The fundamentals which were expected to drive a breakout – high price inflation and plenty of geopolitical turmoil – don't seem to matter to futures market traders. It is extraordinarily frustrating for goldbugs to watch.

Some are second guessing the decision to buy metals. But declaring gold and silver have failed to perform as expected is one thing. Finding an investment which is likely to perform better is something else.

It helps to think about the alternatives.

Would it be better to sell metal and hold cash instead? The past three years have seen the biggest decline in the dollar's purchasing power in recent memory. The worst may be still to come.

The Federal Reserve has thus far stayed the course on tightening, that is true.

Here are some things which are also true. The economic reckoning for this tightening still lies ahead. The Leading Economic Indicators, inverted yield curves and plenty of other data confirm that recession is coming.