Mark and Metal is an independent desk

This page names the desk that publishes the site, the one measurement it takes, the hour that comes with it, and the single link that pays for it.

Independent desk, named sources

Mark and Metal is an independent editorial desk. It is not a broker, not an exchange, not a licensed adviser, and it holds no client money. The desk publishes one measurement, taken from named public sources, and republishes it with the date and the hour it was read. The trade body publishes a price for each mark; the third column divides it by the gold that mark contains. The sources are named under every table, with a link, so a reader can check the figure at its publisher.

The desk has no accounts, no login, no newsletter and no comment form. It sets no cookie of its own, runs no analytics and stores nothing in the reader's browser. The pages are served by a hosting provider which, like any web host, keeps its own technical request logs; the site's publisher does not read a reader's personal data out of them. Writing to the address on the contact page reaches the editor. Corrections are the reason the address exists: a figure that is wrong is corrected and the correction is dated.

What the measurement is and how it is taken

The subject of this site is one measurement, taken from named public sources and republished with the date and the hour it was read. The trade body publishes a price for each mark; the third column divides it by the gold that mark contains. The sources are named under every table, with a link, so a reader can check the figure at its publisher. The hour is republished because a figure is a reading at a moment, not a promise across a day.

A figure read at one hour may differ from a figure read at another. The desk does not estimate, smooth, or adjust it. If a source publishes a figure that the desk cannot verify, the reading is thrown away rather than published. This page is read by someone deciding whether to believe the site's figures. The desk's answer is that the figure can be checked against the source named under the table, at the hour shown.

Editor responsibility and corrections

Responsibility sits with the publication's editorial desk: Mark and Metal editorial desk. The desk reads the sources, checks the figures, and answers a correction. No person is named as an editor, a reviewer, a founder or a spokesperson. Where a person would be named, the desk is named, and what it does is described. An invented author presented as responsible for a measurement is forbidden on these pages.

The reason the contact address exists is a correction. A figure that is wrong is corrected and the correction is dated. A reader who finds a figure that does not match its source should write to [email protected]. The desk reads the message, checks the source at the hour shown, and corrects the figure if it is wrong. The desk cannot answer what a reader should do with a figure; it can only make the figure right.

How the site is funded

The site links to one broker, FxPro, through an affiliate link, and is paid a commission if a reader opens an account there. The reader pays nothing to this site and nothing extra at the broker. This is stated plainly, in its own paragraph, on the page about the publisher and on the page about terms. The broker's own site is operated by someone else, under its own terms and its own privacy policy, and following the link leaves this site.

Nothing on the site is investment advice, a recommendation or an offer. The figures describe what things cost, not what a reader should do. The desk earns from the affiliate link and from nothing else. It does not sell data, it does not take subscriptions, and it does not charge for the figures. A reader who does not open an account pays nothing and the desk earns nothing. The link is the only one of its kind on the site.