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The speculative frenzy in silver has provided welcome relief from AI claptrap, but will it last?  There are a hundred theories about why silver has come exuberantly to life after lagging gold for so long.   I've been puzzled myself, since my technical runes suggest that gold futures could make an important top at $5132, about $800 above Friday's settlement price.  Silver would likely peak at the same time, unless the squeeze on physical supply were to pick up enough climactic energy to cause an historical readjustment in the gold:silver ratio. The Founders thought 15:1 was the correct peg, implying silver could be trading for $342 with gold at $5132. That sounds farfetched, but stranger things have happened in the financial world, especially in markets caught in short squeezes. What is most peculiar about the current run on silver is that it probably couldn't have occurred without Trump's blessings.  He has said he wants a much higher gold price in order to monetize America's few remaining, unhocked assets (including residential real estate). Letting silver off the leash would make almost everyone feel at least a little richer.  The problem is, some of Trump's most powerful buddies in the banking business are short silver up the wazoo.  Citi and B of A alone reportedly have loaned out at interest $4.5 billion of silver they do not possess, exposing themelves to potentially catastrophic losses if AG quotes should soar anew. Trump's Fortunes And what if gold goes no higher than $5132?  A corresponding top in silver followed by a steep slide in both could cap Trump's fortunes. It would certainly destroy the comforting illusion that financial markets are under control.  Of course, crazy ideas like that can only persist in bull markets.  If stock averages were to sell off by 30%-40%, which they

I predicted earlier in the week that this hoax would probably go no higher than 90,941 over the near term.  In fact, an easily tradeable top did occur at 90,935 on Friday, meaning the forecast missed by just 0.006%, or six-thousandths of a percentage point.  That's pretty routine for spontaneous trade recommendations posted in the chat room, as any subscriber could attest, and it could have made an alert scalper more than $2,000 if he or she got long when the target was posted, then another $2180 if the position was reversed ahead of the subsequent swoon.  Sadly, the reaction in the chat room to this dead-center bullseye was muted, to put it mildly, leaving me with little incentive to continue covering Bitcoin.  Accordingly, unless I hear from at least a dozen subscribers who want BTC to remain on the list, I will substitute another symbol, presumably one that has greater significance for the economy. If you are pimply-faced robinhoodie who has followed my Bitcoin touts surreptitiously, your vote, too, will count, but you'll need to subscribe to Rick's Picks for money to record your preference in the chat room.

The reverse head-and-shoulders pattern shown yields a target up near 7,250, implying that 2026 will begin with a bullish bang. I don't often refer to H&S patterns because they can be found anywhere one looks for them. However, there is no denying that they describe a telling picture of supply and demand, and that bulls have the upper hand in the picture shown. From a Hidden Pivot standpoint, a mere 7026.50 is as high as I can comfortably project. That implies the head-and-shoulders effect will be stillborn, a possibility to which we should remain open-minded but without bias. If buyers blow past that number, it would shorten the odds of a follow-through to 7250 or so.

Although the trend has been bearish since the stock at peaked at 555.45 in July, bears have struggled lately to achieve the implied correction target at 444.95.  Most immediately, I expect the stock to run up to the 496.09 target of a minor pattern. If it takes out the pattern's 'C' low at 482.09 (12/19) first, however, I'd consider the possibility that stocks are in a bear market more seriously. Because of its solid revenue stream and its pre-eminence in the lunatic sector (aka the Magnificent Seven), Microsoft remains my #1 bellwether for the 16-year-old bull market.

Silver has used up all big-picture targets going back to a time when a single ounce sold for less than $4, leaving us with only sketchy 'extension' targets along the C-D leg. They project possible 'D' resistance at 81.240 or perhaps 82.295, but I see little practical value in these numbers, let alone a reason to short them. It is a severe bear-squeeze that is driving quotes in the first place, and no one can say with confidence how high it will go. As a practical matter, however, you can't go far wrong taking some profits if you've held silver or its equivalent from lower levels. Once you've done this, it will become easier to decide how much exposure you want to retain. Keep in mind that when the ballistic ascent finally breaks, the plunge will allow no easy escape, much less a good profit-taking opportunity. Even if it should come from a high of, say, $150/oz, there might be no exit possible for the first $50 of the fall.

My best wishes to you all for the holiday season and the New Year. May you and yours enjoy good health, prosperity and serene contentment in 2026.  My regular weekly commentaries will resume with the edition scheduled for publication on Sunday, January 4.  In the meantime, trading 'touts' (see below) will update as usual late Sunday afternoon.

I've modified my outlook and coordinates following last week's punk performance and am now projecting more downside to the 72,756 target shown. However, the short-term picture would brighten moderately if the bounce from Friday's low exceeds 87,903. Thereafter, a pullback to 87,236 would signal a (very) short-term buy with a possible ride to as high as 89,236. Bitcoin's violent swings may seem fearsome, but they make it paradoxically easier to read. Nearly all of the highs and lows are tradable and turn out to have had a Hidden Pivot reason, including Friday's bottom, which occurred a micron (i.e., 0.02 percent) from a voodoo number. _______ UPDATE (Dec 28, 9:57 p.m.): Bitcoin took off with no pullback, negating our plan to get long. Does this vehicle not even trade between Saturday at 4:00 p.m. and Sunday at 6:00 p.m.?  Who can keep track of such things? 

February Gold has a clear path to at least 4532.70 over the near term, a midpoint Hidden Pivot resistance. Price action there cannot but provide an accurate 'read' on trend strength, as well as a reliable idea of the speed and likelihood of a further rally to the conventional pattern's 'D' target at 5132.20. That is likely to be an important number for gold, and we shouldn't assume the futures will surpass it. That would leave gold well shy of the fantastic heights long predicted for this bull market by some seers. _______ UPDATE (Dec 23, 9:15 p.m.):  Tonight's easy move through the 4532.70 target advertised above has shortened the odds that the rally will continue to at least 5132.20, a potentially important Hidden Pivot target. 

Silver's ballistic ascent has left it out-of-synch with gold, which looks months away from a potential bull-market top. At the rate Silver is climbing, it could hit a correspondingly important target at 70.810 by Christmas. Since we should always have an alternative target lined up, I would need to create an extension with the C-D leg, shifting 'A' to the November 21 bar whose bottom is 48.710. We'll wait until 70.81 is hit before doing so, but be prepared for a significant (and tradable!) pullback when the target is hit. _____ UPDATE (Dec 23, 3:47 p.m.): The $2.07 pullback this morning from within 1.5 cents of the target billboarded above was brief and nasty, but it could have been worth as much as $10,000 per contract to anyone who traded against the trend. Silver's subsequent swift reversal to the upside suggests there is no stopping it. It has since traded within four cents of the 71.83 target of a much larger pattern aired here earlier, but only time will tell how much stopping power this major Hidden Pivot shows. _______ UPDATE (Dec 23, 9:34 p.m.): Silver futures have traded 47 cents above a 71.73 target that comes from the weekly composite chart. Visually, the overshoot is inconsequential, and the target itself, although imprecise because it comes from a blended chart, is too compelling to write off as yet. I'm, done projecting higher targets for the time being, however, since there are no bullish patterns remaining in any time frame that I like.