NEW PODCAST WITH CHRIS MACINTOSH AND BRAD MCFADDEN

We have a new podcast episode for you today — a very special one.

Chris is joined by our head trader, Brad McFadden, in a conversation with Jesse Day from the Vancouver Resource Investment Conference (VRIC). Brad normally stays behind the scenes here at Capitalist Exploits HQ (this might be the first time he has appeared on a public podcast), but as you’ll hear, he’s a wealth of knowledge when it comes to financial markets and especially many of the themes we focus on.

Here are some of the topics the gents discuss:

• The top investment themes on our radar screens right now, and how our approach has changed over the last five years.
• Is the commodity supercycle dead?
• With gold prices hitting record highs, most gold mining stocks have yet to catch up. But we actually see more asymmetry in other precious metals right now.
• Which parts of the energy market offer the best asymmetry right now. For example, compared to 15 years ago, there’s 50% less active tanker shipbuilders today (i.e. we’re dealing with a massive reduction of available supply, while demand has — in the most conservative scenario — stayed the same). And that’s just one of the opportunities we’re seeing.
• This time is indeed different: why the current inflation cycle is unlike others in our lifetimes (and why many investors aren’t positioned for it as a result).
• The case for owning gold vs. gold mining stocks (we’ll have more to say on gold in a moment.)

You can listen to the entire conversation on Youtube here.

  265,528,900%

That’s how much the best performing stock of all time has returned.

And here’s the kicker — despite the popularity of the Magnificent 7 in recent years, it wasn’t Nvidia or any other tech stock for that matter.

This return came from a “stodgy” tobacco stock: Altria (formerly, Philip Morris). So much for boring stocks, heh?

A recent study from Arizona State University found that for the past 98 years, Altria has averaged returns of 16.29% per year.

In fairness, the study also found that Nivida was the best performing stock over the past 25 years (with a return of 131,500%).

Why are we sharing this (aside the eye-popping numbers)?

We touched on Altria and other tobacco stocks in the past. They were (still are, really) feared, hated, and disgraced. And yet, their returns over the last couple of decades rival those of the most popular tech stocks.

We also said before that coal is the new tobacco.

Today, coal stocks are just as hated (if not more) as Altria and other tobacco stocks were many years ago. And as long-time readers will know, demand for coal from countries like India and China is on track to outstrip supply.

We shared this chart recently, but it bears repeating…

Investing lesson? Oftentimes, the best returns come from the most hated and overlooked sectors and asset classes.

Are we saying coal stocks will return every dollar invested into $2.65 million (like Altria did since 1926)?

No. But considering how dirt cheap they are right now (combined with the macro tailwinds we mentioned above), we’d much rather be buying coal stocks today than the richly valued AI plays.

  ALL THINGS TRANSITORY…

Feels like a lifetime ago, when — back in February 2020 — we started warning that COVID lockdowns will bring about inflation and shortages. Fast forward to today, and this pesky stuff is now an almost daily reminder in our daily lives. We set up a dedicated inflation channel in our Insider private forum, where members can share their own experiences with all things “transitory.”

Turn on the TV or open up a newspaper, and you’ll probably hear some podium donut talk about how “inflation is falling” (with the propaganda machine all too glad to parrot that).

Whether this is out of ignorance or good old “politician’s talk,” we can’t tell (although we have our opinions). But either way, this example does a great job at dispelling their B.S.

  JUST LIKE THAT, GOLD HITS NEW RECORD HIGHS

One thing you won’t hear too many people talk about is this…

Gold notched a new record high, but you could hear a pin drop when it did so!

This is especially curious when you zoom out and compare gold to tech heavy stocks in the Nasdaq (the quintessential paper vs stuff trade we touched on before here).

Over the past 12 years, gold has been in a prolonged bear market (when compared to Nasdaq).

Interestingly enough, during that same period, non-Western governments have been busy squirreling away gold. Take a look at this infographic from Visual Capitalist…

And then right on cue, just as we were putting this newsletter together, we came across this headline.

We think a repeat of the bull market from 2000 to 2012 is now staring us in the face. But this gold bull market will probably happen gradually, then suddenly — to paraphrase Ernest Hemingway. In other words, it will take a while before the crowd catches on to it.

Right now, few investors (at least in the West) appear to even care about gold and any investments related to the “barbaric relic.”

When it comes to any kind of commentary on gold miners, you could probably hear “the whisper of a ghost.” It’s safe to say investing in gold miners is light years away from being a crowded trade (perhaps that’s why gold miners have yet to catch up with gold prices).

  WEEKLY HUMOUR

While on the topic of gold and gold miners…

Insider member Anissa shared the following:

And lastly, a reminder from member Babis:

Have a great start to the new week!