I think, therefore, I write!
Everyone else uses ChatGPT!

I have tried using AI to write my reports, and although it writes better, it has yet to come up with anything new. And worst still, what it produces is hardly controversial.

More importantly, it will not go back to my previous reports and continue my narrative. Indeed, when I try to get AI to write about events and their potential effects on future values, it gives me a Blackrock report full of ESG propaganda and other bits of political bullshit.

Considering where it is based, SVB probably held on to their bonds as long as it did because an AI program said the Biden administration had inflation under control!

AI is helpful for writing computer programs or run-of-the-mill blogs on the dangers of global warming. However, as it doesn't think, it seems to have problems cutting through the nonsense!

In the past week or so, we have seen some good, some bad, and some outright ridiculous events, and I will touch on a few of them in this week's report.

Let's start with the good.

The main assets that I have been promoting for some time, namely gold and BTC, have had an excellent week. The gold coins I bought and buried are now worth appreciatively more than I paid for them back in Nov 2021. I don't see myself dumping them anytime soon, and there is a chance that we could touch $2,500 sometime this year because banks are increasing their inventory of tangibles. I bought physical because it could be a bumpy ride, and also because I wanted an asset that is difficult for the government to get its greasy hands on.

On the other hand, as mentioned in previous reports, I sold my remaining BTC a little above $28,000, which is $10,000 more than I paid for them last year. It's a profit, so I put it in the good section. However, at some point, I will be looking to go back in, but I want to see how the coming months develop.

I will closely monitor what happens if prices get near the $32,000 level, as I am suspicious this rally might be underpinned by banks who either bought BTC a little high or have given loans to companies heavily involved in crypto and need to make their balance sheets look a little better. I have no actual evidence for this, but I don't trust governments or banks, so anything is possible.

The final bit of good news depends on your point of view.

President Xi brokered a historic peace deal between Saudi Arabia and Iran and is now trying to broker a similar agreement between Putin and NATO over Ukraine. It is impossible to criticize someone who is trying to broker peace.

However, whilst this will seem like good news to most of the world, I am sure many in the West will be unhappy about Xi's efforts because of old feelings of animosity and because every success by Xi exposes weak foreign policies of the West.

President Xi obviously has an agenda, which is to remove the dollar as the global reserve currency, which is what is needed if China is to cement its dominance in world affairs.

I don't know how long such a change will take, but with our corrupt and idiotic western leaders still believing in "tax and spend", the days when BRIC countries dominate the world are continually getting closer. As I said whether you consider President Xi's successes good or bad really depends on where you are coming from.

The bad news is governments bailing out large banks. I have never agreed with taxpayers having to bail out banks, whether it is directly or indirectly. I don't believe it is correct.

Moreover, we have 150 banks sitting in the wings with similar liquidity problems as a result of the current rate of inflation.

If some of these banks do start to falter, it is going to take a Herculean effort to stop the rot. Sadly, when I think of Hercules, Joe Biden and Janet Yellen are not the people who instantly come to mind.

Lastly, the crazy, and you can agree or not agree.

Whilst President Xi is travelling trying to broker peace deals, what is the West doing? They have issued an international arrest warrant for Putin, accusing him of war crimes. Okay, so we want to project our moral authority. But I see two problems.

Firstly, I cannot see how issuing such a warrant is going to help bring about peace in Ukraine. And secondly, now that the ICC has gone down this road, would it be wrong for them to investigate war crimes by Bush, Blair, Obama and Biden? If it's good enough for the goose, then it's good enough for the gander.

The final bit of crazy has to go to the people trying to arrest Trump for having sex before he was President or for attempting to obtain a bank loan for his private business.

I have my own views on Trump, but spending so much time on a pathetic and spiteful Witch-Hunt of an ex-president when the Biden administration has so many massive problems on its plate (most of which it caused itself) doesn't look good and reveals weakness.

How this all affects the markets over the coming months, I am still determining one way or the other.

If we start discussing peace in Ukraine, our western economies will look better for at least a short time.

That said, I am looking to go short on equities because our problems are definitely still ongoing.

Until next time…