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*                       FIEND'S SUPERBEAR MARKET REPORT                     *

*                                December 24, 2025                          *

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*                       e-mail: fiendbear@fiendbear.com                     *

*                    web address: http://www.fiendbear.com                  *

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Fiend Commentary

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Christmas Eve: Santa Brought Bullion, Not Peace of Mind

Silver has finally done the thing people talk about for years and then act shocked when it actually happens: it broke decisively above $70 and kept running. Gold, not to be outdone, pushed through $4,500 and set fresh record highs.

On the surface, this looks like a “risk-on” holiday tape: stocks still hovering near records, and the VIX falling to its lowest close in about a year. But the metals are telling a very different story. When the so‑called fear gauge is quiet while silver is acting like it’s being chased, it’s usually a sign that the anxiety isn’t about tomorrow’s stock move—it’s about the longer-term value of money and the credibility of policy.

Why this silver move feels like the Hunt Brothers era (but isn’t)

The Hunt Brothers episode in 1980 had a clear villain and a clear mechanism: leverage, concentration, and a market-corner dynamic that ended with forced liquidations and rule changes. Today’s silver surge doesn’t need a corner to behave like a squeeze—because silver is simply a smaller, tighter market than gold, and it has two engines instead of one:

1) The monetary engine

Gold and silver both benefit when the market believes rates are headed lower and liquidity is headed higher. “Cuts into 2026” and “QT ending” have the same psychological effect even before any official action: they tell investors the system will be supported, even if inflation isn’t fully tamed.

2) The industrial engine

Silver is also an industrial input, and that’s the twist many casual investors miss. When you combine strong investment demand with steady industrial pull—and you layer that on top of shrinking available inventories—you can get a move that accelerates faster than the headlines can keep up with.

That’s why silver often looks “wilder” than gold. It’s not just a store-of-value trade. It’s also a scarcity trade in a thinner market, which can turn a rally into a dash.

The real disconnect: calm stocks vs. loud metals

A low VIX is basically the market saying:
“We expect stability. Any wobble will be managed.”

Silver at new records is the market saying:
“We don’t fully trust stability. We’re hedging the system.”

Those two messages can coexist for a while—especially into year-end, when liquidity is thin and positioning matters more than logic. But the combination is revealing: confidence is high in financial asset prices, yet demand for monetary metals is even higher. That’s not a normal mix. It’s what you see when investors are quietly preparing for a world where policy becomes more reactive and less disciplined.

A one-year recap that should make people pause

This year was not a “normal up year” for metals. It was a regime-change kind of move:

  • Gold’s gain is now being discussed in the context of the late-1970s surge.
  • Silver’s rise has been even more explosive—exactly the kind of move that forces the public to notice after the big gains are already in the rearview mirror.

And the most important point: almost nobody forecast $70 silver in 2025. Which is a reminder that the market doesn’t move based on what is “reasonable.” It moves based on what becomes necessary—or what becomes feared.

Silver isn’t running because the Hunt Brothers are back.

Silver is running because the market is starting to price a future where easing is the default setting, deficits stay enormous, and the value of “cash” as a safe choice feels less convincing.

Stocks are still partying. Metals are quietly buying insurance.

That’s the Christmas Eve message.

 


 

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