Cycles, seasons and gold

The Mayan calendar has come to the endpoint of its 5,200-year cycle.

Have gold and silver come to the end of their 11-year up cycle?

With gold at $1,647.50 and $29.72 as I write this, investors might be forgiven for thinking that a mini-apocalypse was engulfing planet earth.

However, I see no reason to alter my comments from yesterday.

Markets fluctuate.

In Iola, as in much of Wisconsin, our more immediate focus has been battling a winter storm that made driving hazardous and shut down many businesses and government institutions like schools yesterday.

For us, the most important cycle is not the Mayan calendar, which few had ever heard of until scare headlines could be generated by mentioning it, or even the metals up cycle.

Our primary concern was the seasonal cycle. We have to deal with what’s thrown at us whenever it happens to occur.

Yesterday’s snow gave me the opportunity to stop by the Crystal Cafe just before 9 a.m.

I joined former Coin Market editors Bob Wilhite and Joel Edler for breakfast. Also present was George Kriewaldt, who has run a scrap yard for many years. George keeps an eagle eye on the prices of various metals. He looks for a recovery in copper prices next year.

If copper moves higher, gold and silver are likely to be out ahead of it. Don't you think? I do.

This is my last blog post until next Wednesday.

It is good to know that the Christmas celebration won’t be stopped by snow, weak metals or the Mayan calendar.

Buzz blogger Dave Harper is editor of the weekly newspaper "Numismatic News."