Jim Power

He regards as that absolutely seismic event in terms of inflation, interest rate dynamics subsequently.

And then he talks about COVID-19 and the impact that had, number one, on government debt levels.

But secondly, and it ties back to our earlier discussion about the Irish government bailing out people with that 750 billion package.

You know, it did create this narrative where governments are now expected to step in and spend money

Every time there is a crisis or a mini crisis.

But I guess I go back to his introductory point.

I repeat it again.

Geopolitics can mostly be ignored when it comes to asset prices.

Likewise, interest rates, tax regimes, governance issues.

so chris if you were to stand up in front of a an investment audience at the moment and i asked this for a very personal reason i'm doing it in amsterdam next week what the hell do you say i think you'll just get a loud silence from me at the moment jim because as you know i've been cautious about equity markets for quite some time and dead wrong um

Yeah, you talk about the dollar, Chris, but yet at every opportunity, international investors are still piling into US assets.

They're not worried about the dollar.

Chris, looking at what has happened in Iran over the last few days, the US blockade and so on, Trump's attack on the Pope, Trump really is the gift that keeps giving.

There's a fantastic WhatsApp meme going around at the moment of Netanyahu whispering into Trump's ear that the Pope is going to develop a nuclear capability within two weeks.

That's his interpretation.

Yeah, right.

OK, but no, if you stand back now and think about the war and what has been achieved since the 28th of February, I mean, to me, it's clear that Trump wants out, OK, that he's lost interest.

And it's a question of how

he exits the situation, how it brings the states out at the moment.

But if you think about, you know, what were the aims of the war?