China : the next silent Black Swan ?
August 27, 2025Trade between the U.S. and China has collapsed to its lowest point in nearly 20 years. Imports from China just hit a 19-year low, and U.S. exports to China are sliding too. Tariffs, decoupling, and weaker demand are crushing the flow of goods. You are cordially invited to visit me at the Monaco…
No celebration for Switzerland this August 1st
July 26, 2025Switzerland celebrates its National Day on August 1st, but this year’s festivities will be overshadowed by the imposition of arbitrarily fixed 31% U.S. tariffs—punitive measures that are both harsh and difficult for the Swiss to understand, especially as they have consistently followed the rules of globalization with elegance and restraint. The Context First According to…
Trump the Mastermind
June 21, 2025Russia managed to outplay Trump: no ceasefire. China managed to outplay Trump: no serious concessions on tariffs. Iran — whose ancestors invented the game of chess — will outplay Trump. The tactic is simple: Just resist, stand firm, ignore the threats … especially when only 23% of Americans can locate Iran on a map.
Auto goal ?
April 15, 2025China halting all Boeing orders! EU and Japan are winning the trade war right now. The euro and the yen have gone way up, making all their imports cheaper, which keeps their official inflation measures lower. The end result of the trade war will be a bigger trade deficit.
Flip-flop policy
April 13, 2025Trump has just lowered tariffs on smartphones, computers, and electronic devices imported from China. Every day, the White House backtracks, revises downward, cancels… In such conditions, where can one find the motivation to set up a factory and bring industrial jobs back to the United States? Tariffs are not a policy, but a tool…
April 9th., 2025
April 9, 2025In response to the United States, China is increasing its tariffs from 34% to 84%. It is not yielding to pressure. Globalization officially ends today.
Trump: on a record-breaking streak
April 5, 2025The tectonics of global investment are undergoing spectacular upheavals, to the severe detriment of the United States, which is experiencing a full-scale exodus. Foreign investors and speculators are liquidating U.S. assets at the most dramatic level of the CENTURY, accompanied by massive capital outflows being repatriated outside the U.S. Breaking news: According to Bessent, U.S.…
Trump and Arab Philosophy
February 1, 2025The White House confirmed tariffs will be implemented today: 25% on Canada, 25% on Mexico, 10% on China. Did you know that “tariff” comes from Arabic from the word تعرفة (ta‘rifa), which means a “list of prices”? Ibn Khaldun, in his Muqaddimah, discusses taxation and economic policies, using terms like المكوس (al-mukūs), which refers…
Trump and the Loudmouths
December 20, 2024Trump threatens heavy tariff sanctions if the European Union does not buy more oil. Yet, European imports from the U.S. have only been increasing: they have been rising substantially and consistently, year after year. Conclusion: Trump makes loud demands that are entirely realistic, as it will be easy for…