Investigator Resources Limited (ASX Code: IVR) (“Investigator”) is a metals explorer focusing on the opportunities for greenfields silver, gold and copper discoveries, close to infrastructure on the Eyre and Northern Yorke Peninsulas, in the pro-mining state of South Australia. Investigator has the objective of becoming a producer.

The Eyre Peninsula is on the verge of becoming a one of Australia’s new mining provinces…

If this is correct what are the implications?

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Cashed-up mining specialist private equity funds in the United States and Canada are preparing to buy into gold projects held by ASX-listed juniors starved of capital and funding.

The North American funds’ interest in Australian assets follows a flurry of equity raisings in Canada last month, which saw US-based private equity firms pitch in almost $100 million.

Mr Twigger said private equity interest since January had “been red hot” in gold and there was also interest in nickel and zinc.

Gold has been the best-performing commodity since the start of the year.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/business/mining-and-resources/us-canadian-private-equity-firms-hunt-asx-gold-companies-20150216-13ea0e.html#ixzz3Rt5GupnQ

Buy gold bullion or coins?

I had a pretty interesting conversation today with Peter George an American broker about currency, interest rates, oil, and precious metals. He pointed me to the OIL/Gold ratio shown below:

Note that the ratio is 23 today.

My take:
If you look at the oil Rig Count, that shows the amount of rigs that are currently active in the USA and then think through that the rig count decline is mostly due to rigs being pulled off tight oil – shale oil fields because of the decline in prices making these fields less economic then this may point towards an emerging increase in oil prices in both US$ and Gold as (over) supply comes off.

Baker Hughes reported another significant decline in the rig count for the week ending on February 6. The oil services firm reported that 87 rigs were pulled out of operations last week, which followed a record-breaking 94 rig decline the week before. The number of active rigs is now at its lowest level since 2011, and is down 29 percent since October.

RC drilling of the Duckhead Main Lode at the base of the open pit has intersected significant gold mineralisation extending beneath the current open pit limits. Gold results include;
FVM514 28 m @ 266.8 g/t including 1 m @ 6,844.6 g/t
FVM515 53 m @ 47.4 g/t including 1 m @ 1,218.5 g/t
FVM511 16 m @ 57.7 g/t including 7 m @ 126.9 g/t
FVM510 23 m @ 36.9 g/t including 4 m @ 197.6 g/t
FVM508 14 m @ 25.9 g/t including 1 m @ 294.5 g/t

A potential cutback at Duckhead is being evaluated to extract 35-45,000 ounces of gold and is likely to be completed in the 2015 dry season between July and December. Importantly, the current guidance of ~180,000 ounce production in 2015 does not include a potential cutback on the Duckhead Main Lode.

• Systematic auger drilling over the Duckhead Mine Corridor has discovered a significant new near surface gold anomaly at Goosebumps located 500 m east of Duckhead, where auger gold results of up to 1.4 g/t bottom of hole and up to 13.5 g/t is present in a subsequently re-assayed iron ore diamond hole.

“It has been decided by the Government of India to withdraw the 20:80 scheme and restrictions placed on import of gold. Accordingly, all instructions issued about the scheme from time to time starting with A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No.25 dated August 14, 2013 stand withdrawn with immediate effect,” the bank said.

“India’s so-called 80:20 gold import rule was introduced in 2013. The restriction required traders to export 20 percent of all gold imported into India in an attempt to slow gold imports. That change sparked a rise in gold-smuggling activities, forcing gold consumers to resort to various extreme measures.”

Silver is such a little market that not much capital returning can make a huge price difference. As of the end of last month, the S&P 500 stocks were collectively worth $18,518.7b. That is 3139x larger than meager SLV!

If only one-tenth of one percent of stock market capital started chasing the next silver upleg, that $18.5b would drive silver stratospheric. But it’s not only stock traders who are going to be buying silver via SLV shares, futures speculators will join them. And like SLV’s holdings, specs’ total long-side silver futures exposure has already been enjoying a strong contrary uptrend in 2014! This is despite parallel record shorting.

Read full article: http://seekingalpha.com/article/2596745-bullish-silver-stealth-buying-by-professional-investors-continues