Do Paper Sellers Have Silver to Deliver?

(A web version of the article I forwarded yesterday; easier to read)

For July, the ounces of silver traded by the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) declined by 32.7 percent from already low June levels. The volume of LBMA silver trading in July set a record low for any month since such statistics first started to be compiled in 1996. Although LBMA contracts are supposed to be for the physical delivery of metal, the practice in recent years has been to trade them as paper contracts without taking delivery. Since it was revealed in the March 25, 2010, Commodity Futures Trading Commission hearings that the LBMA only has enough physical silver to fulfill 1-3 percent of all outstanding contracts, it looks as if silver buyers are moving away from paper markets and focusing on purchasing physical metal.