Comex Report: Ignore the Paper Price and Watch the Physical Metal

The CME Comex is the Exchange where futures are traded for gold, silver, and other commodities. The CME also allows futures buyers to turn their contracts into physical metal through delivery. You can find more detail on the CME here (e.g., vault types, major/minor months, delivery explanation, historical data, etc.).

The data below looks at contract delivery where the ownership of physical metal changes hands within CME vaults. It also shows data that details the movement of metal in and out of CME vaults. It is very possible that if there is a run on the dollar, and a flight into gold, this is the data that will show early warning signs.

Gold

Despite the fall in gold prices this month, this March saw the highest deliveries for a minor month since last May. Last May was right near the tariff uncertainty where there were massive spreads in the price creating an arbitrage opportunity. This had gold traveling from London to New York and pushing up vault volumes. Deliveries have been strong ever since.