To avoid war we must be prepared to fight – that a basic dictum from history. While the conflict pressures mount, and political systems are increasingly strained, the defence of Western Economies in a post-Nato era will require massive private capital investment. But many investors are not prepared to step up and finance defence. It’s an attitude that has to change.

The Brexit Debate is never going to end. But the UK and Europe need to look to the future. The World in 2026 is very different to what short-term populist politicians thought they were selling us in 2016. A new relationship around trade, cooperation, and security, is possible and positive. Moreover, there is an easy win that could accelerate European growth – strengthening and unifying European Capital Markets!

Nobody wants to pay taxes or spend money on defence. But both are inevitable. Investment in security has the potential for significant returns for investors and can drive considerable economic gains for nations that spend wisely. History is written by the victors, but the costs of underfunded defence are very clear – ask the losers how well scrimping on Defence worked for them.

The US treasury market is the deepest and most liquid market on the planet. But over the last year, foreign investors have been walking away. Why? Is it simply fear of a bear market from rising inflation and the rising quantum of US debt, or the sheer scale of the refinancing required. Or is it more fundamental in terms of geopolitics, a changing investment market, and better returns elsewhere. If so, it’s a lesson every country should absorb.

Global conflict risks are rising. The wars in Ukraine and the Gulf are the openers. However, a global conflict for hegemonic power between China and the USA is more likely to take the form of “Grey” conflict than outright “kinetics” between them – triggering further inflation threats, political and economic disruption, and supply chain destabilisation driven by ongoing cyber-attacks, fake news and regional conflict. The resilience of nations will be the critical factor – and that means being prepared to defend themselves.

Elon Musk is the richest man in history. With great wealth comes great power and influence. How wisely is Musk wielding that power? Switching off Starlink in Ukraine, threatening Europe with “devastating consequences” on satellite broadband, and whatever deals he doing on the regulation of his companies all beg closer examination. He raises questions about his accountability, and whose interests he serves.

The Russians are masters of Maskirovka, the art of distraction, disinformation and misdirection. After sabotaging the transatlantic economy, the next stage is to destabilise Europe and break its resilience by fermenting social unrest, political conflict, and riots. The current waves of protest are likely to erupt across Europe with the potential of triggering a bond crisis, are deliberate and part of a hostile plan to remove Europe from the board.

French political instability and it’s looming fiscal crisis will distract and delay the European project of a shift towards “strategic unity” in the face of a) the immediate security threats from Russia, and b) the long-term geopolitical shift towards China at the end of the Transatlantic American age. How Europe responds to the growing French threat could determine its economic outlook for decades.

Consequences spread like ripples on a pond. Trump lobbed the bloody great rock of the Iran War into the global economy earlier this year. Now the risks he raised are converging. Inflation, Rates, Trade, Geopolitics and Conflict were thrown into stark relief over the weekend as Trump further roiled markets, and climate risks will be extra spice. How this ends is unclear…

Just how much money is the AI boom going to make? No one really knows, but everyone is placing their bets. AI dominates the stock markets, but is beginning to worry many investors in terms of likely returns. While AI technologies are changing the world, what we see today may not be what we get tomorrow if new technologies emerge, and the current valuation metrics change. AI may be distracting us from real economic impacts elsewhere – like shipping costs.