- Currencies and metals get sold on Wednesday
- Kevin Warsh shows off his media training….
Good Day… And a Tub Thumpin’ Thursday to one and all! Our Chamber of Commerce Day yesterday saw the whole watering hole gang here to watch the game with me outside… The Cardinals lost the game, but did come home from a road trip with a 4-2 record… So, there was a silver lining there…. We’re expecting another Chamber of Commerce Day here before the rain comes on Friday… But there is no game for me to watch today, so I’ll spend the day outside reading…. The great Al Stewart greets me this morning with his song: On The Border…
Well, the war drags on, which means the dollar got bought yesterday… Not much, but enough to move the needle on the BBDXY… Again, though, the dollar is a very tight trading range right now with no real conviction to sell or buy it… Just too many “unknowns”… And I taught you all many years ago that the markets don’t like “unknowns”….
Gold couldn’t find terra firma as it started out the day up $38, but that fizzled out soon after the SPTs showed up to short the heck out of the metal…. Gold ended the day down $19 to close at $4,740… But in a strange twist of trading, Silver rallied… Yes, I said that right, Silver did rally $1.54 to close the day at $77.83
The price of Oil continues to ratchet higher again, after last week’s misplaced euphoria that the war would be over soon, the price of Oil ended the day trading with a $93 handle…
And the 10-year’s yield rose to end the day at 4.31%
In the overnight markets last night… More of the same overnight, folks… How low can you go? Do the limbo! I recall as kids, me and my sisters would play that game… I was never really good at it… My oldest sister, Brenda, was very good at bending her body to get under the limbo pole…
The dollar remained trading 1,197 in the BBDXY, but the euro did slip under the 1.17 figure overnight… so, that means that the dollar did see some buying, but it just wasn’t shown in the BBDXY…
Gold starts our day today down $6… So, that’s a figure that can easily be turned around, so… come on you physical buyers get going! Silver starts the day down $1.68… So much for Silver’s rally yesterday, that has been wiped out to start our day… Copper is a metal that I’ve touched on from time to time…
Did you know that sulfuric acid is used to get Copper out of the ground and separate it from Silver? And guess what’s not getting to the Copper miners? You guessed it… Sulfuric Acid… shipped from the Middle East… So, that means that supply of Copper is going to suffer and a byproduct of this lack of Copper mining will be to damage the Silver production, which has already been in negative production for years…. Uh-Oh!
This could be the harbinger of a Silver rally, folks… I’m just saying…
Well, unless you are living under a rock, you know that the new candidate for Fed/ Cabal/ Cartel chairman, Kevin Warsh is being drilled by Congress… Hey! He’s the President’s nominee, how else did anyone think he would be treated? But Mr. Warsh out his best media training to work, by redirecting the question, and dissing the current Chairman, Powell, for not being on top of inflation when the time came….
I remember when I went through media training and was taught how to redirect the subject that you didn’t feel like talking about… So, I caught it, bang!
There will be no Pfennig on Monday and Tuesday next week… So, this is the last one until next Wednesday…. I have scans due on Monday morning, at the hospital, and another scope on Tuesday morning… I know, I know I shouldn’t have backed them up together like this, but… you take what’s given to you and you don’t ask questions…. At least that’s my mantra on these appointments!
I had a dear reader send me a note and suggested that I use a doppelganger of myself, and let AI write the Pfennig on days when I’m not available… Good idea, but I’m afraid I’ll have pass for now… I’m not a fan of AI right now…
The U.S. Data Cupboard was barren yesterday, but come back today with the usual Thursday data set, the Weekly Initial Jobless Claims… National ISM (manufacturing ) report… So, in my mind… no biggie…
To recap… The war drags on, and the “unknowns” in the markets are causing very tight ranges for the dollar right now… The Fed/ Cabal/ Cartel nominee to be the new Chair, shows off his media training… But not to worry, Chuck saw it immediately!
For What It’s Worth… This is a bit different today, as I have an article that friend, Rich Checkan, put together for his firm: Asset Strategies, and it tells of how Gold is now at cheaper prices and can be found here: “Gold Prices Down Amid Ceasefire Uncertainty
Or, here’s your snippet: “Gold has pulled back again early this week, as the dollar and oil prices climbed when the U.S. seized an Iranian cargo vessel and Iran threatened to retaliate.
The news strengthened the dollar hiking it to a one-week high, pressuring gold prices, as the yellow metal became more expensive for holders of other currencies. It also renewed concerns about persistent inflation and speculation that the Federal Reserve would keep interest rates unchanged for some time.
Gold rose by 64% last year alone. In 2026, gold continued to rally until the Iran war started in late February, and spent March in a backslide of 11%. Prices rallied nearly 2% last week on an apparent easing of tensions, but Sunday’s escalation reversed the rebound.
The unstable ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran is set to expire today, but this military conflict has been anything but predictable.
That makes now the right time to take advantage of another drop in spot prices.
While gold is below all-time highs again for now, the rapidly accelerating climb in spot prices over the past few years have made it a challenge for investors to get in on the ground floor, especially those who are just beginning to accumulate gold and build a diverse portfolio.
Many feared that the rally that drove gold and silver sky-high starting at the end of last year would mean they would be priced out of the market.
But this correctional period is once more offering an opportunity to buy gold at lower spot prices.”
Chuck Again… yes, this is the buying opportunity at cheaper prices that all procrastinators has put off… So, what are you waiting for?
Market Prices 4/23/2026: American Style: A$ .7150, kiwi .5887, C$ .7316, euro 1.1691, sterling 1.3506, Swiss $1.2746, European Style: rand 16.5068, krone 9.3318, SEK 9.2243, forint 312.25, zloty 3.6306, koruna 20.2297, RUB 75.08, yen 159.56, sing 1.2758, HKD 7.8333, INR 94.11, China 6.8333, peso 17.36, BRL 4.9655, BBDXY 1,197, Dollar Index 98.67, Oil $93.29, 10-year 4.30%, Silver $76.14, Platinum $2,036.00, Palladium $1,512.00, Copper $6.10, and Gold… $4,734
That’s it for today… After today, 3 of the next 6 days have rain in the forecast… UGH! I realize it’s still April, and April Showers bring May Flowers… And what do May Flowers bring? ….. Pilgrims! HA! I think I’ve told that one before, but it’s been awhile, so…. The baseball season has started a little discombobulated… As the two faves in the NL East have the worst records! And all the teams in the NL Central are above .500… It’s a good thing the season is 162 games, it’s not too late to get things right…. Sam & Dave take us to the finish line today with their great 60’s song: Soul Man (We used to play this song in my first band, The Soul Wonders Revue) I hope you have a Tub Thumpin’ Thursday today, and Please Be Good To Yourself!
Chuck Butler