A shortage of physical precious metals

Since there is a shortage of physical gold and silver, bullion banks with permanent net short positions on COMEX gold and silver are also using the gold ETF GLD and silver ETF SLV as vehicles to put on naked short positions. This becomes part of their grand scheme to surreptitiously suppress the prices of both precious metals.

Exchange-Traded Funds are regulated by the SEC, while the watchdog for the COMEX is the CFTC, so price manipulation can occur in both markets, resulting in confusion (or complicity) among both regulators.

In other words, instead of a short seller delivering physical bullion as settlement of a COMEX forward contract, the short seller can just use shares of the ETF as collateral. Clearly, this avoids physical delivery, and enables naked short positions as no physical delivery occurs. These ETF's are merely paper certificates allegedly backed by real bullion, but their independent auditing is spotty, so theoretically, shorting an ETF can occur ad infinitum--which creates further selling pressure. Hence, naked shorting is illegal, yet the bullion banks (commercial shorts) are practicing it in order to suppress gold and silver prices lower.

In essence, bullion banks can now short COMEX futures contracts, as well as precious metals ETF's, many of those being naked short positions.

Until these criminal activities among bullion banks, gold producers, and the Federal Reserve itself are exposed for what they are, gold and silver buyers can do their part by insisting on physical delivery on expiry of futures contracts, in lieu of settlement via cash. This will force the short sellers to find physical gold and silver in the open market--if indeed their short positions are naked. Eventually, a "fail to deliver" will occur on the COMEX or London Metals Exchange, and the Emperors will truly be naked.