The Julia La Roche Show, Released on 12/8/22
Macro expert Axel Merk, Chief Investment Officer of and founder of Merk Investments, joins Julia La Roche on episode 37 to discuss monetary policy, the economy, gold, and more. In this episode, Merk details the Federal Reserve’s sledgehammer approach to monetary policy and why the central bank will likely push the economy into recession. He also shared his thesis on stagflation. Merk outlined why next year’s market might be “more nuanced.” He also shared his outlook on gold, the U.S. dollar, and more. Axel has grown Merk Investments into a $1 billion investment advisory firm offering investment funds and advisory services on liquid global markets, including domestic and international equities, fixed income, commodities and currencies.
0:00 Intro
0:31 Macro view
1:45 Sledgehammer approach
2:06 A more nuanced market in 2023
2:49 Central banks trying to fix their mistakes
5:14 Extremely counterproductive policies
6:18 Rates should be coming down
7:27 Fed is basically a debating club
8:11 The Fed needs a new framework
10:38 Why The Fed might pause hikes at the May meeting
13:00 Inflation outlook
16:40 Social implications of policy
19:24 Stagflation thesis
23:00 Investing in gold
25:30 3 types of gold investors
26:56 Gold is the purest indicator of monetary policy
30:24 U.S. Dollar outlook
32:48 What does a more nuanced market look like?
35:40 Merk’s framework
40:20 Why invest in gold miners
45:00 Merk’s journey in the financial markets
49:40 Building and growing a business
51:40 Pilot
53:13 Parting thoughts
Axel Merk is the Founder, President, Portfolio Manager, and CIO at Merk Investments LLC. He is an expert on qualitative research and macroeconomic trends. Mr. Merk is also an expert on macro trends, hard money, international investing, and on building sustainable wealth, and he is a pioneer in the use of strategic currency investing to seek diversification. He is a speaker and author on topics ranging from the economy, gold, and currencies to sustainable wealth and personal finance, as well as a regular guest and contributor to the business media around the world. Mr. Merk is an Author of the book Sustainable Wealth: Achieve Financial Security in a Volatile World of Debt and Consumption.