Episode 37: The Exorbitant Privilege — Part 1: Why American Shares Beat Everything Else

Most people have no idea that their supposedly “global” pension is heavily invested in America.And there’s a reason.Over the last 16 years, American companies genuinely crushed much of the developed world on profit growth. But that wasn’t the whole story.US investors also benefited from rising valuations, a strengthening dollar and something no other major economy possesses: the privilege of issuing the currency the world depends on.That creates enormous global demand for dollars and American assets, helps America borrow more cheaply, and allows it to run deficits on a scale that would cause serious problems almost anywhere else.In this episode, I explain why American shares became so dominant, why your pension became so exposed to them — and how much of America’s extraordinary performance was business success versus a financial system uniquely tilted in its favour.Because if that advantage ever weakens, the consequences could reach straight into your pension.Part One: How America won.Part Two: What happens if the advantage starts to disappear. Get full access to Taxed & Taken: Money, Power & Freedom from the State at patelankeet.substack.com/subscribe