This analysis is an excerpt from the opening market commentary in my April 19th issue of the Mining Stock Journal.

I was looking at some charts with a colleague two weeks ago and was startled to discover that a very quiet bull move has begun in the miners. Like the move that began in late 2015, it seems that some of the junior miners per GDXJ have gotten the party going. As you can see in the chart above, GDXJ is up 12.8% since December 7, 2017. GDX is up 9.5% since March 1st. Some individual stocks are up quite a bit more than the indices: AEM up 18% since March 1st, EXK up 49.7% since Feb 9th, Bonterra up 25% since March 1st, etc.

The chart below is two weeks old but the bull pattern in GDX (and GDXJ, HUI, etc) has continued after a brief pullback (which in and of itself is bullish):

In my opinion, the charts in the sector are beginning to look quite bullish. I would like to see the Comex gold futures open interest drop 70-80k contracts – it was 499k as of Friday’s close. However, if a bigger move than has occurred already starts now, the big Comex banks will be forced to cover their large short position in gold futures. This will “turbo-charge” the move [in fact, per the latest COT report, the Comex banks continue to cover shorts and reduce their net short position and the hedge funds continue to dump longs and add to shorts – historically this shift in trader positioning has preceded big bull moves in gold/silver].

Silver is also starting to form a very bullish base:

Wholesale silver eagle premiums are creeping higher, as are retail premiums. Perhaps the big inventory overhang that had formed over the last year is starting to clear out. Also, silver mining stocks, especially the ones that actually produce and sell silver, have been quietly outperforming just about every stock sector (I have had a buy recommendation on a smaller silver producer since early October 2017 – the stock is up 20% since that buy recommendation (I own it) and it’s up 47% since it bottomed in December.

From a fundamental standpoint, given the deteriorating financial condition of the U.S. Government and the escalating rate of inflation and geopolitical risks, the planets are aligned for a big move in the precious metals sector.   If the banks continue to reduce their net short position in Comex paper gold – and concomitantly the hedge funds continue to reduce their net long position – then both the planets and the stars will be aligned for a move in the sector that I believe will take a lot of market observers and participants by surprise.

The Mining Stock Journal is a bi-weekly (twice per month) newsletter that offers in-depth precious metals market commentary and, primarily, junior mining stock ideas.  My goal is to find the hidden “gems’ ahead of herd.  You can find out more here:  Mining Stock Journal information.

Wow great report…by the way I have cancelled most of my precious metal subscriptions except your’s…. You do a treat job for us! – from “Robert,” received last week