Billionaire investor Paul Tudor Jones has warned of the effects of the geopolitical uncertainty around four nuclear powers, including China, Russia, and Iran. “It might be the most threatening and challenging geopolitical environment that I’ve ever seen,” Jones stressed. “It is also happening at the same time the United States is in its weakest fiscal position since World War II.”
‘Most Threatening and Challenging Geopolitical Environment That I’ve Ever Seen’
Billionaire hedge fund manager Paul Tudor Jones, founder and chief investment officer of Tudor Investment Corp., discussed the impact of global geopolitical conflicts on markets in an interview with CNBC Tuesday.
Commenting on the war between Israel and Hamas, he said what is happening in Israel is “a huge tragedy.” However, Jones stressed: “You have to put it in a larger geopolitical context.” The billionaire explained: “We now have possibly three theaters where we’re going to have geopolitical challenges. We’ve got the Middle East and Israel, obviously the Ukraine and Russia, and then at some point down the road Taiwan and China.”
The Tudor Investment founder added:
It might be the most threatening and challenging geopolitical environment that I’ve ever seen.
“Because you have four nuclear powers, three of whom are led by sociopaths, and that would be China, Russia, and North Korea. Obviously, those leaders have zero accountability, or responsibility, to anyone but themselves. And they have not an ounce of humanity in their bones because they regularly disappear both their friends and enemies,” he described.
Jones continued: “And then the fourth, Iran, is led by someone who thinks God is talking to him and has avowedly said that they want to remove from this earth a nation-state with probably the most brilliant people ever assembled within a national boundary.” Regarding the conflict between Israel and Hamas, Jones cautioned:
Where this really gets bad is obviously if Iran and Israel get in direct conflict. That’s when it really gets bad because then you’ve got the ability to have kind of a First World War cascade when everyone gets involved.
Noting that “It’s a really challenging environment” and “a very threatening time,” Jones pointed out:
That is also happening at the same time the United States is probably in its weakest fiscal position since, certainly, World War II with debt-to-GDP at 122%. So, it’s a really tough time.
Jones was also asked whether his stance on bitcoin has changed. “I like bitcoin and I like gold right here,” the billionaire hedge fund manager affirmed, adding: “They probably take on a larger percentage of your portfolio than historically they would because we’re going to go through both a challenging political time here in the United States and … We’ve obviously got a geopolitical situation.” Moreover, he noted: “It’s a really challenging time to want to be an equity investor in U.S. stocks right now … because again you’ve got the geopolitical uncertainty.”
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