“The Atlantic is no longer a pond, but has become an ocean once more.”

There are deals and there are deals. Some are good. Some are bad. Some are necessary – but will ultimately change everything. The US/Europe trade deal – much like the deals struck with the UK and Japan – is better than the alternative of no-deal, but at heart it’s a bad deal. There will be consequences.

Ozzy Osbourne was an unlikely Prince of Darkness… but who’s US President? The “Trade Agreement” with Japan is a massive pre-emptive strike opportunity for Japanese Automakers. Will it benefit US Manufacturing? No way! And don’t forget your “Bullsh*t Bingo Card” for tonight’s Tesla numbers.

Trade tensions are set to dominate this week – particularly for Europe and Japan. While Trump upsets his allies, the global nexus is moving to the wealth concentration in South East Asia and the future evolution of tech – nothing lasts forever.

Powell was sacked and then he wasn’t. The market tumbled but swiftly bounced. It was another day of training markets for disruption. The reality is the ongoing shenanigans are undermining confidence in the Fed ahead of what could be a very testing time for the US economy when Trump policies start to bite.

Donald Trump’s BBC interview was… “surprising”. It was Trump, but elegiac? It won’t change the economic reality. The market is living in today – assuming the consequences of Trump policies will be limited. If they hit hard – which economy will suffer most? The USA or the UK?

There are no thin summer markets – just an overload of improbable factors to process. How can you value the price of a stock market when the basis behind it – the economy, its financial system and its society - is under intolerable stress?

Trump has been sending “for your immediate attention”, letters to former friends and allies hiking tariffs and threatening retribution if they retaliate. Yawn. Who cares? The Global economy gets it. America is no longer America. Global trade is shifting. Excellent – that spells opportunity!

The last 6 months has been….. interesting. The world has been shaken, stirred, and left confused, uncertain and destablised. Fantastic. Big shocks create massive opportunities. The issue for markets is understanding why, where and what they are!

Trump described Fed Head Jay Powell as "stupid" for not easing rates – Powell is playing safe, waiting for the Trump impulse to play through the economy. The standoff in Iran looks likely to prove Trump’s pivotal moment: is he a risk taker, or just noise? The stakes are massive - the upside is consolidation of US power, the downside includes acute embarrassment and MAGA disillusionment in the Presidency.

Bread and circuses are one of the ancillary costs of dictatorship. Where do military parades come in that equation? The future lies in Bond Yields, but tradition and national spirit remain a key part of the decision to invest in nations.