LongIslandStyle » 2010 investing trends

WikiLeaks Uncovers Big Payoffs To The President Of Zimbabwe

maddaloni — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 20:04:30 +0000

Washington, D.C.—Confidential U.S. government documents recently leaked through controversial news source WikiLeaks show that U.S. diplomats suspected Zimbabwe’s president, his family and top associates were profiting from the sale of “blood” diamonds from the nation’s controversial Marange fields.

According to cables released by WikiLeaks and reported by United Press International (UPI), sources in Zimbabwe told the United States that Gideon Gono, head of Zimbabwe’s central bank, made thousands of dollars a month selling diamonds from Marange and funneled the money to Robert Mugabe, his wife, his sister and top members of the Zanu-PF party. Diamond panners in the area were attacked with dogs and gunned down from helicopters, with a 2008 cable released by WikiLeaks titled, “Regime Elites Looting Deadly Diamond Fields.”

A cable also stated that, “In a country filled with corrupt schemes, the diamond business in Zimbabwe is one of the dirtiest.”

Trade in rough diamonds from the Marange fields technically remains suspended as the Zimbabwean government and members of the Kimberley Process (KP), the body charged with stemming the flow of “blood” or “conflict” diamonds into the industry, try to hammer out an agreement for trade from the area to resume.

Australian Julian Assange launched WikiLeaks, a non-profit media organization, in 2007. Since late November, the site has been publishing thousands of confidential U.S. diplomatic cables that have embarrassed U.S. officials and led to a government crackdown on the site.

Site founder Assange is in police custody in Britain after Sweden issued a warrant for his arrest in connection with sex crimes in that country. He has denied the allegations.

On Monday, Reuters reported that Assange’s former deputy, Daniel Domscheit-Berg, was starting another WikiLeaks rival site called OpenLeaks.org. The site is not yet operational.

Diamond Investment Trend: Marange Diamond Mine

maddaloni — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 22:12:00 +0000

Contention mounts in the African Nation of Zimbabwe, over the Marange area , where the diamond mine’s conitnue to produce millions of rough diamonds. Since 2006 President Mugabe has been threatening to flood the diamond market with his potential ‘conflict’ rough diamonds. The last word out of Zimbabwe on September 21^st 2010, President Mugabe’s was negotiating a 100 million dollar per month rough diamond contract to supply the Indian diamond market. News today, the Kimberly Process (KP) Chair Boaz Hirsch, directed the Indian government that no trade in diamonds from Zimbabwe’s Marange fields will be allowed under the Joint Work Plan (JWP) until an agreement can be reached.

An office memorandum sent to India’s Customs Department and the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) by the Commerce Department of India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry, notes that Hirsch has requested participant countries to be vigilant and to notify him or the KP’s Working Group on Monitoring (WGM) if any “irregular” shipments of Marange diamonds are received.

The diamond industry continues to scrutinize Mugabe’s intentions for his countries natural resource, while wholesaler and retailers, globally, watch prices rise and supply wither in the diamond industry.

The Word On Wall Street…Gold Should Be Used As ‘Wealth Protection’

maddaloni — Sat, 13 Nov 2010 16:50:54 +0000

The word on Wall Street…Gold should be used as ‘Wealth Protection’ especially when it hit 1368 on November 12,2010; we are now on the official. There are two thoughts has to why gold has been on the rise and catching the attention of hedge funds and investors alike. Negative interest rates and gold not being valued as fiat currency. The faster currency is produced (fiat money) the deeper deflation will move in.
Analysts are suggesting a state of deflation will cause double dipping in the recession in months to come. Gold will be needed to provide protection from the apparent growth in deflation. Deflation will flatten everything in sight including base metals, commodities, housing, and job creation. The component of preserving wealth will be gold. Ulike junk fiat currencies, gold cannot be devalued. As a source of wealth protection . aware of your gold seller, luxury long island jewelers have their finger on the pulse of the gold market. Investment houses deal with an array of communities; specialization is key.
Gold bullion is available from Maddaloni in two convenient forms; the 10-ounce gold bullion bar of at least .995 fine purity is the standard industry unit. It is traditionally used for trading and storage, and can also be taken for personal delivery. Each gold bar is hallmarked by a leading refiner to certify weight and purity. Also available is the 32.15 troy ounce gold “kilo bar”…a one-kilogram bar of fine gold bullion of at least .999 purity. Manufacturers of these bars certify the weight and purity of the bullion content by imprinting their stamp or hallmark on each bar.