#FRANCE: Natural gas price surging at the EU and Cordes sur Ciel. @RealConstable @BatchelorShow Occitanie.

 By SIMON CONSTABLE

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Fox Biz: France, Europe attempt to flex tech muscles at Paris AI summit in clash of civilizations

 By SIMON CONSTABLE

FRANCE – Without a doubt, this week’s artificial intelligence summit in Paris was to showcase how Europe intends to catch up with the U.S. and China, the leaders in the field. But that’s not all.

The summit was also aimed at bringing together the major players in this new technology. But in reality, it looks more like a clash of civilizations, cultures and national priorities. In simple terms, the main players are at substantial odds with each other.

Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday presented the keynote address at the plenary session. The Trump administration "will ensure that American AI technology continues to be the gold standard worldwide," he said. American AI tech is "the partner of choice for others, foreign countries, and certainly businesses, as they expand their own use of AI." The administration also wants AI to create jobs. Read more here.

Jernej Furman from Slovenia, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

WSJ Financial Flashback: 40 YEARS AGO: The Dollar’s ‘Volcker Rally’

 By SIMON CONSTABLE

After World War II, the U.S. dollar became the world’s top reserve currency, and the global economy flourished. But fast-forward to 1985, and things got a bit out of control.

 

The dollar index—a measure of the greenback’s value against a basket of major currencies such as the British pound and the German mark—hit an all-time high of 160. There seemed to be “no end in sight to the dollar’s strength,” as The Wall Street Journal quoted one banker in late February of 1985.It was called the Volcker Rally, recalls Win Thin, chief strategist at Brown Brothers Harriman. Paul Volcker headed the Federal Reserve and successfully crushed U.S. inflation by raising short-term interest rates to 20%.

 

Deregulation from the Reagan administration and corporate tax cuts helped boost stocks. And higher U.S. rates meant the dollar became a magnet for foreign capital, sending the dollar sky-high, Thin says. “It was sort of exceptional.” Read more here.

Fox Business Digital: Europe’s best kept secret: Poland, the region’s economic tiger

 By SIMON CONSTABLE,

Nothing seems to get in the way of Poland going from strength to strength despite being part of the sluggish European Union. There are multiple reasons why and many facets, including the country’s outstanding defense spending and its conservative Donald Trump-like approach to illicit immigration.

Late last month, Poland’s economy was estimated to have grown by 2.9% last year, according to the country’s StatOffice. That performance trounces Europe’s single currency area, also known as the eurozone, by more than threefold; it eked out a mere 0.7% over the same period.

Poland's growth also overtook the U.S., which grew a robust 2.5% in the 12 months through December.

"The last year or two has seen a boom, and it's getting publicity," says Mateusz Urban, a senior economist at Oxford Economics in Warsaw, Poland, told FOX Business. "There really is a European tiger right at Germany’s door." Read more here.

The flag of Poland at the cemetery of the Polish refugees in Koja, Uganda.

RomanDeckert, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Mr Market: Investment quiz to fail. @RealConstable @WSJ @BatchelorShow

By Simon Constable 

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J.L. McLean & Co., No restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons

J.L. McLean & Co., No restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons

#South Of France: Day in the clouds of Cordes-sur-Ciel @RealConstable @WSJ @BatchelorShow

 By Simon Constable

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WSJ: How Much Do You Know About Alternative Investments? Take Our Quiz and See

By SIMON CONSTABLE 

There’s more to investing than stocks, bonds and cash. There are a host of alternative investments—alts for short—ranging from hedge funds and venture capital to precious metals and commodity futures.

In general, these investments aren’t as liquid or easily traded as mainstream assets, but proponents say they help diversify portfolios and some alts, like private equity, have historically high risk-adjusted returns. 

Find out how much you know about alts by taking our quiz.

1 OF 8

Over the period 2000 to 2024, the SPDR S&P 500 exchange-traded fund gained 525.24% including dividends. How much did the price of gold change over the same period?

Read more here.

Nikolay Komarov, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons