Latest articles by Adrian Ash
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The true cost of negative interest rates
Features Sweden's deposit rate recently turned negative. Some analysts say that's just what we need to stall the depression. But that's dangerous talk, says Adrian Ash.
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Inflation: what the Fed really wants
Features The US Federal Reserve wants us to believe hyper-inflation is looming. And analysts predicting it are doing Bernanke's dirty work for him, argues Adrian Ash.
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The real price of gold
Features A good indicator of gold's anti-inflation value is its worth versus the world's currencies. And the world's top ten currencies have lost nearly two-thirds of their value against gold since the start of 2000, says Adrian Ash.
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Gold investment has more room for growth
Features Gold is attracting new buyers fast, writes Adrian Ash. But compared to the 1930s depression or the inflationary panic of the late 1970s, the world’s wealth is still very under-invested.
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Three sound reasons to own gold
Features Gold's bull-run continues. But it's an expensive, largely useless metal and costs money just to hold. So why do people persist in buying the stuff? Adrian Ash explains gold's three principal attractions.
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What the price of gold says about Britain's house prices
Features When measured against the price of gold, UK house prices still have a very long way to fall. As Adrian Ash explains, we may only be half way to the bottom.
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The real story of gold, inflation and deflation
Features Many investors see gold as a defence against inflation, but the reality is different, says Adrian Ash. The real function of gold in times like these is the preservation of wealth.
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What's the point of gold?
Features Gold doesn't give you any income, isn't much of a hedge against inflation and its purchasing power is much the same as it was 2,500 years ago. It has been written off many times before, but still people buy it. Adrian Ash explains why.
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The race to the bottom in currencies
Features Recent action on the foreign exchanges has been perverse. The lower a central bank's interest rate, the better it was for its currency. Adrian Ash explains what's going on, and what it means for investors.
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What the real price of gold should be
Features Some analysts say gold should now be over $2,000 an ounce, based on its 1980 peak. But that’s too simplistic, says Adrian Ash. Here’s why.
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How the bailouts could bankrupt us all
Features The logical consequence of the banking bailouts is full nationalisation, says Adrian Ash. But where are governments going to get the money to pay for it all, and what happens if everything doesn't go to plan?
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Is it still worth buying gold?
Features Since Gordon Brown sold off Britain's gold in 1999, the price has shot up to record levels. So, with the price of gold so high, is it still worth buying now?
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Gold investors cash in as rates tumble
Features In the last two months alone, the Bank of England has slashed the returns paid to savers quicker than at any time since 1858. Those investors holding gold, on the other hand, are laughing, says Adrian Ash.
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How more cheap money will lead us deeper into trouble
Features The Bank of England has been throwing money at the economy since it was made independent. But right now, rock-bottom interest rates and 2007-style lending aren't what the country needs, says Adrian Ash.
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Why paper money systems all fail
Features Paper money is nothing new. But every culture to use paper money has eventually abandoned it. Will our own money system go the same way, or can we avoid the mistakes of the past?
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How a strong dollar could destroy the world economy
Features US politicians say a strong dollar is in their nation's interests. But, says Adrian Ash, with the absence of credit, the strength of the dollar's bounce is quite literally destroying the global economy.
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How a lack of credit sent markets tumbling
Features If you play the same trades as highly-leveraged investors, you're in for a fall. But get your hands on assets that don't suffer such 'demand destruction' and you'll have some protection.
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Tap in to gold's yearly cycle
Features Each year for the last ten years gold has followed a remarkably consistent pattern. It rises in spring, slips back over summer and climbs sharply again in late-autumn. So is now the time for you to be buying?
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Fund of the week: Venture into spicier investments
Features The SVM Global Opportunities fund of funds gives investors access to areas that can be hard to invest in, such as hedge funds, derivatives and structured products, says its manager Colin McClean.
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How to ensure your money doesn't just fly away
Tutorials With shares falling, inflation soaring and banks shaky, what should you do with your money if you want to hang on to it? As Adrian Ash explains, about the only thing that will hold its value now is gold.
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Crisis over, the old crisis returns
Features America relies heavily on foreign buyers of US government debt, in the form of Treasury bonds. But these buyers are starting to disappear, just when the Treasury needs them most…
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Zen and the art of monetary mayhem
Features In the West’s inflation-free dream world, the idea of central banks targeting the supply and quantity of money has lost out to controlling its outcome, the cost of living, says Adrian Ash.
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Bank bailouts: helping or hindering?
Features If only the G7 would sit back and let the failed banks fail. A report from the World Bank suggests that the Fed, the ECB and the Bank of England are all prolonging the current crisis with their intervention.
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Expect more government meddling with banks
Features If only Alistair Darling and fellow chief policy wonks would stick to talking gibberish, rather than actually trying to put it into practice, says Adrian Ash.
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