deutsches gold und die fed

8/14/2019 Deutsches Gold Und Die Fed

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Precious Metal Abroad: Why Germany Wants to See its US Gold October 30, 2012 0!:2" PMs#ie$el online

%y S&en %'ll and Anne Seith

(or decades, almost hal) o) Germany*s $old has been stored dee# belo+ the (ederal eser&e

%an- o) .e+ /or- .o+, +ith the euro crisis s+irlin$, German #oliticians are as-in$ their centralban-ers to ta-e stoc- o) the reser&es Some e&en say that the $old should be shi##ed home

%undesban- President ens Weidmann +anted to #ersonally con&ince Peter Gau+eiler that theGerman $old +as still +here it should be arly this summer, the head o) Germany*s central ban-too- the obstinate #olitician )rom the conser&ati&e hristian Social Union 4SU5, a #arty that is amember o) the $o&ernment coalition in %erlin, and a number o) his collea$ues into the%undesban-*s inner sanctum: the $old &ault

6here, !,000 $old bars are stac-ed on industrial7stren$th shel&es in a #ur#ose7built buildin$ in(ran-)urt An additional 8!,000 bars o) bullion are stored in )our sa)e bo9es, in sealed containers%ut e&en this #ersonal ins#ection +asn*t enou$h to reassure the &isitin$ member o) #arliament 77on the contrary: 6he %undesban- monitors its domestic $old in an e9em#lary )ashion,

Gau+eiler says, and this ma-es it all the more incom#rehensible that the ban- doesn*t loo- a)terits reser&es abroad

(or ;uite some time no+, Gau+eiler has been #esterin$ the $o&ernment and the %undesban-+ith ;uestions concernin$ +here and ho+ the country*s reser&es are stored, and ho+ o)ten theyare chec-ed ndeed, the #artially blac-ed7out re#ort read li-e the #rolo$ue to anes#iona$e thriller in +hich the stunned central ban-ers could end u# standin$ in )ront o) em#ty&aults in the US

*Grotes;ue ?ebate*

(or decades, German central ban-ers ha&e contented themsel&es +ith +ritten a))irmations )romtheir American collea$ues that the $old still remains +here it is said to be stored Accordin$ to there#ort, the bar list )rom .e+ /or- stems )rom 1@8@1@B0 6he re#ort also noted that the (ederaleser&e %an- o) .e+ /or- re)uses to allo+ the $old*s o+ners to &ie+ their o+n reser&es

.ot sur#risin$ly, this #rom#ted stron$ reactions in %erlin: 6he rele&ant %undesban- boardmember arl7=ud+i$ 6hiele +as summoned to %erlin to #ro&ide an e9#lanation to the#arliamentary bud$et committee


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their borro+in$ costs >n addition, the %undesban- has already #um#ed nearly D800 billion 4E@0!billion5 into #rimarily southern uro#ean countries as #art o) the euro7Cone central ban- trans)ers-no+n as 6ar$et >>

Germany*s $old reser&es are currently +orth some D1FF billion and are not stored +ith dubiousbusiness #artners, as 6hiele stresses, but rather +ith hi$hly res#ected central ban-ers

S#ecial onnection

6here is in )act nothin$ unusual about ho+ Germany deals +ith the #recious metal Many othercentral ban-s store a #ortion o) their $old reser&es abroad 6he .etherlands, )or e9am#le, #lacesits trust in its collea$ues in Otta+a, .e+ /or- and =ondon

%ut the relationshi# Germans ha&e +ith their $old is a s#ecial one Germany hoards nearly 3,!00metric tons o) the #recious metal 77 only the US has more Much o) this $old treasure +asamassed under the %retton Woods international monetary system, in +hich the dollar ser&ed asthe +orld*s -ey currency and +as directly con&ertible to )i9ed ;uantities o) $old

%e)ore the $old standard +as terminated in 1@81, the current account sur#luses $enerated by

Germany*s economic miracle +ere #artially balanced out in $old 6housands o) US bars o) $oldalone +ere trans)erred to German o+nershi#

%ut since the euro is not bac-ed by $old, such &ast reser&es are actually no lon$er necessary.e&ertheless, the Germans continue to resolutely de)end them 77 and e&ery attem#t to use thistreasure has been met +ith dismay

6here has been no lac- o) #ro#osals: (ormer German President oman n 2002, (?P#arliamentary )loor leader ainer %rderle #ro#osed a )und )or natural disasters (ormer%undesban- head rnst Welte-e added to the debate by su$$estin$ the )oundation o) a nationaleducational )und %ut none o) these ideas +ere e&er ta-en seriously

Most recently, German hancellor An$ela Mer-el o) the conser&ati&e hristian ?emocratic Union4?U5 shot do+n an idea by the euro #artners to use the reser&es as collateral )or euro bonds

Strict Security

As a result, in addition to sa)e$uardin$ the reser&es o) o&er !0 countries, the (ederal eser&e%an- o) .e+ /or- continues to hold 1,"3! metric tons o) German $old 77 or nearly hal) o) %erlin*sreser&es 6his enormous hoard o) $old is stored in the )i)th sub)loor o) the ban-*s buildin$ on=iberty Street, 2" meters 4B0 )eet5 belo+ street le&el, and 1" meters belo+ sea le&el Accordin$ tothe ban-*s +ebsite, the &ault rests on the bedroc- o) Manhattan >sland

6ourists are allo+ed to &enture belo+ street le&el to see the &ault A)ter descendin$ in an ele&ator,

they stand in )ront o) an enormous steel cylinder that #i&ots li-e a door in a 1F07ton steel7and7concrete )rame %ut not e&en the o+ners are allo+ed to &ie+ their o+n $old Accordin$ to the(ederal Audit O))ice re#ort, the (ed e9#lained that in the interest o) security and o) the control#rocess no &ie+in$s are #ossible

(inally, in 2008, )ollo+in$ numerous en;uiries, %undesban- sta)) members +ere allo+ed to seethe )acility, but they re#ortedly only made it to the anteroom o) the German reser&es

>n )act, auditors )rom the %undesban- made a second &isit in May 2011 6his time one o) the nine


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com#artments +as also o#ened, in +hich the German $old bars are densely stac-ed A )e+ +ere#ulled out and +ei$hed %ut this #art o) the re#ort has been blac-ed out 77 out o) consideration )orthe (ederal eser&e %an- o) .e+ /or-

> +ould li-e more trans#arency on the issue, says %undesban- board member 6hiele 6heAmericans are &ery sensiti&e, thou$h, +hen it comes to security #rocedures in their $old stora$e

)acilities >n their second maHor de#ository, the le$endary (ort Ino9, #ractically no one in recentdecades has been allo+ed to &ie+ the $old reser&es

(uellin$ =e$ends

Such intense secrecy )uels le$ends Many cons#iracy theorists ha&e sus#ected )or decades thatthe German $old has lon$ since disa##eared Others belie&e that it has been lent out 6heycontend that there are only #romissory notes o) little +orth stored in the ban-*s &aults

Another myth that has been ma-in$ the rounds in nationalist7oriented German circles is that theUS re)used to hand o&er the treasure and threatened durin$ the old War to +ithdra+ its troo#s)rom Germany i) the Germans demanded their $old bac- (ormer %undesban- head Iarl%lessin$, accordin$ to the theory, had to #ro&ide the US +ritten con)irmation that he +ould ne&er

do such a thin$

6his letter, as it ha##ens, actually e9ists, as %lessin$ con)irmed in his last inter&ie+ +ith SP>G=in 1@81 77 e9ce#t it doesn*t concern the German $old, but rather US $old reser&es Until 1@81,e&ery dollar could be e9chan$ed )or the #recious metal %lessin$ thus #romised the US (ederaleser&e that he +ould no lon$er con&ert the colossal German dollar reser&es to $old becausethis +ould ha&e caused the currency*s &alue to #lummet

6oday, this historic document is e&en a&ailable online %ut that hasn*t silenced those +ho o##osestoc-#ilin$ German $old abroad >nstead, the debate o&er a colla#se o) strictly #a#er7basedcurrency is e9#eriencin$ a renaissance 77 as is the dis#ute o&er the $old reser&es &en GreenParty )inancial e9#ert Gerhard Schic- has Hoined the )ray: > thin- the ;uestion o) ho+ much $oldis a&ailable in an emer$ency is a &alid concern

Outlandish >dea

(rom a #urely lo$istical #ers#ecti&e, thou$h, returnin$ the reser&es seems outlandish Onecannot sim#ly #ac- 1,"00 tons o) $old into an Airbus A3B0 su#er7Humbo Het and )ly it bac- toGermany

6he %undesban- also obHects to this notion )or another reason >t says the $old is su##osed to actas an emer$ency bu))er >n the e9treme situation o) a currency colla#se, the ban-ers say that the$old bars could easily and ;uic-ly be e9chan$ed on location )or #ounds or dollars to #ay ur$entbills

>n a bid to calm the debate, the %undesban- has #led$ed to brin$ bac- and ins#ect 1"0 tons o)$old )rom abroad o&er the ne9t three years (urthermore, there are #lans to count and +ei$h the$old bars stored in one o) the nine chambers at the (ed in .e+ /or- 77 althou$h no date has beenset )or this%undesban- board member 6hiele +as also recently in .e+ /or- +here he too- a loo- behindone o) the &ault doors


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+orld ne&er heard )rom Mr 6hiele be)ore %ut since he is a %undesban-7%an-er > count him to the&ery )e+ honest and honourable ban-ers, es#ecially because o) Mr Weidmann and his#redecessors 6his is &ery di))erent )rom my o#inion concernin$ the (ed7%an-ers 7 loo- only attheir beha&ior +hen the o+ners +ant to see their $old 4once in 10 or 20 yearsL5 7 and the o+nersare e&en #ayin$ nice stora$e)ees Why someone +ould trust these ban-ers is beyond meL 6heyare Hust lousy #oliticians +ith some -no+led$e in economics Why, Mr 6hiele, do you #ut yoursel)and your $erman collea$ues on one le&el +ith them by callin$ them hi$hly res#ected centralban-ersK2 Germany*s $old(reeOre$on 10312012

Physical Gold in one*s #ersonal #ossession is money, the ultimate )orm o) money because itcarries neither third #arty ris- nor debt Germany )aces third #arty ris- as lon$ as the $old is heldoutside Germany >n 1@F" Germany +as a con;uered nation O) course the German $old, bein$the ultimate )orm o) money, +as held outside o) Germany by the &ictorious Allies Germany still+ould be an a$ricultural nation had the US not needed the threat o) a German Wehrmacht, neatlycircumscribed +ithin .A6O, to contain the USS >sn*t it time to restore Germany*s so&erei$ntyK&en Americans no lon$er trust their Go&ernment and the (ederal eser&e >s there any reason)or Germans to be more trustin$ o) the US, the UI, (rance and their central ban-s than are thecitiCens o) those countriesK ust sim#le arithmetic addin$ u# sales and subtractin$ su##ly o)#hysical $old since the year 2,000 sho+s that most o) the central ban- $old, includin$ theGerman $old #ur#ortedly held in .e+ /or-, has been sold or leased, +ithout disclosure Oh, andi) Germany audits be sure to assay as +ell 6here are lots o) $old #lated tun$sten bar counter)eitsin circulation no+ &en hina, a land o) ancient +isdom recently readmitted to the council o)sometimes ci&iliCed nations, -ee#s its $old in hina Ultimately the #ro#er #lace )or Germany*s$old is in the #ossession o) the German #eo#le, not the German Go&ernment or the %undesban-%ut ho+ to create a mar-et currency )ree )rom $o&ernment control and inter)erence is anotherstory )or another day3retarded7)rea- 10312012>&e heard all -inds o) cons#iracies about the (ederal eser&e in .e+ /or-, and this sort o)con)irms some o) it, that )orei$ners, es#ecially in n$land and .orthern uro#e, o+n all thestoc-s in the (ederal eser&e >t is not a true .ational %an-, but a #ri&ate enter#rise connected tothe %an- o) n$land, and that +e are ri##ed o)) continually by this )raud that came into e9istence)rom a secret meetin$ some years a$o on e-yll >sland, Geor$ia /ou are +elcome to ta-e it bac-LF smae 11012012777uote 4Ori$inally by (reeOre$on5777 >n 1@F" Germany +as a con;uered nation O) course the

German $old, bein$ the ultimate )orm o) money, +as held outside o) Germany by the &ictoriousAllies Germany still +ould be an a$ricultural nation had the US not needed the threat o) aGerman Wehrmacht, neatly circumscribed +ithin .A6O, to contain the USS 777nd uote777?idn*t you read the articleK >t is not Germany*s #re7+ar $old reser&es that are held in .e+ /or-

A)ter the +ar +hen the USA had a $old stardared )or the dollar in order to maintain a stable +orldcurrency )or the bene)it o) all countries, Germany o##ortunistically used that to e9chan$e itssur#lus US dollars )or $old once it*s economy reco&ered durin$ the 1@!0*s And Germany choseto -ee# it held in .e+ /or- 6han- God the USA $a&e u# the $old stardared or Germany +ouldha&e bled the USA dry o) all its $old reser&es by e9chan$in$ its sur#lus US dollars )or $old PS:


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As )or the re7armin$ o) Germany a)ter WW2 Who +ould ha&e su))ered under a communistdictatorshi# li-e east Germany i) the USA had decided not to con)ront So&iet communisttotalitarian systemK West Germans, not Americans 6here +ere no So&iet troo#s in .orth

America"retarded7)rea- 11022012777uote 4Ori$inally by mae5777 PS: As )or the re7armin$ o) Germany a)ter WW2 Who +ould ha&esu))ered under a communist dictatorshi# li-e east Germany i) the USA had decided not tocon)ront So&iet communist totalitarian systemK West Germans, not Americans 6here +ere noSo&iet troo#s in .orth America 777nd uote777 What is so bad about communist ast GermanyK> ad&ise you to +atch the )ilm Goodbye =enin, i) you ha&en*t seen it >n that you can see ho+silly the +est is, and ho+ ast Germany +as normal in many +ays > doubt seriously that eastGermany +as any +orse than the USA under the e#ublicans 6hey had #ic-les and all -inds o)treats to eat there htt#:+++youtubecom+atchK&Nscsr@s;28> 6he button ma-es n$lishsubtitles! Where is WaldoK Where is the GoldKs#am@t@scom 11102012Se#tember 11, 2001 +as a bi$ day in South Manhattan 6here +as allot o) metal mo&ed durin$the months )ollo+in$ that e&ent 6here +as also armored cars, military loc-do+n and )ull accessto the $old &aults >t +ould ha&e been a most o##ortune moment to em#ty the (ed &aults o) all the

$old, unnoticed @11 +as #lanned by a thin- tan- >t is not a #lan +hich #o##ed u# o&er ni$ht >t+as de&elo#ed o&er a doCen years or more, re)inin$ e&ery detail until the last second o)e9ecution ust li-e an onion, it has many layers, many $oals and acti&ities +ere #er)ormed as aresult o) a relati&ely small series o) e&ents 6hat is a #rimary reason +hy nobody has unentan$ledit, there are so many intricacies (or e9am#le, %uildin$ 8 4Solomon %rothers %uildin$5 had &ast&aults o) records )or )inancial institutions and (ederal Go&ernment a$encies +hich +eredestroyed that day .ot only did !8 story W6 8 )all )or no a##arent o))icial reason, but the moti&ebehind that colla#se is rarely e9amined n that you can see ho+ sillythe +est is, and ho+ ast Germany +as normal in many +ays > doubt seriously that eastGermany +as any +orse than the USA under the e#ublicans 6hey had #ic-les and all -inds o)treats to eat there htt#:+++youtubecom+atchK&Nscsr@s;28> 6he button ma-es n$lishsubtitles 777nd uote777 Are you -iddin$K Maybe instead o) $ettin$ your in)o )rom a )ilm youshould ha&e $one to east Germany a)ter tha )all o) the +all as > did =ets*s com#are, W &s6rabant, a #roduction system +here +or-ers sat and smo-ed a)ter 10AM because the systemcould not su##ly ra+ material, an autobahn that had not been im#ro&ed since 1@3", houses used

as re)use dum#s, )ire dama$e on the side o) hoses and brid$es )rom the 1@FF )irebombin$s,#eo#le that +ere a)raid to ma-e eye contact >) it +as so normal +hy did they need a+all to -ee# their citiCens inK And they +ere more #roducti&e by a )actor o) ten than the rest o) theso&iet bloc- So be)ore you say anythin$ as stu#id as you did based on a mo&ie, tal- to some o)the #eo#le that li&ed thereL ?resden, the center o) some o) the )inest $lass manu)acturin$ be)orethe +ar could not e&en #roduce +indo+ #anes that you could see throu$h@ 6he American Go&ernment is o$uebeiHin$yan- 031@2013(ree )all o) %uildin$ 8, nano thermite in the @11 dust, the $o&ernment*s lie the air is sa)e to breathand the +ater is sa)e to drin- s#ells one thin$ 6he American $o&ernment has been ca#tured by


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a ma)ia o) mass murderin$, +ar criminals ?emand the $old today GermanyL .o i)*s, but*s, ormaybe*s10 6he Gold Was Stored Under W6beiHin$yan- 031@2013

A)ter ob&ious $o&ernment criminal demeanor surroundin$ @11, it is only sane )or e&ery country o)the +orld to as- )or their $old bac- 6his is outra$eous the (ed +ill return Germany*s $old in 8years 6heir Hob +as to be custodian only 6his delay by (ed and re)usal to account )or the $oldimmediately has sinister im#lications o) more criminal acti&ity on the #art o) the ro$ue American$o&ernment and the ma)ia in control 777uote 4Ori$inally by syso#5777 (or decades, almost hal) o)Germany*s $old has been stored dee# belo+ the (ederal eser&e %an- o) .e+ /or- .o+, +iththe euro crisis s+irlin$, German #oliticians are as-in$ their central ban-ers to ta-e stoc- o) thereser&es Some e&en say that the $old should be shi##ed homehtt#:+++s#ie$eldeinternational$ermany$erman7#oliticians7demand7to7see7$old7in7us7)ederal7reser&e7a7B!F0!Bhtml 777nd uote77711 o#tionalso#hieisabe 0@122013Physical Gold in one*s #ersonal #ossession is money, and it is necessary that Gold should be inthe hands o) country +hich has the ri$ht #ossession

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

hec-in$ the aults: Germans (ret about 6heir (orei$n Gold eser&es May 1", 2012 02:FB PMs#ie$el online

A lar$e #ortion o) Germany*s massi&e $old reser&es are stored abroad, mainly in the (ederaleser&e in .e+ /or- %ut are the bars really +here they are su##osed to beK A dis#ute hasbro-en out o&er +hether the central ban- needs to chec- on its $old, or i) Germany can trust itsinternational #artnersGermany has $old reser&es o) Hust under 3,F00 tons, the second7lar$est reser&es in the +orlda)ter the United States Much o) that is in the sa)e-ee#in$ o) central ban-s outside Germany,es#ecially in the US (ederal eser&e in .e+ /or- One +ould thin- that +ith such a &aluablestash, +orth around D133 billion 4E180 billion5, the German $o&ernment +ould +ant to -ee# aclose eye on its +hereabouts %ut no+ a biCarre dis#ute has bro-en out bet+een di))erentGerman institutions o&er ho+ closely the reser&es should be chec-ed

Germany*s )ederal audit o))ice, the %undesrechnun$sho), +hich monitors the German$o&ernment*s )inancial mana$ement, is unha##y +ith ho+ Germany*s central ban-, the%undesban-, -ee#s tabs on its $old Accordin$ to media re#orts, the auditors are dissatis)ied +iththe )act that $old reser&es in (ran-)urt are more closely monitored than those held abroad>n Germany, s#ot chec-s are carried out to ma-e sure that the $old bars are in the ri$ht #lace %ut)or the German $old that is stored on the %undesban-*s behal) by the US (ederal eser&e in .e+/or-, the %an- o) n$land in =ondon and the %an;ue de (rance in (rance, the German centralban- relies on the assurances o) its )orei$n counter#arts that the $old is +here it should be 6hethree )orei$n central ban-s $i&e the %undesban- annual statements con)irmin$ the siCe o) thereser&es, but the Germans do not usually carry out #hysical ins#ections o) the bars

*.o ?oubts*

Accordin$ to German media re#orts, the %undesrechnun$sho) has no+ recommended in itscon)idential annual audit o) the %undesban- )or 2011 that Germany*s central ban- chec- its)orei$n $old reser&es +ith yearly s#ot chec-s

6he %undesban- has reHected the demand, ar$uin$ that central ban-s do not usually chec- each


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others* reser&es 6he sco#e o) the chec-s that the %undesrechnun$sho) +ants does notcorres#ond to the usual #ractices amon$ central ban-s, the %undesban- said in a statement;uoted by the (ran-)urter All$emeine Teitun$ ne+s#a#er 6here are no doubts about theinte$rity and the re#utation o) these )orei$n de#ositories

.o+ the )inance committee o) the German #arliament, the %undesta$, has $otten in&ol&ed

Parliamentarians a##arently demanded to see the %undesrechnun$sho)*s audit re#ort on the%undesban- a)ter they +ere alarmed by a re#ort in the in)luential tabloid daily %ild, +hich claimedthat the central ban- had not chec-ed its $old reser&es in )i&e years 6he %undesrechnun$sho)+ill no+ #ro&ide the committee +ith its re#ort, a s#o-esman )or the )ederal auditors con)irmed onMonday

Germany mo&ed some o) its $old reser&es abroad durin$ the old War to #rotect them )rom a#ossible So&iet attac- Some o) the $old +as mo&ed bac- to (ran-)urt a)ter the colla#se o)communism %ut the %undesban- ar$ues that it still ma-es sense to store some $old in maHor)inancial centers so that it can be sold ;uic-ly i) necessary Althou$h the %undesban- does not#ro&ide e9act details about the distribution, it has re&ealed that the lar$est share o) Germany*s$old is held in .e+ /or-, )ollo+ed by (ran-)urt, =ondon and Paris

S-e#tical about the eser&es

>n times o) uncertainty about the )uture o) uro#e*s common currency, $old is a hot to#ic, andsome Germans ta-e a dim &ie+ o) the )act that much o) the country*s $old 77 +hich theoreticallybelon$s to the #eo#le 77 is held abroad Some members o) #arliament ha&e e&en e9#resseddoubts as to +hether the )orei$n $old reser&es really e9ist Phili## Miss)elder, a member o) theconser&ati&e hristian ?emocratic Union 4?U5, +anted to see the $old )or himsel) and tra&eledto .e+ /or- in #erson to ins#ect the holdin$s, accordin$ to the ne+s#a#er (ran-)urterundschau n recent years he has attem#tedto $ain more in)ormation about Germany*s $old throu$h #arliamentary ;uestions =ast year, hehad an economics #ro)essor #re#are an e9#ert re#ort on the subHect, +hich concluded that the%undesban- +as not )ul)illin$ its in&entory re$ulations by )ailin$ to #hysically ins#ect the $old

>n uly 2011, SP>G= re#orted that %undesban- em#loyees had #hysically seen the $old in .e+/or- +ithin the #re&ious si9 months


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%ut the %undesban- +ants to lea&e the $old +here it is Obser&ers #oint out that a#art )rom thehi$h cost o) trans#ortin$ the $old bac- to (ran-)urt, the symbolic e))ect o) Germany re#atriatin$ its$old reser&es mi$ht unsettle the ner&ous )inancial mar-ets, +ho could see it as a si$n o) anim#endin$ colla#se o) the euro

d$s 7 +ith +ire re#ortsJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJJ

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deutsches gold und die fed

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