Shift in relations and unpredictability of Donald Trump make it ‘risky to store so much gold in the US’, say experts

Germany is facing calls to withdraw its billions of euros’ worth of gold from US vaults, spurred on by the shift in transatlantic relations and the unpredictability of Donald Trump.

Germany holds the world’s second biggest national gold reserves after the US, of which approximately €164bn (£122bn) worth – 1,236 tonnes – is stored in New York.

Emanuel Mönch, a leading economist and former head of research at Germany’s federal bank, the Bundesbank, called for the gold to be brought home, saying it was too “risky” for it to be kept in the US under the current administration.

  • Markie84@feddit.org
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    5 hours ago

    Trump hid it particularly well. He melted down the gold bars to hang them as picture frames and other knick-knacks in the new ballroom. Thank you, Donald, for hiding the German gold so safely.

  • fort_burp@feddit.nl
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    8 hours ago

    Good idea, but might have to come in like France did in 1971 (they rolled up to NY harbor in a destroyer). For some reason I don’t think it’ll work like it worked for de Gaulle.

  • SabinStargem@lemmy.today
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    8 hours ago

    Everyone should do this. Trump has sticky fingers, and it is inevitable for them to wander to places unwanted.

  • Auli@lemmy.ca
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    11 hours ago

    HAHAHA they still think its there. Wasn’t it about a decade ago Germany wanted to see it and America said no.

    • ogeist@lemmy.world
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      6 hours ago

      And now!?!!?! Of all times, they should have done it on Biden’s presidency. Does anyone believe Trump will just agree like that. The guy is going to use it as hostage.

    • MonkeMischief@lemmy.today
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      9 hours ago

      “OUR GOLD, at this time of year, at this time of day, localized entirely to your vaults?”

      “Yes!”

      “Can I see it?”

      “No.”

  • manxu@piefed.social
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    12 hours ago

    The gold was kept in New York because of fears it might be seized by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. I guess Russia is not as problematic now as the former ally.

    • scintilla@piefed.zip
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      12 hours ago

      I think its mostly that Russia has proved its just not a major threat. Yes Ukraine is getting weapons and funding from many other countries but the fact is if Russia had a fraction of the power we thought they did for a long time the qar would have been over before the aid even made it to the country.

      • nfh@lemmy.world
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        10 hours ago

        Also the Soviet Union during the Cold War was much closer than Russia is today. Part of Germany was under Soviet control, and the Western capitol was Bonn, several hundred kilometers from the border. Modern Russia is a bit further than that, with a whole county between them.

  • Fluffy Kitty Cat@slrpnk.net
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    14 hours ago

    Is the USA collapsing in real time? Serious question. Denmark dumped treasury bonds, and then a Swedish pension fun dumped a billion of them, now the former research head of Germany Central Bank is saying physically move the gold to Germany

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      14 hours ago

      Dear Friedrich:

      Considering your Country decided not to join my Great Board of Peace, the greatest Global institition for Peace ever, I no longer feel any obligation to hand over your gold reserves, which by the way would look much better in my Ballroom anyway, which will be the most prestigious and BIGGEST Ballroom there ever was in History.

      Germany cannot protect that Gold from Russia or China and there are no written documents, it’s only that some guy with a funny accent delivered some gold a while ago and we kept it so why do you have a “right of ownership” anyway?

      I have done more for Gold than any other person since it was invented, like thousands of years ago, and now, GOLD should do something for me.

      Thank you for your attention to this matter!

      President DJT

    • AbsolutelyNotAVelociraptor@sh.itjust.works
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      14 hours ago

      I want to see him try that. The moment he puts his filthy hands on someone else’s gold, the dollar will collapse. No ifs, no buts, the moment he tries to steal part of the gold he has stored there, everyone will want their gold back and, while at it, they’ll cash any bonds they have.

      If you can’t trust that country to mantain such important agreements, you can’t trust it with anything. He’ll bankrupt the country in no time.

      • Dragomus@lemmy.world
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        5 hours ago

        The regime’s been hinting at wanting to change the gold price to try and help the freefalling debt crisis…

        They can (legally) simply revalue the gold in stock by declaring it to have a new arbitrary value, but hold a provision for international customers and declare they did not deposit in weight value but in gold value at the date of entry… which will rob them of any of the current price increase… So trump will tell Germany “you deposited $30 million before 1970, you get $30 million back from us now.”

      • Auli@lemmy.ca
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        11 hours ago

        it is hard to find now because of this storey but I swear there was a story about a decade ago that the US did not allow Germany to see their gold.

      • D_C@sh.itjust.works
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        9 hours ago

        Yes…but that obese child rapist is a narcissistic imbecile who can’t understand the basics. Plus he is probably too far gone with dementia to understand even if he wanted to.

    • Fluffy Kitty Cat@slrpnk.net
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      14 hours ago

      That would blow up the world financial system, like actually. Not to say he wouldn’t do it but that the consequences of doing so would be World historical in nature. I think he already borked European alliance. Greenland was a step too far and now they’re serious about decoupling, and not to slowly either

      • balsoft@lemmy.ml
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        6 hours ago

        EU itself has already done something similar to Russia, it’s not some unthinkable act. I don’t think it would be any more “world historical” from Trump then threatening to annex Greenland. It would be a shitshow for sure, though.

  • blazeknave@lemmy.world
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    5 hours ago

    American Jew here… Toss your witcher some reparations coin? Or am I thinking of the Swiss?

  • A_norny_mousse@feddit.org
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    15 hours ago

    Huh, TIL that Germany has such a big gold reserve - 75+% - and stores half of it abroad. Most of that half in the US 🤦

    The Eurozone’s gold reserves are much larger btw.

  • 9point6@lemmy.world
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    15 hours ago

    Well I’m sure the dollop of fermented meat in charge won’t try something as someone takes back his favourite coloured metal

  • melsaskca@lemmy.ca
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    14 hours ago

    I hope there is some of Germany’s gold left. If not, at least grab a wall sconce on your way out.