The Fed's Role in Inflation

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