US Dollar Risks and Fed Independence

Bryce and Ren bring in someone who lives in the data every day: David Bassanese, Chief Economist at Betashares, to help cut through what matters (and what doesn’t) for investors heading into 2026.

They unpack five big macro themes dominating markets including inflation, AI, commodities, Trump/tariffs, and China.

In this episode:

00:34 Making sense of macro noise with David Bassanese

01:39 Why the outlook is still constructive heading into 2026

03:26 Inflation update: trimmed mean, housing pressure & RBA risk

07:26 AI boom vs bubble: where are we in the cycle?

10:18 Commodities: gold, copper, uranium and what’s really driving prices

12:54 Trump, tariffs & the US economy: what’s priced in now

18:58 China, Japan & the “Great Rotation” beyond the US

32:45 Sleep-at-night investing: portfolio positioning for the long term

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Stocks & ETFs mentioned: BHP Group (ASX:BHP), Fortescue (ASX:FMG), REA Group (ASX:REA), Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA), Alibaba (NYSE:BABA), Tencent (HKEX:0700), Betashares Japan Currency Hedged ETF (ASX:HJPN), BetaShares NASDAQ 100 ETF (ASX:NDQ).

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