Weekly

The week that was ending May 18th

U.S. Politics and Trade: President Donald Trump’s Gulf tour, including a $600 billion Saudi investment deal and lifting Syria sanctions. Trumps commerce approach to diplomacy is welcome. The Gulf region has made great strides in development and is also growing well. Instead of preaching, the US approach is yielding tangible economic benefits. US tariff policies now have a 90-day tariff truce with China, the trade war is probably over with most of the world on 10% and China on 30-40%.

The chocolate teapot that is Moody’s downgraded U.S. debt from AAA. The US is now not AAA with anyone. Government debt is a confidence trick, so as long as that trick holds, then this is meaningless. The printing press is indifferent to being rated AAA or AA1, selling the latest auction within a certain range with demand is everything. Trump also signed an executive order demanding pharmaceutical price cuts, though implementation is uncertain.

The UK Prime Minister Starmer has been pumping out SO many messages about immigrants. The new tough policy means he is very firm, understood? Apparently, the real hopes are to make a 10% dent on net immigration which is running at 500k, so 50,000? This will not appease the new Reform voters. Farage offers a break with the Uni-party approach which has been hopeless in having any affect. The Tories are trying to unveil a tough new look but manage to seem like they are chasing both Reform and Labour.

As I write, Bitcoin is forming an assault on ALL TIME HIGH (currently $105,900). This is weekend trade and should not be a surprise. The demand/supply imbalance has been tipping for a while, and retail have been selling into stronger hands. Global government debt is not going to be reduced in the near term, and fiat currency purchasing power is weaking continuously. Bitcoin is an obvious choice for portable, secure store of value that is not being eroded. (*NOT financial advice)

Severe Weather in U.S.: Suspected tornadoes killed at least 21 people in Missouri and Kentucky, with significant damage in St. Louis, including collapsed buildings and widespread power outages.

India-Pakistan Tensions: A ceasefire eased tensions after Trump tasked aides to mediate, averting a nuclear threat. India rebutted Trump’s claims about trade threats, while Pakistan urged reconsideration of the Indus Waters Treaty.

Other Notable Stories: Trump granted refugee status to white South Africans, controversially calling them victims of “genocide,” while ending protections for Afghans. The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments on Trump’s birthright citizenship executive order. An Israeli-American hostage was freed from Gaza after 19 months.