~*~Mining and Metals Du Jour~*~

[srm4u]

Palladium at record high, with prices at their closest to gold in 16 years
Palladium futures notched another record settlement Tuesday, narrowing their price discount to an ounce of gold to the lowest in about 16 years.

On Tuesday, the price spread fell to $66.40 an ounce, with March palladium PAH9, +1.30% up $14.60, or nearly 1.3%, to settle at $1,180.20 an ounce and February gold GCG9, +0.29% up by $7, or 0.6%, to $1,246.60 an ounce on Comex. That’s the lowest price spread between the two metals, based on the most-active contracts, since Dec. 3, 2002, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/palladium-at-record-high-with-prices-at-their-closest-to-gold-in-16-years-2018-12-04?siteid=bnbh

Palladium may soon be worth more than gold
At the same time, palladium prices are gaining on gold GCZ8, +0.50%

“The gold/palladium ratio is historically the narrowest it has been in quite some time,” says Ed Egilinsky, head of alternative investments at Direxion. “Gold doesn’t have the same everyday industrial usage as palladium,” and gold has been “more directly susceptible to a strengthening U.S. dollar, contributing to its recent relative weakness.”

He says the historical, long-term relationship is that gold is priced two to three times higher than palladium. The current ratio is a little over one.
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/palladium-may-soon-be-worth-more-than-gold-2018-09-28

palladium up $386.00 since Aug 15th