German automaker hoarding silver
Wolf359
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The Silver Shortage of 2013
Why does the German company store dozens of pallets of silver in a secure vault deep in the mountains of Switzerland? It’s simple, really. So that the metal is there when the carmaker needs it. As one purchasing manager explained later in my travels, “For some metals, like silver, there’s no such thing as ‘just in time’ delivery anymore.”
Why does the German company store dozens of pallets of silver in a secure vault deep in the mountains of Switzerland? It’s simple, really. So that the metal is there when the carmaker needs it. As one purchasing manager explained later in my travels, “For some metals, like silver, there’s no such thing as ‘just in time’ delivery anymore.”
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<< <i>all bs, read the whole article, if u must... >>
How do you know is it bs? Do you work for a German or Swiss auto maker? With the track record of Europe when it comes to hard times, I'd expect all manufacturers to
store away months or a year's worth silver and other key, hard to get commodities that are essential to their businesses. Why leave it up to the rest of the world to determine if
I do or don't get my supplies if I should run low? When I worked in the power industry inconel (and boiler tube) were key material items for the semi-annual outages of our 30
or so power plants. If you didn't lock in inconel the year before, you might not get it in time the following year. Silver is a lot harder to get than inconel. Central banks are
now getting a lot of their gold directly from the miners, essentially bypassing the conventional Comex and LBMA markets. In this way they lock in their deliveries and avoid the
hassle on non-delivery or having their contracts settled in cash.
I knew it would happen.
<< <i>
<< <i>all bs, read the whole article, if u must... >>
How do you know is it bs? >>
I agree.
We forget sometimes how far back the history of the Europeans goes and how many times their governments have been overthrown and country's borders have changed.
You may think I'm getting off-track but it's at the root of my post.
They have personal memories of the "shi+ hitting the fan"...we don't in North America because our history here has been relatively "safe" compared to theirs.
The wealthy European families have a deep rooted and well founded trust in Silver and Gold that we in North America do not.
"“Those who sacrifice liberty for security/safety deserve neither.“(Benjamin Franklin)
"I only golf on days that end in 'Y'" (DE59)
<< <i>The Mint ran out of silver in January due to overwhelming demand. Can an automaker afford to be caught with it's pants down on silver inventory? I don't see why anything about this article would be bs. If a Purchasing Agent manages to shut down an auto plant for a couple weeks because of no materials, his career is done. And it should be. >>
Exactly. If my purchasers were not locking in materials a year or more down the road I'd replace them with buyers who could do it right. This goes for computer chip makers as well
as boiler manufacturers, and makers of aircraft, large mobile equipment, military weapons, etc. In the event you end up with too much supply during the year, sell it to one of your
competitors who is probably short of it and needs it. In the case of my former Fortune 500 power company, any extra supplies purchased could easily find a home at any number of
plants across the country. Platinum and Palladium are key ingredients for auto makers. You can bet that with the questionable availability of South African mines who supply 90% of
the world's supply, auto suppliers lock in way in advance at whatever price it takes. I couldn't imagine not storing away significant quantities of those key metals.
Knowledge is the enemy of fear
If one automaker is stashing silver because of market uncertainty, they are all doing it - for a good reason. The reason is called "experience". It seems to indicate that in terms of silver, the days of kanban are over. "Just in Time" for silver, is over.
In my opinion, this is even a more significant phenomenon than the Mint being caught with a January shortfall of silver in a brand-new production year (when that shouldn't have happened). On one hand, the Mint doesn't have to be correct. The automakers are still competing, so their behaviors are telling.
I knew it would happen.
<< <i>The Mint ran out of silver in January due to overwhelming demand. Can an automaker afford to be caught with it's pants down on silver inventory? I don't see why anything about this article would be bs. If a Purchasing Agent manages to shut down an auto plant for a couple weeks because of no materials, his career is done. And it should be. >>
That was a production problem that has now been rectified. The Auth buyers are now awash in ASE's and even APMEX has lowered their price to as low as $2.59 above spot. That only tells me...lots of silver available.
<< <i>The Silver Shortage of 2013
Why does the German company store dozens of pallets of silver in a secure vault deep in the mountains of Switzerland? It’s simple, really. So that the metal is there when the carmaker needs it. As one purchasing manager explained later in my travels, “For some metals, like silver, there’s no such thing as ‘just in time’ delivery anymore.”
Gosh but aren't those pretty there on the pallet. Maybe they'd make good weight for those of us who put bags of sand over our axles every winter.
One upmanship: "Yes I formerly carried sand myself. However I've found from experience that the density of silver positioned properly over the drive axle actually returns 38% more traction on a given iceslick".
Probably should carry a bit of actual sand in case one has to sprinkle some under the wheels though. No sense being profligate.
I did not know this!
I knew it would happen.
<< <i> I've found from experience that the density of silver positioned properly over the drive axle actually returns 38% more traction on a given iceslick
I did not know this!
I think 20 pounds of iron placed over your axles might give you better traction than 20 pounds of feathers too!