With the U.S. President Donald Trump backing another $200 billion in tariffs in the escalating trade war, China may unveil its secret weapon — a staggering 30,000 tonne gold hoard.

The World Is About To See A Big Change
 (King World News) – Dr. Stephen Leeb:  “I did not expect gold to dip below $1270-1280. Nor did I expect the aggressive trade tactics on the part of the U.S. toward China. China, too, may have been caught flat-footed as they likely saw increasing American trade pressure as favorable to China on many fronts. That the dollar strengthened in the face of the initial success of the petro-yuan contract is especially surprising. (Chinese traders have begun deliveries of oil against the Shanghai contract.) But, in the end, all it suggests is that loud bluster even with a shrinking stick can have a short-term effect.

As I pointed out, China has adjusted to the unexpected dollar strength by letting the yuan temporarily weaken while keeping its link to gold intact. I think the effects of bluster have nearly run their course and we are close to entering a triumphant phase for gold and the yuan. The rise of gold will likely accompany profound dollar weakness. This brief interregnum in gold’s ascent gives investors another chance to load up on the surest insurance for the coming turbulence — gold…

Should Trump go ahead in early September – as he has said he would – with tariffs on an additional $200 billion of Chinese imports, it will likely lead to an acceleration of Chinese hegemony in the East – and indeed among virtually all emerging economies.

Gold Price Will Be Five Figures
It is clear that the only factor standing in the way of Chinese Eastern hegemony is the dollar’s status as the world’s reserve currency. The incipient trade war has dramatically accelerated the move away from the dollar and toward gold throughout the East. I have a December book deadline and had hoped the book would be published at the advent of the next leg in the gold bull market – a leg destined to carry gold into five figures. I fear now that I may be a bit late, but given the potential strength of this coming bull market, much better late than no book. 

Remarkably, among the items included in the prospective new round of tariffs are critical metals including rare earth metals and cobalt. This highlights the reality that you can’t isolate economic warfare from other geopolitical considerations. 

The inclusion of critical metals on the tariff list is only one example of the intricate interconnections among economics and geopolitics. I view the tariff war as a tremendous gamble. Its outcome, I fear, will favor China far more than the U.S. – and on more than one level. You have to be prepared and the easiest way is to own gold……..more here