[music] I'm Charlotte Mloud with investingnews.com and here today with me is Brian London, editor of Gold Newsletter and host of the New Orleans Investment Conference, which is where we are. Thank you so much for having us. >> Always a pleasure to have you. >> Really good to be speaking with you. Thank you so much for for taking the time. I know you're so busy. I wanted to start off by asking, I know we're only on the second date, but can you give me a sense of sentiment on the show floor?
Any key takeaways that you would share so far? >> Yeah, it's it's really our first full day and it's still morning. So, but you can tell that the the crowd is buzzing. Um, a lot of smiling faces, a bigger crowd. We're up probably 30% or thereabouts from last year. Uh, a lot of smiling faces. and our job here is to make them even happier by the end of this event. But we've got a great lineup uh great reception by the audience to our speakers. Even last night, you know, our beginning half day is typically the
lowest attendance we have. It's our kind of a soft day, soft open and there was standing room only in the exhibit in the general session hall. So yeah, it's uh it's if it's a sign of the market at large and sentiment is uh is very positive right now. >> Yeah, I think all of the interactions I've had so far have been really positive. So we'll see how it continues for the next few days. >> So we are catching up on our last conversation back in August and I think
you told us precious metals are going to have a good fall. Of course. Of course they did. And I think you're talking about a gold price target of 3500. So we got there and we went well beyond that. So I'm wondering for you, do you have another gold price target in mind right now? Especially right now as we're in this this pullback. >> If I do, I hope I undersshoot it again. But uh >> we'll see. >> Yeah. And but I think the larger point there is that, you know, is as big of a
bull as I am, I undersshot it considerably. And uh I and in my opening remarks to the conference, I shared that with the audience that no one, not even the most ardent gold bug or gold bull predicted that we would get to well over $4,000 this quickly. We thought we would over a period of years, but not a period of a few months. Uh so it's been remarkable. And uh right now we're trying to figure out what are the drivers? uh is gold telling us something that something is going to happen? Is it
telling us that something has happened? Where do we go from here? So, that's what we're trying to figure out right now, which is why I'm kind of reluctant to give another price target. But, uh at the end of this cycle, I've long predicted that we're going to get to a $6 to $8,000 price range whenever that may happen. I hope it takes years from now, but right now I think coming off of the second 10% draw down in prices, the the only uh only the second semi correction that we've had, I I think
we're very likely to trade sideways for a little while and before we have the next rally upward. We've never we in this bull market at least we have not had the kind of a significant correction that you would expect in a typical bull market. So it it has been atypical in that regard. >> I think a lot of what you said is themes that I've been hearing about as we go through that big rise in the gold price now the pullback. And you mentioned you're looking now trying to figure out
okay what were the drivers here? What's going to happen next? Do you have anything you can share so far? I think questions that I'm seeing asked a lot are how long is this pullback going to last and when we get into that time when we get the next leg up what could be the the trigger for that? So >> yeah, well I if you look at what triggered this last furious rush from August through through to today really and and to a couple of weeks ago before we had the correction. That was the
market pricing in a a new easing cycle. When uh Jerome Pal had his Jackson Holes speech, you can track the gold price taking off from that point forward because he essentially conceded a quarter point rate cut and the market started was factoring that pricing that in in the first quarter point, maybe another one, maybe a a third for the end of the year. uh and it did that immediately, but then it started to price in a more uh more easing from this pal Fed, but also looking forward to next May when Trump's new Fed chairman
comes in and whoever that may be, the one thing you know about that person already is that they're going to be cutting like mad. So, this has all been a process of pricing that in. Now, what is the market looking forward to? Um, I don't know what that next leg is going to be. It may be just simply gold correcting that big move by time by trading sideways. I think that's the way we're going to go. I don't have a feeling that we're going to have uh a big uh setback because central bank
buying is still supporting this market. >> Right. And I'm glad that you brought up Powell and the Fed because that was on my my mind to ask you because we just had recently the latest Fed meeting and I was going to get your thoughts on what can we read between the lines in terms of the latest commentary, but it almost sounds like maybe we should be >> not thinking so heavily about that and looking forward to the future about who the next Fed chair could be and what we could see then. Any any further thoughts
on moves from the Fed? >> Yeah, I think that's what's going to happen. And in fact that may be the uh the catalyst for the next rally is that the market will start looking for that. You know that it's not going to happen if a lot without a lot of rhetoric coming from the White House and then we've already seen a good bit of that. So uh yeah I I think that's a process. You know if you look at the number of central bank cuts that process has already been ongoing not just in the US
but around the world. If you look at the the number of central bank rate cuts over the last 18 months or so, uh we just tied the number that we had after the great financial crisis of 2008. So this is something that's not although we think we tend to think of it as being very much dollar US dollar oriented uh it's it's a global easing cycle that we're we're seeing and you know the >> one of the the big drivers of this market has been the fact that gold has has gotten a kind of a trademark in the
uh in the major financial media and and come kind of a thematic investment because They're calling it the debasement trade. And that's something that we've been talking about with a lot more words, but and not quite so simply put for years now. I know that a lot of the people you've interviewed over the last few years have been talking about the inevitability of of appreciation of the dollar and other currencies. I know I have. And uh and now it's kind of caught fire and caught the imagination
of generalist investors. So yeah, I I think we we long way of saying I I think we're probably going to trade sideways. I think gold as the big to basement trade play will vaselate back and forth, but I think that's going to be the big driver going forward. >> Well, and and one more follow-up question on the Fed. You mentioned whoever the new Fed chair is, they're going to be cutting like crazy. We already know that. And part of the discussion I think that's happening lately is Fed independence. So I
wondered if that is that a concern for you. Is it something you're thinking about? >> Uh it not necessarily a concern for me because I'm heavily invested in gold, silver, and mining stocks and those are going to benefit from a not so independent Fed. And yeah, it it the Fed independence was always, you know, >> kind of ephemeral. Uh not always there. What's interesting is that PAL has been resistant to the pressure from the White House. So, it's actually worked in reverse in recent history. Uh
but even PAL has uh has conceded and started to you know to cut rates and the big the dissension we had two dissenters in the last Fed meeting and one of those dissenters was that they just weren't cutting enough. So, it's it's uh yeah, it's um we are in a new easing cycle that is going to be years in length and therefore, you know, I think we're going to have periodic setbacks in gold, but I think gold's going to really benefit from that. >> Okay. I think that gives us a good good
look at where you're at in terms of gold. And when we talk, I also always like to bring up, well, maybe I don't like to bring it up, but we always talk about the the issue of US debt. And I was reading recently the CEO of Goldman Sachs said the country is heading for a reckoning if the pace of growth doesn't improve. So he thinks the path out is a growth path, which I'm sure that you have thoughts on. But my main question is, do you think this is becoming more of a a mainstream topic?
>> Yeah, it is. Because the numbers that we've been talking about for years have now gotten worse and worse to the point where even, you know, the mainstream financial experts have to recognize it. And uh yeah, it's going to be worse and worse because it keeps more and more uh recognized in the mainstream media because they're getting worse and worse. Uh it it is a problem that we cannot grow our way out our way out of. It's obvious we can't cut the budget enough to to make any headway. You can't tax
your way out of it. So the only way out is the age-old way throughout human history of depreciating the currency in which the debt is denominated. So it's just going to happen. It is again the debasement trade. >> Yeah. I want to get your thoughts on silver as well since we've covered gold and I think last time we were speaking it was a while back. So, we're talking about a $35 floor of support for silver. So, I wondered where you're seeing support for silver now when we've seen
the price move so much higher. >> Yeah, I'm not looking at support so much as as resistance. Um, that $35 line when we cross eye and and really just about every market watcher out there who's watching silver closely uh thought that there was not much between that and $50. We were going to get there and we and we did. What surprised me was that we went through $50 to 53 almost $54 like you know hot knife through butter. Uh typically you would I predicted we would have some resistance around that number and maybe
fall back. The fall back happened uh later than I thought and that's really not surprising. It takes the metals a few tries usually to get through the big numbers decisively. Uh so silver is heading back toward that. I think that it's going to get back above 50 in fairly short order. May fall back below again or oscillate around that, but $50 is a, you know, a stopping point along a much longer uptrend, I believe. >> All right. And maybe the question that will be of most interest to investors
right now, and I like to ask you this one as well. Is your portfolio fully allocated right now? Do you have cash on hand to buy? And and what's looking most interesting to you? Yeah, personally I'm fully allocated. Uh I have a few positions that I am looking at some target prices to take some profits. I don't it's never a bad thing to take profits, especially after the runs that we've had. Uh I've been advising people to take some money off the table here and there. Uh typically,
uh as has been typical, I'm not taking my advice yet. I want to, but I haven't and just missed uh taking some profits right around the peak. Um, but I am looking to uh to take some money off the table, but also redeploy as well. >> Okay. So, do do as I say, not as I do. That was going to be one of my questions for you is if you had taken profits, but >> I'm a I'm a great buyer. I'm not the best seller, frankly. So, uh, yeah, I don't often put my own plans into
action. Well, and it's it's interesting. The other point I wanted to ask you on the note of selling, we know that it can be very difficult to do. And I would think that in a situation like we just had where the metals prices were running, maybe the stock prices were running as well. And you might have companies where you're waiting for a specific milestone that the company you want to see it meet, but the prices are running. So maybe the share price is ahead of where it would perhaps be. Any
any thoughts on that kind of situation? Because I imagine people might run into that right now. >> Yeah. Well, hypothetically, that's a good a good opportunity to take some profits. You know, you you you go into or should go into each uh position, each uh stock or purchase that you make uh with a rationale. You know, uh when when this happens, that should be my exit point. If the price exceeds that catalyst, uh then it's probably ahead of itself or maybe the whole market's a bit
ahead of itself. Uh so that would be I think a time to take some profits off the table. Uh maybe not everything. You know, you don't have to completely sell out in a position. And if you sell a position with the idea that you're going to buy back in later at a cheaper price, that rarely happens. Very few of us have the uh uh the emotional um uh strength to do that in in in these markets. >> I think those are good words for for investors to remember. And before I let you go, I've got some fun questions for
you. >> I think they're fun. And this is one I'm trying to ask everybody. So hopefully we get a good set of answers. But if we look forward to 2026, what would be your choice for best performing asset? and doesn't have to be a commodity, but I imagine it might be. >> Yeah, I would think it would be a commodity. And if I'm looking at what would be the best, I would probably say >> silver and silver stocks. >> Uh I don't know if silver stocks qualify as one of uh the assets you were looking
at. But I would say that because I don't think, you know, silver leverages gold and silver's playing catchup right now. mining stocks leverage gold. Silver stocks leverage silver. So, you're adding leverage on top of leverage. So, that would probably be my bet. >> Yeah, it does. It works because the follow-up question was going to be and how are you getting exposure to your your asset of choice? So, the silver stocks would be >> that would be it. Yeah. >> All right. And my other my other fun
question, what is a a hated commodity that you like right now? One that's out of favor. >> Oh my goodness. I think there's not specifically, but I think there's a range of base metals that aren't particularly in favor right now. You look at zinc, you look at tin, you look at uh uh copper, I think people are pretty much recognized or or bullish on. Uh but a number of the base metals I think aren't getting the respect that they need. And it's always been that at least in this junior mining sector or
mining sector in general that gold pretty much drives the bus. And when gold is in a bull market for a length of time, then people start looking for other areas that have not uh that have lagged and haven't really recognized more general commodity bull market. So they get into things like rare earth, uranium, uh some of the base metals place. So yeah, I think generally speaking that's probably an area some things like zinc and the like that that really are more boring and don't get quite the attention that that uh you
know the sexier metals do. >> Yeah. Well, and that's exactly what I was thinking for people who want to start looking at maybe the next thing sometime down the road. All right. So good to get your thoughts there and I'll set you free onto the show floor unless you had any final thoughts that you would add. No, I I think that also uh a number of people are making a good point that uh energy, oil and gas are probably a good place right now too. Over the longer term from a relative valuation
standpoint, uh the sector is attractive, but uh relative valuation is not a good timing mechanism. So if you have patience, it's a good sector as well. But generally speaking, um, what I'm telling people and how I opened up this event is that we're we're all in this together. We're trying to figure out what's really driving gold, but a few things are apparent and that's that there are certain sectors in the mining uh and mining sector and mining sector in general has not kept up with the gold
price. So there's a lot of opportunity in our exhibit hall and these companies right now and that uh we're all doing oursel a favor if we're trying to make hay while the sun is shining and really focusing on trying to find the best companies in the in in the sector. >> Well, very good note to end on. I like that we're all in it together. Thank you so much for coming on to talk and again for having us here at your conference. >> Always a pleasure, Charlotte. Thank you
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