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Become a Better Investor Newsletter – 30 November 2024

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Noteworthy this week

  • The end of the US$ is not near
  • Luxury brand power
  • Milei brings prosperity
  • DEI for hostility, authoritarianism, and extremism
  • Korean demographic collapse

The end of the US$ is not near: The US Dollar is now used in 49.1% of global payments, the highest level in over 12 years.

Luxury brand power: A Christian Dior handbag apparently costs a few hundred euros to manufacture, yet it sells for nearly €6,000 (2x more than in 2016). That’s the power of branding for you!

Milei brings prosperity: JP Morgan has raised its estimate of Argentina’s GDP growth in the third quarter to 8.5%, one of the highest in the world, citing optimism around recent reforms by President Milei.

DEI for hostility, authoritarianism, and extremism: “ertain DEI practices could induce hostility, increase authoritarian tendencies, and foster agreement with extreme rhetoric.”

Korean demographic collapse: As of 2024, the fertility rate in South Korea is 0.68 births per woman. At that rate, the number of living children in Korea falls to 1m from 6m in just two generations.

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Weekly market performance

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Chart of the week

Discussed in the Become a Better Investor Community this week

“The new ASIR FVMR Thailand is now available. The new ASIR FVMR China A is now available.”

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Podcasts we listened to this week

#453 – Javier Milei: President of Argentina – Freedom, Economics, and Corruption – Lex Fridman

“Javier Milei is the President of Argentina.”

Listen to the episode.

Readings this week

America, China, and the Death of the International Monetary Non-System

“Something changed in America in the 1990s. The U.S. federal funds rate began a decline from above 5 percent to reach the effective zero bound by 2009. U.S. ten-year Treasury yields declined from above 6 percent to levels not even recorded during the Great Depression.”

Read the article.

Book recommendation

How to Think Like Socrates: Ancient Philosophy as a Way of Life in the Modern World by Donald J. Robertson

“Socrates is the quintessential Athenian philosopher, the source of the entire Western philosophical tradition, and Godfather to the Stoics. He spent his life teaching practical philosophy to ordinary people in the streets of Athens, yet few people today are familiar with the wisdom he has to offer us.”

Get the book on Audible or Kindle.

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Memes of the week

Published on Become a Better Investor this week

In this episode of Enrich Your Future, Andrew and Larry Swedroe discuss Larry’s new book, Enrich Your Future: The Keys to Successful Investing. In this series, they discuss Chapter 20: A Higher Intelligence.

Listen to Enrich Your Future 20: Passive Investing Is the Key to Prudent Wealth Management

Many companies strive to automate by using more technology and fewer humans. But does their productivity really improve? Does it keep them agile? In this episode, Jacob Stoller and Andrew Stotz share stories of companies that improve productivity because they focus on processes instead of tech alone.

Listen to Myth of Tech Omnipotence: Boosting Lean with Deming (Part 6)

Innoviva Incorporated (INVA US): Profitable Growth rank of 1 was same compared to the prior period’s 1st rank. This is World Class performance compared to 350 medium Health Care companies worldwide.

Read Innoviva – World Class Benchmarking

Global Power Synergy Public Company Limited (GPSC TB): Profitable Growth rank of 7 was down compared to the prior period’s 4th rank. This is below average performance compared to 290 large Utilities companies worldwide.

Read Global Power Synergy – World Class Benchmarking

Vontron Technology Company Limited (000920 SZ): Profitable Growth rank of 3 was up compared to the prior period’s 4th rank. This is above average performance compared to 1,100 medium Industrials companies worldwide.

Read Vontron Technology – World Class Benchmarking

DISCLAIMER: This content is for information purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Readers should not consider statements made by the author(s) as formal recommendations and should consult their financial advisor before making any investment decisions. While the information provided is believed to be accurate, it may include errors or inaccuracies. The author(s) cannot be held liable for any actions taken as a result of reading this article.

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