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This article has been automatically translated from Dutch. Click here to see the orginal article including all links to sources.
This week, the new U.S. Vice President launched a full-scale attack. In an elegant hall filled with world leaders in Paris, he did not mince words and confronted European politicians with their failures. Of course, in this weekly selection, we also pay attention to gold, which once again reached a record high. Read on quickly!
It is becoming increasingly clear that we are at a turning point in history. The developments since Donald Trump’s re-election and inauguration are almost impossible to keep up with. As Kees de Kort noted in our podcast, Trump has a well-thought-out plan. The flood of executive orders and statements is not coincidental chaos but a deliberate strategy. The fact that America is taking a new course first became truly visible during Trump’s speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, where he addressed an uneasy audience. This week, Vice President J.D. Vance spoke in Paris before a similar audience of world leaders at a conference on artificial intelligence (AI). Once again, the stark contrast between the old order and America’s new direction was painfully evident.
JD Vance during his speech in Paris (source: FOX)
He opened his speech with a sharp contrast: "I'm not here to talk about AI Safety, I'm here to talk about AI Opportunity." With this, he addressed a room full of EU leaders, including Ursula von der Leyen, who in recent years have focused primarily on regulating AI. Compared to the U.S. and China, Europe has barely developed a relevant AI sector—precisely due to its strict regulations. He urged for less risk aversion and warned against stifling innovation through overregulation. He echoed Trump’s earlier statement that the U.S. aims to be the global center for AI but simultaneously invited other countries to contribute to this ambition. Specifically, he called on European countries to approach AI developments with optimism rather than fear.
He also spoke out against ideological bias and promised that American AI would not become a tool for authoritarian censorship. He stated that the U.S. would not accept other countries tightening the screws on internationally operating American tech companies. He strongly criticized the European Digital Services Act, which forces American tech companies to censor certain content. "It’s one thing to prevent a child predator from targeting a child online with ill intent, but something entirely different to deny an adult man or woman access to an opinion that the government labels as misinformation."
The notification you receive when trying to visit Rumble.com in France
This overregulation has already led to certain American tech companies restricting their services for EU users. For example, it is currently impossible to access Rumble’s website in France without a VPN because the company refuses to censor content.
The new AI sector requires chip production and energy. Reliable and affordable electricity is crucial. Vance made it clear that many (European) allies are on a destructive path, triggering their own deindustrialization and driving out dependable energy sources. Later this week, he reinforced this point by saying: "You win wars with weapons, and the West doesn’t make enough weapons."
CO2 emissions of the EU compared to the rest of the world (source: OurWorldinData)
Yet EU leaders still fail to grasp this message and continue to adhere to their degrowth ideology. While Porsche announced this week that nearly two thousand jobs would be lost, the European Commission is pushing even harder for climate policies that are causing many of these problems. They are set to introduce a more ambitious climate goal before the end of March, instead of in August. The EU likely aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 90% by 2040 compared to 1990. Despite the fact that the world’s largest polluters are not participating, the EU is determined to maintain its leadership role on what appears to be a dead-end path.
Kees de Kort stated in the podcast that, in his view, the first thing to go should be the energy transition: "Stop it, not a cent more." In previous weekly selections, we already noted that the direction of climate policy has been shifting for some time. The tide is turning. This week, it became clear that the tender for a Dutch offshore wind farm is at risk of failing. Similar criticism arose in the UK, where record-high subsidies went to wind farms last year, yet much of their electricity couldn’t even be fed into the grid. The coming months will reveal whether European politics will shift toward the American model or stubbornly continue to flog a dead horse down a dead-end road.
Update 16:45: In a new speech in Munich just now, Vance once again heavily criticized European politicians. He specifically condemned the decline of free speech, growing migration issues, and events surrounding the elections in Romania. "...Nothing more urgent than mass migration," said Vance.
The gold price hit another record high this week. On Tuesday, it briefly stood well above €91,000 per kilo. The gold price has been rising for seven consecutive weeks. In last week’s selection, we extensively covered the commotion around shortages and delays in physical gold deliveries from London and the shipment of gold to New York. According to ZeroHedge, this trend has continued over the past week. We also saw reports this week of shortages in South Korea and China.
Development of the gold price over the past month (source: Holland Gold)
According to Dave Ramsden of the Bank of England, the explanation is simple: the delays are due to logistical challenges in shipping large amounts of physical gold. Alasdair Macleod, a guest on Reinvent Money, acknowledges that this explanation holds some truth but also sees it as a convenient excuse covering up deeper issues in the paper precious metals market. He suspects that not all gold is physically present in vaults. Uncertainty and speculation around this issue could be driving these requests for physical deliveries. Watch the full discussion here!
Our quarterly discussion with Jeroen Blokland also covered gold extensively (see below). Paul Buitink discussed with Jeroen the role of Trump in the rapid changes we are witnessing and the potential revaluation or repricing of scarce assets like gold and bitcoin. Enthusiasts can read more on the topic here and here. See you next week!
