Don’t Blame The Pandemic For The $277 Trillion Global Debt Pile
Frank Holmes | Nov 24, 2020 02:00AM ET
How do you even begin to visualize $277 trillion?
If we convert it into seconds, 277 trillion is the equivalent of 8.8 million years. I’m not sure what was happening that long ago, but I guarantee you it didn’t involve people.
It’s been estimated that Jeff Bezos increases his net worth by about “Gold Is a Hedge Against Bad Government Decisions,” Dillian argues that investors mistakenly believe that gold is a hedge against inflation and stock market crashes.
Instead, he writes:
“[Gold] is a hedge on policymakers screwing up, and there has been a lot of screwing up in the last 20 years.”
Since the year 2000, U.S.-denominated gold has surged roughly 555% versus 146% for the S&P 500 Index. The reason for this, according to Dillian, is that “significantly looser financial conditions” have meant that there are “no constraints on monetary and fiscal policy.”
Indeed, the world is stuck in a low-rate environment. As of right now, no 10-year government bond in any major economy in Europe or North America has a yield higher than 1%. Several countries—including France, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands and Switzerland—issue debt with a negative yield. And that’s the nominal yield, before factoring in inflation.
On Friday, in fact, the amount of government debt around the world trading with a negative yield rose to $17.1 trillion, a troubling new record.
Currency devaluation is real, and it’s only likely to accelerate. If you’re seeking to protect your family’s wealth against the failures of governments and central banks, I don’t believe there’s a more prudent option than hard assets. That includes not just gold and precious metals but also real estate, housing and, if you can stand the volatility, cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Disclosure: All opinions expressed and data provided are subject to change without notice. Some of these opinions may not be appropriate to every investor. By clicking the link(s) above, you will be directed to a third-party website(s). U.S. Global Investors does not endorse all information supplied by this/these website(s) and is not responsible for its/their content.
Get The News You Want
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.