Another factor to consider is that, in the past, a new mine was able to secure financing by pre-selling (hedging) their output for a few years so that they could be assured of selling at a profit above anticipated production costs. Since so many mines have ended up pre-selling their gold at prices far lower that the prevailing price at the time the ore came out of the ground, there is significant pressure from investors on the mines to avoid hedging. If a mine cannot generate capital out of operations or stock sales, it has become more difficult to finance because investors now discount the value of a company if they engage in hedging.

Another factor to consider has to do with environmental issues and the permitting process. In the past it was fairly typical for a mining company to go from discovery to production within three years. Now a 10 year time frame is more typical. This longer time period increases the risk to investors, who are therefore less willing to buy stock for new mining operations.

An additional factor contributing to the delay in developing mines is the shortage of geologists. It is not unusual for a company to have to wait 1-2 years for a geologist to become available to assess a possible mine site. If anyone wants to suggest a career to our youth, geologist might be one way to go. My understanding is that they are now making six-figure incomes and are being offered more work than they can handle.

My understanding is that options have to be exercised by the closing of the COMEX market on the expiration day or they become void. They can be exercised sooner, but not later. The COMEX silver market now closes at or close to 1:30 PM Eastern time, though it often takes some time for the reporting services to catch up posting this information. So, it is possible that most people don’t know the COMEX close until 10-20 minutes later. I hope this information helps.

http://www.mineweb.com/mineweb/view/mineweb/en/page72068?oid=101525&sn=Detail&pid=1

And yesterday the goldprice in fact first crashed, then rallied at the middle of the day, as you indicated.

But here it states that the option expiry is on the 26th, while others say it is on the 25th. Details are important here. What is the exact point of time of the expiry? (for instance the next is May 25th, so is it may 25 or may 26, and at what hour of the day?)