Merryn Talks Money

The idea that history is cyclical is hardly new. But exactly what drives those cycles is up for debate. On this week’s Merryn Talks Money, Peter Turchin, author of End Times: Elites, Counter-Elites and the Path of Political Disintegration, suggests he’s solved the puzzle.  Sign up to John Stepek's daily newsletter Money Distilled. https://www.bloomberg.com/account/newsletters/uk-wealth See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Bank of England has a vision for the digital pound. But first, it has to decide whether “Britcoin” is worth building in the first place. The BOE wants to make a cash-like alternative to the banknote—an instrument that works like cash and holds its value but won’t accrue interest or become a tool of speculators. Right now, the bank is seeking input from Britons on whether such a central bank digital currency, or CBDC, can work or even makes sense. The period during which the BOE will take submissions began Feb. 7 and ends this week on June 30. At that point, the bank will evaluate all the advice it’s received and spend the next few years evaluating the technology and policy requirements before making a final decision. The person leading those efforts is Tom Mutton, head of the central bank’s CBDC project. Reporter Emily Nicolle spoke to Mutton about the BOE’s plans and you can hear some of that conversation on this week’s episode of Merryn Talks Money. Nicolle joins hosts Merryn Somerset Webb and Senior Reporter John Stepek to explain what a CBDC is, why the BOE sees value in developing one and what privacy concerns are being raised. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Active fund management isn’t just about maximizing upside for your shareholders, says Gervais Williams, head of equities at Premier Miton Investors. It’s also about minimizing downside risk. On this week’s Merryn Talks Money with Merryn Somerset Webb, he lays out just how to do that. Plus John Stepek joins to discuss the Bank of England's rate hike and inflation expectations. Sign up to John Stepek's daily newsletter Money Distilled. https://www.bloomberg.com/account/newsletters/uk-wealth See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s a material world people don’t think about all that often. It’s the one that provides the raw metals and chemicals that keep economies and societies moving. But, as Ed Conway, the economics editor of Sky News and author of Material World, says, people need to start thinking about it a lot. He joins this week’s Merryn Talks Money to discuss the six materials that shape our lives, and how they will continue to do so for some time to come.  Sign up to John Stepek's daily newsletter Money Distilled. https://www.bloomberg.com/account/newsletters/uk-wealth See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s fair to say that Japan is back and that its deflationary years are arguably behind it. The Asian nation may also be in just the right place to win big on today’s shifting geopolitical landscape. Japan is full of high-quality companies, its stock market just hit a 33-year high, and overseas buying exploded last month. But despite these advantages, Japan’s market is still remarkably cheap. This according to David Mitchinson, fund manager at Zennor Asset Management, who joins Merryn Somerset Webb on this week’s Merryn Talks Money to explain why this rally in Tokyo’s equity market is longer-lived than previous rallies, and why the excitement around Japan is different this time. Sign up to John Stepek's daily newsletter Money Distilled. https://www.bloomberg.com/account/newsletters/uk-wealth See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The British government is woefully incompetent, says Burnbrae Chairman Jim Mellon. But of course that doesn’t mean you can’t buy UK equities. Mellon tells Merryn Somerset Webb on this week’s Merryn Talks Money that fossil fuel giants Shell and BP are good long-term investments, as are British defense stocks and financial services companies.  Sign up to John Stepek's daily newsletter Money Distilled. https://www.bloomberg.com/account/newsletters/uk-wealth See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Famed contrarian investor Rob Arnott, co-founder of Research Affiliates, has said since the autumn of 2020 that UK shares are a great bargain—in particular so-called value stocks. In a conversation with Merryn Somerset Webb on this week’s Merryn Talks Money, he contends that’s still the case. The 2020s may be the “the decade for diversifiers,” he says—those prepared to move out of mainstream stocks and bonds and into assets that haven’t been talked about.  Sign up to John Stepek's daily newsletter Money Distilled. https://www.bloomberg.com/account/newsletters/uk-wealth See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Inflation will eventually come down, but not rapidly or in the way it would have in previous years. So says Sharon Bell, managing director and senior European equity strategist at Goldman Sachs. She tells Merryn Somerset Webb on this week’s Merryn Talks Money that the reason for this state of affairs is specifically the tight labor market, and more broadly the demographics of the Western world.Sign up to John Stepek's daily newsletter Money Distilled. https://www.bloomberg.com/account/newsletters/uk-wealthWanted — your questions. Merryn and John will be doing an AMA (Ask Me/Us Anything) session at 1pm on May 24 — which also happens to be the day the UK’s next monthly inflation data reading comes out — over on the UK Markets Today blog. So what do you want to ask us? Send your questions to jstepek2@bloomberg.net. The earlier you send them, the better the odds you’ll get a sensible answer.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Are we getting to the point where central banks are starting to break economies?Dario Perkins, Managing Director on the Global Macro team at TS Lombard, asks that question in his conversation this week with Merryn Somerset Webb on Merryn Talks Money. He says central banks are losing control of their own tools, and that policymakers may drive their economies into recession. Sign up to John Stepek's daily newsletter Money Distilled. https://www.bloomberg.com/account/newsletters/uk-wealthSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Investment trusts are special, says Simon Elliott, client director at J.P. Morgan Investment Trusts. They have a strong history of outperforming other types of investment vehicles. They provide pools of genuinely permanent long-term capital. They come with boards of directors whose specific job is to look out for investors. And on this week’s Merryn Talks Money, Elliott argues that, right now, an awful lot of them look like bargains.Sign up to John Stepek's daily newsletter Money Distilled. https://www.bloomberg.com/account/newsletters/uk-wealthSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.