Are PMs worth the same in very poor countries as developed ones?
MKUltra24
Posts: 652 ✭✭✭✭
Ok so this is kind of a two part question but I couldn’t fit it all in the title.
Some background information:
I volunteered with a charity group in my town and each of the members in the group “sponsors” a family overseas in poor countries like Ethiopia, Venezuela, Syria, etc., by providing them with a little bit of foreign currency so they can get the goods they need. Particularly in Venezuela where the inflation rate is mind boggling and foreign currency is almost a necessity because the local currencies are not trusted.
ANYWAY: Due to issues (corruption) with sending US Dollars a couple of times I was planning on discreetly slipping a couple of 1oz American Silver Eagles into this months care package BUT I don’t know if PMs like gold & silver are worth the same over there?
If they could get even $20 per ASE ($2 under spot) it would be a massive help to them (their monthly food budget is $40) but if the prices are different I’d hate for them to get ripped off and sell it for like $3 per ASE.
Does anyone know if PMs sell for the same in poverty stricken nations as in developed nations?
Note: I have met the family I am helping a few times in person and talk to them online every week and they are good people with great kids so this isn’t a thing where I’m getting scammed for my silver. I know these people and trust them.
Comments
Interesting question. I'd be curious how it all plays out. Are you able to ask the family directly?
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Life is hard enough for those people. Dont make is worse by sending them anything other than US dollars.
Knowledge is the enemy of fear
The silver in Venezuala topic pops up on reddit regularly. I think it brings good bit more than spot but how are you gonna use it.
Seeing the folks post buys outside of NA it seems like there is quite a wide spread depending on where you are.
Well I was hoping they could use it by selling for foreign currency to buy things or using it to barter.
If I sent 2x ASEs and they sold both for $40 that would feed their family of 4 for a month. Or put it aside for a rainy day if things get worse.
People are eating out of garbage cans
Believe it or not some places in Venezuela are actually using gold as a form of barter.
Yeah I saw the gold flake bartering/payment stuff a couple weeks ago, crazy.
One thing I saw said an oz of silver would do a lot in Venezuela but I think it's hard to find someone to exchange it...maybe, I might be remembering the exchange thing wrong.
Hmm I guess I thought maybe they could use it to barter. Some stores gladly accept Dollars & Euros so I guess I assumed maybe they would take “hard money” like gold & silver.
How do you know that what you are sending is actually getting into the hands of who you think you are sending it to?
How do you know that you are not actually "sponsoring" someone who doesn't need your extraordinary kindness?
to answer your question PMs are priced in local currency. Buying power of local currency will be heavily dependent on local price inflation.
"Interest rates, the price of money, are the most important market. And, perversely, they’re the market that’s most manipulated by the Fed." - Doug Casey
Check out some of the comments here, nice discussion from last year but probably still relevant....looks like silver is discounted and can't be mailed in.
https://libredd.it/r/Wallstreetsilver/comments/mdsicz/i_live_in_venezuela_where_you_can_buy_silver_with/
What is an average wage right now in Bolivar? How much in USD/Bolivar for one 1 oz round or bar today?
53
u/CaracasGirl Mar 26 '21
The average wage among venezuelans is about $20 per month if I recall correctly.
Street vendors are paying between $15 and $17 USD per ounce. Or Bs. 29,600,000 in average per ounce.
What is the official street currency now ? Usd , bolivar or silver ?
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u/CaracasGirl Mar 26 '21
The official street currency is U.S. dollar. An important sector of the economy is now relying in gold and bitcoin to carry out big transactions.
One of the reasons I chose this particular charity is because there are members on the ground in those countries who evaluate all recipients of aid to determine who needs help the most.
I met this family in 2017 and 2018 and I talk to them via webcam almost every week. I know alot about them. The mother is a teacher and the father is a baker. They are good people who really just need help. It’s not a scam.
I did a lot of research before I decided to join
Better off sending $20 in cash. But keep in mind, a large population here in the US want the same type of government as Venezuela has.
If you send someone cash in a third world country controlled by a communist dictatorship, what are the chances the money will be stolen by a government official or postal worker before it ever gets to who you are sending it? I'm guessing it's very high.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
That’s why I’m not sending cash
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I can easily slip a couple ASEs into a package and they would make it to their destination.
Why not use paypal? I'd worry about the package getting held at customs and then just...poof.
Highly unlikely. Having had a grandfather in Poland in the 80's, its not uncommon for all mail to be gone through and "contraband" seized.
Go to goodwill or someplace like that.
Pick up an old hardback book, bible, or something that is in poor condition.
Slip the cash in between the pages and glue the pages together or behind the slip cover on a better book.
Would a kids stuffed animal be too easy a target?
I agree with those that posted, in some countries every touch point is corrupt...postal system, customs, most govt agencies, even banks. Part of why cash delivery in some countries (Western Union) is exhorbitant.
Cant say for 'developing' but IMO when I visited England, it seemed like physical PM prices were much higher than in the US vs spot...
Maybe because of the currency difference?
A £3.99 per oz premium is alot more than a $3.99 per oz premium due to the pound being stronger than the US Dollar.
This was back in 2012, but I recall even with the exchange rate considered it was bigger than that.
Seemed as I started to look for places selling PMs that there were few and far between, may have been additional taxes, and higher premiums.
Here in Colombia prices for ASE are much, much higher than in the U.S. I think that the currency here and in other countries devalues at a much faster pace, hence the increase in prices in pretty much everything (since many things are imported).
Oh wow really?
So if someone in Colombia was in financial difficulties then it would be a big help if someone sent them some ASEs?
Here in the US an ASE can be purchased for the equivalent of 125,000 Colombian Pesos.
1 USD = 4,007 Colombian Pesos
Would depend on if the seller can get part of that big premium from the dealer they are selling to.
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Wouldn't it be better in those inflation cases just to be holding USD cash?
If they can get it. Countries like Venezuela have whacky restrictions and exchange rates that can make it very difficult.
But personally I just have always believed that having some precious metals around is a good idea.
Currencies can become worthless very quickly but gold & silver will never be worthless because throughout history they have both been considered the purest form of money.
In fact many countries tended to call silver and money by the same word because in their mind silver is money.