Bi-Weekly Geopolitical Report
Weekly Geopolitical Report – The Geopolitics of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC): Part IV (April 12, 2021)
by Bill O’Grady | PDF This week, we conclude our series on CBDC with market ramifications. Ramifications Money is a seminal good. As our metaphysical discussion examined, economics has tended to avoid forays into the being of money.[1] Accordingly, for the past 150 years, there have been steady changes to the use of money, from… Read More »
Weekly Geopolitical Report – The Geopolitics of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC): Part III (March 29, 2021)
by Bill O’Grady | PDF (Due to the Easter holiday, the next report will be published on April 12.) This week, we continue our series with an examination of the geopolitics of CBDC. The Geopolitics As we noted in Part I, there has been strong interest among the central banks to introduce digital currencies. We… Read More »
Weekly Geopolitical Report – The Geopolitics of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC): Part II (March 22, 2021)
by Bill O’Grady | PDF In Part I, we discussed the metaphysics of money. This week, we will examine the current structure of money and the potentially complicated impact of CBDC. The Current Structure Here is a Venn diagram of the current structure of money in most developed markets. First, there are two forms of… Read More »
Weekly Geopolitical Report – The Geopolitics of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC): Part I (March 15, 2021)
by Bill O’Grady | PDF There has been a surge in interest in digital currencies among the world’s central banks. The triggering event was probably Facebook’s (FB, USD, 264.28) unveiling of the LIBRA project in June 2019. Digital currencies of various stripes have been around for some time; bitcoin (BTR, USD, 49,989.80), introduced in 2009,… Read More »
Weekly Geopolitical Report – The Western Sahara: Part II (March 8, 2021)
by Thomas Wash | PDF In Part I of this report, we examined the U.S. decision last December to recognize Morocco’s sovereignty over the Western Sahara territory, which was part of an agreement in which Morocco formally recognized Israel. This week, in Part II, we focus on why Morocco wanted recognition of its sovereignty over… Read More »
Weekly Geopolitical Report – The Western Sahara: Part I (March 1, 2021)
by Thomas Wash | PDF To facilitate a restoration of diplomatic relations between Morocco and Israel, the Trump administration acknowledged Morocco’s sovereignty over the Western Sahara territory on December 10, reversing the three-decade U.S. policy of supporting self-determination for the Sahrawi People who make up most of the region’s population. The reconciliation between Morocco and… Read More »
Weekly Geopolitical Report – The U.S.-China Balance of Power: Part V (February 22, 2021)
by Patrick Fearon-Hernandez, CFA | PDF As the U.S.-China rivalry intensifies in the 21st century, two questions arise. Which is stronger, the United States or China? Which country is better positioned to protect its interests and achieve its goals? To gauge the likely trajectory of their relationship in the coming years and assess the investment… Read More »
Weekly Geopolitical Report – The U.S.-China Balance of Power: Part IV (February 8, 2021)
by Patrick Fearon-Hernandez, CFA | PDF (Note: Due to the Presidents’ Day holiday, our next WGR will be published on February 22.) This multi-part report aims to assess the current balance of power between the U.S. and China and what that implies for how the competition may play out in the coming years. Part I… Read More »
Weekly Geopolitical Report – The U.S.-China Balance of Power: Part III (February 1, 2021)
by Patrick Fearon-Hernandez, CFA | PDF In Part II of this report, we provided a head-to-head comparison of U.S. and Chinese military power. Obviously, military power is the ultimate source of coercion that one country can use to influence others. During non-conflict times, however, countries tend to use less violent means of influence. One of… Read More »