Silver Rises Over 120% YTD 
Shanghai residents raised concerns after a customer discovered dark impurities inside a gold bar purchased from a bank when having it made into jewelry. Despite initial resistance from the bank, which blamed the jeweler and suggested tampering, the matching serial numbers on the gold bar and bank documents confirmed it was the original purchase. Financial regulatory authorities have since become involved, stepping in on Tuesday following the Wednesday incident. The bank, reportedly located in Shanghai’s Nanxiang area, has stated that verification processes are underway. Online commentators have noted the difficulty in distinguishing genuine gold from counterfeits, particularly since materials like tungsten have similar density to gold.
News
Oil Crashed 11%. Gold Went Up. That Tells You Everything.
Oil crashed 11% on Friday when Iran reopened the Strait of Hormuz. Gold went up. That rare divergence — oil down, gold up, same catalyst — signals that gold’s rally is driven by monetary forces, not geopolitical ones. The war premium left oil. The monetary premium stayed in gold. Here is what that means for precious metals investors watching the Fed’s next move.
April 17, 2026
