Daily Dispatches

Brazil Real Weakens as Central Bank Steps Up Dollar Purchases

By Katia Cortes
Bloomberg News Service
Friday, August 11, 2006

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601086&sid=aZJC7DlXtORA&refer=l...

BRASILIA -- Brazil's currency weakened after the central bank stepped up dollar purchases in a bid to boost foreign reserves and slow the real's appreciation.

The bank bought the U.S. currency in the spot market for 2.1620 reals per dollar in an auction today. The bank has offered to buy dollars on a daily basis for more than a month.

12:41p ET Friday, August 11, 2006

Dear Friend of GATA and Gold:

The economist Antal E. Fekete, a speaker at GATA's Gold Rush 21 conference a year ago, has written a brilliant essay laying out the history and purposes of Barrick Gold, in which he once held shares and which is trying to take over NovaGold. Fekete's essay is titled "To Barrick or Be Barricked -- That Is the Question," and you can find it at 321Gold here:

Gold Falls as Traders Scramble
to Assess News of Terror Plot

By Ciara Linnane
CBSMarketWatch.com
Thursday, August 10, 2006

http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Story/Story.aspx?guid=%7B4116847D%2D801B...

NEW YORK -- Gold futures fell early Thursday as traders scrambled to assess the news of a thwarted plot to blow up airliners en route from the U.K. to the U.S. that sent oil and stock futures lower.

Gold Price Rise Likely, Says Yet Another Top Producer

By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard 
The Telegraph, London
Thursday, August 10, 2006

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2006/08/10/cngold...

Australia's biggest gold miner, Newcrest, has become the latest producer to bet on further rises in the price of bullion, pledging to slash its hedge book contracts to 50 percent of output within a year.

Who Ya Gonna Call ... Ghostbusters?
No -- Goldbusters!

By Bill Murphy, Chairman
Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee Inc.
Wednesday, August 9, 2006

I could not resist that title, one based on the Bill Murray (not to be confused with Bill Murphy) movie "Ghostbusters," for an obvious reason now to be explained -- along with my sudden trip to Vancouver.

Last evening I had the pleasure of having dinner with Rick Van Nieuwenhuyse, president and CEO of NovaGold Resources. As most of must know, Nova is suddenly fighting a hostile takeover bid from Barrick Gold.

10:24p ET Tuesday, August 8, 2006

Dear Friend of GATA and Gold:

Silver market analyst and GATA consultant Ted Butler has written what may be his most profound commentary, arguing that the world has never seen a free market in silver but that the current price manipulation, a result of the long dishoarding of silver by
governments that formerly used it for coinage, is sure to fail, and probably soon.

And people complain that Bill Murphy
is always bullish on gold and silver!

* * *

By George Stein and Josh P. Hamilton
Bloomberg News Service
via International Herald Tribune, Paris
Monday, August 7, 2006

http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/08/06/bloomberg/bxbuffett.php

The billionaire investor Warren Buffett, stung by $955 million in losses from foreign-currency investments in 2005, cut his bet against the U.S. dollar this year, just before its steepest decline in 18 months.

4:16p ET Monday, August 7, 2006

Dear Friend of GATA and Gold:

Your secretary/treasurer recently was interviewed by GoldSeek.com Internet radio about the gold price suppression scheme. He attempted to explain how the scheme is not the fevered concoction of conspiracy nuts but a matter of ordinary public record and admission. Unfortunately on the day of the interview he had a terrible cough and so must have put the GoldSeek people through a lot of trouble in the tape editing. If you're up to the challenge of listening, you can find the interview here:

From Engineering News, South Africa
Monday, August 7, 2006

http://www.engineeringnews.co.za/eng/news/today/?show=91270

World No. 3 gold miner AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. said on Monday it was leaving an increasing amount of its production unhedged to take advantage of soaring gold prices.

The company had left 87% of this year's production unhedged, up from 75% the previous year, said Richard Duffy, executive officer of business development.

12:19p ET Monday, August 7, 2006

Dear Friend of GATA and Gold:

NovaGold shareholder Alan Leishman has written a detailed analysis of Barrick Gold's offer to acquire NovaGold. He concludes that the acquisition at the offered price would be "the deal of the century" for Barrick, helping Barrick to reduce its huge hedge book at a bargain price. You can find Leishman's analysis, "Barrick's Bid for NovaGold: Deal of the Century?," at Resource Investor here: