Is Japan the Most Contrarian Investment Right Now? Russell Clark Talks!

A recent poll done by Reuters, showed that inflation in Tokyo is rising at the fastest pace in seven years. Can you try and guess what that inflation is?

It’s 2%. That’s the highest inflation in seven years!

Not only hasn’t Japan had any meaningful inflation in a while, but they also haven’t had wage growth either, and their stock market hasn’t hit an all-time high since the highs in 1989.

The yen – Japan’s national currency – has been a falling knife for a while now, and it seems like the central bank can’t do anything to stop that fall. Or can it?

According to Russell Clark, there is a possibility that the Japanese government starts “pumping” money into the stock market and the economy, to stimulate investments in the country which could drive demand for its currency.

Coming off the current lows in the Japanese stock market might be a trade to remember, Russel told me.

Japanese ownership of US treasuries is also noteworthy, as they have chosen almost exclusively to buy US treasuries, to the exclusion of all other assets, even gold. Currently, Japanese holdings of US treasuries make up most of the Japanese foreign reserve holdings.

Furthermore, in this conversation, I got to ask Russel Clark, who is a former and a future hedge fund manager what it would take for me to become a hedge fund manager, whether it’s worth the headache, whether I would need a CFA, and whether I would hate it. The questions were interesting, to say the least.

Are macro investors idiots? That was the question Russell smirked at as he had previously answered that on his free substack.

Overall, this was a very long but interesting conversation that I would recommend listening to at least a few times in order to better understand what it’s really about.

Alternatively, you can stop by in the comments to yell at me for asking stupid questions and wasting smart people’s time.

Or, if you don’t care about Japan and contrarian investments, you could watch the conversation I had with Brandon Munro on what’s going on in the uranium market today.

timestamps

00:00 Important disclaimer – do not skip
01:00 Who is Russell Clark and why would I even listen to him?
05:00 Why did Russell quit his hedge fund?
07:25 What does Russell do for a living today?
11:30 Is it worth starting a hedge fund?
15:45 Is a macro hedge fund any good?
20:20 What are the cons of running a hedge fund?
23:20 What skills do I need if I want to start a hedge fund?
30:50 Should I do a CFA?
32:00 Should I get a job at a hedge fund first?
38:00 Are macro investors idiots?
48:30 Who to listen to when it comes down to macro?
59:30 What matters most in macro-economics today?
01:09:00 Why is Japan so important?
01:10:00 Why isn’t Japan buying any gold?
01:15:00 What’s happening with the Yen?
01:18:00 Why hasn’t Japan’s stock market made a new all-time high?
01:21:00 Will the BoJ pump money into its stock market?
01:26:00 How do I invest in Japan?
01:29:00 Is Japan now where the US was in the 50s?
01:35:00 The 3 biggest takeaways from this conversation
01:37:00 Closing thoughts

important

None of what you are about to read and/or hear is intended as financial advice or trading recommendations. The nature of this interview is purely informational. This conversation is general and impersonal in nature. We may own and/or buy and/or sell shares – without prior notice – of companies mentioned in this video. Read the full disclaimer before continuing.

video