Nelson Bunker Hunt (born February 22, 1926, in El Dorado, Arkansas) is an American businessman. He is notable for having participated in cornering the world silver market during Jimmy Carter's presidency and the high inflationary period of the late 1970's and 1980. His actions caused the price first to rise almost ten-fold, and then to plummet shortly thereafter,[1] which ultimately led to his bankruptcy. February 22 is the 53rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Year 1926 (MCMXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar). ... El Dorado (pronounced to rhyme with tornado (IPA: [εl doˈreɪdoÊŠ] or [εl dəˈreɪdÉ™])) is a city in Union County, Arkansas, USA. According to 2006 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 20,467. ... Official language(s) English Capital Little Rock Largest city Little Rock Area  Ranked 29th  - Total 53,179 sq mi (137,002 km²)  - Width 239 miles (385 km)  - Length 261 miles (420 km)  - % water 2. ... In business, cornering the market is an illegal attempt to buy up enough of a particular commodity to allow the price to be manipulated. ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... Notice of closure stuck on the door of a computer store the day after its parent company, Granville Technology Group Ltd, declared bankruptcy (strictly, put into administration - see text) in the UK. Bankruptcy is a legally declared inability or impairment of ability of a individuals or organizations to pay their...

Background

The son of Texas oil billionaire H. L. Hunt, who was believed to be the richest man in the world at the time of his death, Nelson Bunker Hunt also entered the oil business. His explorations led to a partnership with British Petroleum and the discovery of the Sarir Field in Libya in 1961. In December 1972, the government of Muammar al-Qaddafi moved against Hunt and demanded a 50-percent participation in its operations. When Hunt refused, the property was nationalized by the government in 1973. That same year, the members of the Hunt family, possibly the richest family in America at the time, decided to buy precious metals as a hedge against inflation. The Hunts bought silver in enormous quantity. Official language(s) English (de facto) See also languages of Texas Capital Austin Largest city Houston Area  Ranked 2nd  - Total 268,581 sq mi (695,622 km²)  - Width 773 miles (1,244 km)  - Length 790 miles (1,270 km)  - % water 2. ... Pumpjack pumping an oil well near Lubbock, Texas Ignacy Łukasiewicz - inventor of the refining of kerosene from crude oil. ... Haroldson Lafayette Hunt, Jr. ... This article is about the corporation known as BP. See also BP (disambiguation) BP (formerly British Petroleum and briefly known as BP Amoco) (NYSE: BP) is a petroleum company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. ... Muammar Abu Minyar al-Qaddafi 1 — pronounced Gaddafi — (Arabic: معمر القذافي ) (born c. ... General Name, Symbol, Number silver, Ag, 47 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 11, 5, d Appearance lustrous white metal Atomic mass 107. ...

The road to 'Silver Thursday'

Nelson Bunker and brother William Herbert Hunt, together with two wealthy Arab investors, formed a company called International Metals Investment Company Ltd. with the intent of cornering the world silver market. Through their brokers on the Commodity Exchange (COMEX), Alvin Brodsky and Mark Denberg, they quickly amassed more than 200 million ounces of silver, equivalent to half the world's deliverable supply. When the Hunt brothers began accumulating silver in 1973 the price was $1.95 per ounce. Early in 1979 the price was about $5, and in 1980 the price peaked at $49.45 per ounce^[1]. Languages Arabic other languages (Arab minorities) Religions Predominantly Muslim Some adherents of Druze, Judaism, Samaritan, Christianity Related ethnic groups Mizrachi Jews, Sephardi Jews[], Ashkenazi Jews, Canaanites, other Semitic-speaking groups An Arab (Arabic: ‎; transliteration: ) is a member of a Semitic-speaking people originally from the Arabian peninsula and surrounding territories... In business, cornering the market is an illegal attempt to buy up enough of a particular commodity to allow the price to be manipulated. ...

Once the silver market was cornered, outsiders joined the chase. As things heated up, the number of contracts being traded in a month equaled the total amount of silver available for delivery in the exchange warehouses, and many traders, including the Hunt Brothers, were taking delivery on their contracts. Members of the board at COMEX, many of whom had substantial silver short positions, moved to check this cornering of the silver market by lowering the number of contracts investors could hold, and raising margin requirements. The highly leveraged Hunt Brothers were unable to meet their margin calls, and were forced to sell. A combination of changed trading rules on the New York Metals Market (COMEX) that allowed only liquidation (sell) orders, and the intervention of the Federal Reserve to bail out the brothers put an end to the silver run. The price began to slide, culminating in a 50% one-day decline, known as Silver Thursday, on March 27, 1980 as the price plummeted from $21.62 to $10.80. The New York Mercantile Exchange**** NOTE the AMENX is FAKE, created by york-commodities to scam your money, if you send money you will never see it again**** You have been warned. ... Silver Thursday was 27 March 1980 when the American brothers Nelson Bunker Hunt and Herbert Hunt, seeking to corner the silver markets, were unable to meet a margin call on their futures contracts. ... March 27 is the 86th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (87th in leap years). ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ...

The collapse of the silver market meant huge losses for speculators. The Hunt brothers declared bankruptcy. By 1987 their liabilities had grown to nearly $2.5 billion against assets of $1.5 billion. Nelson Bunker Hunt declared bankruptcy and was convicted in August 1988 of conspiring to manipulate the market^[2]. The bankruptcy judge allowed each of the brothers to keep a few million dollars in return for helping prosecutors. The brothers had demanded this to maintain a moderately wealthy lifestyle. Notice of closure stuck on the door of a computer store the day after its parent company, Granville Technology Group Ltd, declared bankruptcy (strictly, put into administration - see text) in the UK. Bankruptcy is a legally declared inability or impairment of ability of a individuals or organizations to pay their...

Family

Nelson Bunker Hunt married Caroline Lewis Hunt of Ruston, Louisiana. He has three daughters and a son, Betsy, Ellen, Mary and Houston.

The late sports tycoon Lamar Hunt was Hunt's younger brother. Lamar Hunt (August 2, 1932 – December 13, 2006) was a promoter of American football, soccer, tennis, basketball, and ice hockey in the United States and an inductee of the first three sports halls of fame. ...

Later history

He has donated millions to Christian groups such as Promise Keepers, Campus Crusade for Christ, Christian World Liberation Front, Moral Majority, Christian Broadcasters Network, Strategies to Eliminate Poverty (STEP). At one point, he was active in a number of organizations, including the John Birch Society and the International Association for the Advancement of Ethnology and Eugenics. Promise Keepers is an international Christian organization for men, based in Denver, Colorado, United States. ... Each March, U.S. college students spend Spring Break participating in “Big Break,” a Campus Crusade outreach to Panama City Beach vacationers Campus Crusade for Christ is an interdenominational Christian mission organization, focusing on evangelism and discipleship in over 190 countries around the world. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The John Birch Society is an Americanist organization founded in 1958 to fight what it saw as growing threats to the Constitution of the United States especially a perceived communist infiltration and to support free enterprise. ... The International Association for the Advancement of Ethnology and Eugenics (IAAEE) was a prominent group in the promotion of eugenics and segregation, and the first publisher of Mankind Quarterly. ...

Thoroughbred horse racing

A thoroughbred horse racing enthusiast, Nelson Bunker Hunt invested a great deal of money into building a racing and breeding operation. He won the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Breeder in 1976, 1985, and 1987. Among his horses, he owned a share of Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winner Vaguely Noble who sired the 1976 Epsom Derby winner Empery as well as U.S. Hall of Fame horses Dahlia and Exceller. Thoroughbred race horses The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known as a race horse. ... Horse-racing is an equestrian sporting activity which has been practiced over the centuries; the chariot races of Roman times were an early example, as was the contest of the steeds of the god Odin and the giant Hrungnir in Norse mythology. ... Eclipse Award for Outstanding Breeder is a American Thoroughbred horse racing honor for breeders. ... Races at Lonchamp - Édouard Manet, 1867 The Prix de LArc de Triomphe is a flat thoroughbred horse race of a 2400 metres (about 1 mile 4 furlongs) raced on turf for 3 year olds and up, Colts, horses, Fillies and mares (exclude geldings). ... Vaguely Noble (1965-1989) was an Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in the United Kingdom and France. ... Epsom Derby, Théodore Géricault, 1821. ... Dahlia (1970-2001) was an American-bred Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse who won major races in France, England, Ireland, Canada, and the United States. ... Exceller (1973 - 1997) is widely considered one of the best horses to race in the United States and not win a year-end championship. ...

Representations in fiction

Elements of the real-life history of the Hunts were used for the fictional Ewings of the Dallas saga on television. The two stories quickly lost any connection with each other. Some of the Hunt's financial activities also inspired the attempted take-over of the orange juice market by the Duke Brothers in the 1983 film Trading Places. The Southfork Ranch, home of the Ewing family The original cast of Dallas. ... Orange juice is sometimes artificially colored to match the color of orange rinds. ... 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Trading Places is a 1983 comedy film starring Eddie Murphy, Dan Aykroyd and Jamie Lee Curtis. ...

Notes

References

• Great Silver Bubble by Stephen Fay, 1982. (Out of print book.)

See also

• Silver Thursday
• Silver as an investment
• H. L. Hunt

Silver Thursday was 27 March 1980 when the American brothers Nelson Bunker Hunt and Herbert Hunt, seeking to corner the silver markets, were unable to meet a margin call on their futures contracts. ... A 500 gram silver bullion bar Silver, like other precious metals, may be used as an investment. ... Haroldson Lafayette Hunt, Jr. ...

External links

• Details of the man
• 'H.L. Hunt's Boys and the Circle K Cowboys' by Larry LaBorde
• Production Capitalism vs. Financial Capitalism - a Norwegian 'workshop' from 1998 that puts the 'Silver Bubble' in context