From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

There’s a mountain of bullish evidence supporting an upside resolution in gold. 

But gold hasn’t broken out. Not yet!

Gold has been running this race for months... at least, that’s how it feels.

Perhaps it’s simply making its way to the starting line…  

I believe that’s the best way to view gold and precious metals at this stage of the game. Before I get ahead of myself – marking a series of upside objectives – I want to highlight a key level that defines my intermediate- and near-term risks…

These tiny banks have been in trouble for quite some time.

That we know.

The question has been more about whether or not the selling spills into other parts of the market.

So far it has not.

The spikes in volatility in the bond market, for example, have only resulted in volatility in these little banks.

We have not seen it spill into other asset classes, and certainly not in the majority of stocks.

Remember, the S&P500 and Nasdaq100 just closed the month of April at the highest levels in a year.

Where's the volatility?

The VIX just closed at new 52-week lows last week.

So here's the deal.

This is what Regional Banks and Community Banks look like right now: Major tops, completing and collapsing.

These are classic bullish to bearish reversal patterns:

From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

It’s still messy out there, no matter where you look.

Signs of strength are fleeting, whether we’re discussing gold, the S&P 500, or US Treasuries. It’s one of the few observations everyone agreed upon last week at the 50th annual CMTA Symposium. (I'll have more on that later this week.)

Despite failed breakouts and trading ranges ruling the market environment, one bullish data point stand out regarding precious metals…

Silver!

First palladium, now platinum?

Platnuim broke out of an inverted head and shoulders pattern last week, printing fresh 52-week highs.

The bullish data points continue to roll in despite the waning strength in gold and silver.

Check it out!

From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

Our precious metals index is hitting fresh 52-week highs despite the waning strength in gold and silver.

Only three markets comprise the index. That leaves only one possible culprit – platinum!

First palladium, now platinum?

It doesn’t matter whether you consider platinum or palladium true precious metals. The industrious side of the family is chipping in, supporting a new structural uptrend for the entire space. 

Let’s check it out!

In a market overrun with whipsaws and failed moves, our gold mining trades are holding their breakouts and reaching our initial targets. Not many market areas can make that claim.

Today, I outline multiple mining stocks and highlight critical levels of potential resistance for gold and silver.

Check it out!

From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

Gold mining stocks are the play.

Why?

Because they’re working!

In a market overrun with whipsaws and failed moves, our gold mining trades are holding their breakouts and reaching our initial targets. Not many market areas can make that claim.

And when you consider they’re outperforming the S&P 500 and the physical metals, it’s hard not to like these names.

Especially as gold and silver run into logical levels of resistance…

We have Phillip Streible on the show today.

I'm a big fan of Phil's work. He's the Chief Market Strategist at Blue Line Futures and a market veteran with more than 20 years of experience trading futures and forex.

Today, Phil shares with us his technical perspective on precious metals and discusses key fundamental drivers at play right now.

Check it out:

From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

The pieces of the puzzle are falling into place. 

Gold priced in USD has finally joined other global currencies, closing last week at an all-time high. Silver, the high-beta play, is outperforming its more reserved cousin (gold). And gold mining stocks are breaking out.

Many of our trade ideas over the past few weeks are working. I believe this trend has just begun and could last for months – or even quarters.

Especially when I consider this next chart…

Gold finished the month within ten dollars of a new all-time high on a monthly closing basis.

It's an impressive feat by any standards, but even more so considering March is the weakest month of the year from a seasonal perspective.

With Gold futures bucking seasonal weakness and Silver futures and mining stocks bid, investors are sending a clear message to gold bugs everywhere...

It's time to party!

From the Desk of Ian Culley @IanCulley

I thought March was supposed to be a seasonally weak period for gold.

I guess I was wrong.

Instead of rolling over, gold almost posted double-digit returns last month, while the higher beta plays (silver futures and mining stocks) soared.

As you might expect, many of the bullish trade ideas I laid out last month are working.

And, today, I have two new setups for you to check out…

Fresh two-year highs for the Gold/SPX ratio stand out this week, as gold outperforms its alternatives. It doesn't get much more bullish than fresh absolute and relative highs.

With that as our backdrop, I had Jason Perz @JasonP138 of Against All Odds Research on the show to share his view of the precious metals space.