#037 Axel Merk On The Fed's Sledgehammer Approach To The Economy

Macro expert Axel Merk (@AxelMerk), 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