The charts that matter: inflation fears give gold a much needed boost

US inflation hit its highest in 30 years this week, driving gold and bitcoin to new highs. Here’s how that has affected the charts that matter most to the global economy.

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On the cover of this week’s magazine, we’ve got the “metaverse”. Discerning readers will recognise the term from Neal Stephenson’s 1992 dystopian sci-fi novel Snow Crash. Reality and virtual reality come together in an online universe controlled by mega-corporations, in which our heroic protagonist, called, er, Hiro Protagonist, grapples with a mystery computer virus that’s proving deadly in both the virtual world and the real world.

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Ben Judge

Ben studied modern languages at London University's Queen Mary College. After dabbling unhappily in local government finance for a while, he went to work for The Scotsman newspaper in Edinburgh. The launch of the paper's website, scotsman.com, in the early years of the dotcom craze, saw Ben move online to manage the Business and Motors channels before becoming deputy editor with responsibility for all aspects of online production for The Scotsman, Scotland on Sunday and the Edinburgh Evening News websites, along with the papers' Edinburgh Festivals website.

Ben joined MoneyWeek as website editor in 2008, just as the Great Financial Crisis was brewing. He has written extensively for the website and magazine, with a particular emphasis on alternative finance and fintech, including blockchain and bitcoin. 

As an early adopter of bitcoin, Ben bought when the price was under $200, but went on to spend it all on foolish fripperies.