 (from 8.6 percent of GDP to 4.0 percent), and then increase to 5.3 percent of GDP by 2030—more than one-and-a-half times the average over the past 50 years.”

It is worth noting that the CBO has consistently overestimated the projected growth (and tax receipts), underestimated the spending and therefore substantially underestimated the deficit. With that in mind, the CBO projected 8.6% deficit in the current year,  as a percent of GDP would amount to about $2 trillion so the US will pass the $30 trillion round number in calendar 2022. No matter what Modern Monetary Theory tells you, the debt matters because it is a proven drag on growth. Even if interest rates continue to be suppressed, only 1% on $30 trillion is $300 billion so that’s a guarantee that the deficit will continue to be a problem. It’s also a guarantee that interest rates will not go up much if the Fed can control it. If and (as we believe) when that is no longer the case, it will indicate that the Fed has lost control, inflation is about to take off, and all bets are off in terms of the economy and capital markets.

NEGATIVE INTEREST RATES HIT A RECORD

New records are being set as $18.4 trillion of global debt is now priced to yield less than zero, up from less than $8 trillion in March and a five year average of $10.3 trillion. As noted monetary historian, Jim Grant, points out: “nominal negatIve yielding debt had never been seen in material size  in 4,000 years of interest rate history prior to the current cycle, and recent happenings suggest that upside-down debt may grow larger still”.

Negative “real” yields, which subtract the inflation rate from the stated “nominal” interest rate creates a strong incentive for investors to reach for yield in the capital markets, no matter what form that risk might take. This TINA (There Is No Alternative) approach to investing is why Tesla, Doordash and $60 or $70 billion worth of SPACs are trading where they are as stock market averages his new record highs. It also means that savers not willing to play the TINA game are being screwed (no better way to put it ), to the benefit of central bankers and politicians who are kicking the fiscal/monetary can down the road. Negative interest rates also improve gold as an investment because the absence of interest or dividends is better than the negative yield on government debt.

We have pointed out before that negative “real yields”, along with lots of other current indicators, have strongly supported higher gold prices. We are admittedly surprised that the gold price and gold mining stocks have given back over half of the mid-2020 gains, and we attribute this “consolidation” to (1) The group had become a little too popular in the middle of the year and technically needed a correction to  shake out the weak holders and set the stage for the next leg up (2) The stock market strength precluded a perceived need for a safe haven (3) The next trillion dollars of government fiscal stimulus was put on hold until after the election (4) The Federal Reserve balance sheet, above $7 trillion, is “only” growing by $150B/month, no longer a shock to the capital markets.

We do not believe that the current strength in cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin is as much of a culprit as the factors above, since gold and gold mining stocks are far more of a long term “store of value” rather than the crypto currencies that are primarily trading vehicles.

We believe fiscal stimulus is coming shortly, to be followed by more fiscal/monetary support in just a few months and more after that, ad infinitum.

This point in time happens to coincide with gold bullion and the gold mining stocks trading just at the technical support price at the 200 day moving average. We are determined not to play it too cute with our holdings of gold mining stocks, trading out at a short term peak, and trying to time a re-entry. The long term potential is too compelling. The gold mining industry is the least expensive asset class we know of, not only protecting purchasing power over the long term, but a potentially very lucrative investment in nominal terms. We reiterate our belief that the gold price will increase by several times in value over the next three to five years and the gold mining stocks by a multiple of that. (Our investment partnership remains open to qualified investors.)

Roger Lipton