High Inflation: We are in Kondratieff's "Summer of Summer" | Ahmed Farghaly

Many people are wondering what has been happening to the prices of gold and silver recently. We were expecting developments similar to those that occurred after the 2020 bottom of the Kuznets wave [aka the 18-Year Cycle] in global markets. The first chart below presents our cyclical analysis of the Commodity Price Index.

 

 » We are in the “summer of summer.” «

 Commodity Price Index (quarterly bars, log scale) from 1750 to 2025: 162-Year, 54-Year, 18-Year, and 9-Year cycles. 

[Note, there is ongoing debate regarding the precise starting points of the 162-year and 54-year cycles.
It can be argued that both should be anchored to the Great Depression low of 1932, rather than to 1949-50.]

It is evident that the 54-Year Kondratieff wave, first identified by Nikolai Kondratieff, is clearly reflected in this historical chart. Even more intriguing is the apparent presence of a 162-Year larger-degree Kondratieff wave that maintains the same 3:1 harmonic relationship to the Kondratieff wave as the Kondratieff wave does to its smaller counterpart, the 18-Year Kuznets wave. In our cyclical model, the cycle spanning three Kondratieff Waves is called the Hegemony wave.
 

972-Year Methuselah Wave = three 324-Year Enoch Waves

Enoch Wave = two 162-Year Hegemony Waves 

Hegemony Wave (156.88 y) = three 54-Year Kondratieff Waves

Kondratieff Wave (52.72 y) = three 18-Year Kuznets Waves

Kuznets Wave 17.52 y) = two 9-Year Juglar Waves 

Juglar Wave (8.76 y) = two 54-Month Kitchin Cycles 

Kitchin Cycle = three 18-Month cycles = six 40-Week cycles

Many economists have described the “seasons” of the Kondratieff wave—spring (stable growth), summer (high inflation), autumn (low inflation and asset bubbles), and winter (deflationary recession). Typically, spring coincides with the first Kuznets cycle, summer with the second, and autumn and winter with the third. The highest inflation rates within a Kondratieff wave occur during the summer phase, corresponding to the second Kuznets cycle, which began in 2020.

 

» To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven. «
Ecclesiastes 3:1.

We are currently in the second Kuznets cycle (2020 to late 2030ies) of the second Kondratieff cycle (2000 to 2050) within the ongoing Hegemony wave (1950 to 2100)—a phase that can be described as the “summer of summer.” This phase suggests that we are likely to experience the highest inflation levels since the American Civil War (1861–1865).

» We are likely to experience the highest inflation levels since the American Civil War. «

US Inflation: Annual Percentage Change from 1774 to 2007, with Outlook Extending to 2106.

  

Our next chart above illustrates annual inflation in the United States since 1777. A distinct 162-Year Hegemony wave pattern emerges, with an inflation peak in 1813 marking the summer of the first Kondratieff cycle, a higher peak in 1865 corresponding to the summer of the second Kondratieff cycle, and a lower peak during World War I representing the summer of the third Kondratieff cycle. A comparable peak reappeared in 1980. According to our cyclical outlook, inflation in the current Kondratieff cycle is expected to surpass the levels of the 1970s, as this phase represents the second Kondratieff cycle within the broader Hegemony wave—the “summer season.”

The most advantageous assets to hold at this stage of the cycle—both from the standpoint of the Hegemony wave and the Kondratieff summer—are precious metals, real estate, and equities that tend to benefit from periods of high inflation.

Quoted from:
Ahmed Farghaly (October 6, 2025) - High Inflation: We are in Kondratieff's "Summer of Summer". 

 

 The Ultimate Summer:

972-Year, 324-Year, and 162-Year cycles.

» We are in the Sixth Wave that peaks
on Sunday, December 12, 2032. «

 

» Yet, what experience and history teach us is this: that nations and governments have never
learned anything from history, nor acted in accordance with the lessons to be derived from it. «
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, Introduction to Lectures on the Philosophy of History, Berlin, 1822.

 

See also:

Ahmed Farghaly (2016) - The 162-Year Cycle in Stocks and Commodities Since 1509.

Early Global Commodity Supercycle: Top Investment Picks | Andrew Hoese

Commodity Supercycles are long-term, decade-spanning periods of sustained above-average price surges, driven by major demand shocks—such as industrialization, energy transition, and urbanization—alongside supply constraints and geopolitical shifts. Notable past cycles include 1896–1920 (US industrialization), the 1970s (oil crises), and 2000–2014 (China’s rise). 

 

Gold-S&P 500 Ratio (monthly closes, 1925 to October 2025).

» There is an early breakout in Gold versus the S&P 500, a double bottom breaking higher. This signals a shift into a world unlike the past 40 years — a transition from an era of declining interest rates to one of rising rates. That creates different money flows. Money is no longer flowing mainly into bond and stock markets; instead, it is increasingly moving into precious metals, mining companies, and commodities. This marks the beginning of an outperformance of commodities and precious metals over traditional financial assets. «

Today, advancements in AI, digitization, electric vehicles, robotics, the emergence of thousands of new data centers, other technologies, and the relentless rise of BRICS+ are set to fuel an unprecedented surge in energy demand, including coal, oil, gas, hydrogen, nuclear, geothermal, solar, and more. Urgent grid overhauls and expansions will drive a massive increase in demand for key metals such as lithium, nickel, silver, and copper.
 

The current Commodity Supercycle (2022-2045) is driven by several financial key factors, with interest rates playing a central role. From 1980 to 2021, declining rates favored Bonds and Stocks, creating cup-and-handle patterns in Gold and Silver. Now, the shift to an increasing interest rate environment is disrupting this dynamic, as evidenced by a shoulder-head-shoulder topping pattern in bonds. 

 

When rates hit 4.5-5% on the 10-Year US Treasury Note Yield, stocks are likely to decouple, with rates rising while stocks stagnate or decline. The Dollar (DXY), currently in an uptrend channel, could accelerate commodity gains if it breaks downward. Inflation cycles further shape this landscape: disinflation boosts safe-haven assets like gold and silver, while accelerating inflation drives broader commodity markets. Money printing, such as the significant stimulus in April 2025 (Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act), fuels gold and silver in real-time, with other commodities responding as money flows through the system.

 

 

 Investment Potential Rankings: Commodities and Financial Instruments (October 2025):

Top: Lithium, Coal, Iron Ore. iShares MSCI Brazil ETF (EWZ: tracks large/mid-cap Brazilian equities for emerging market exposure), VanEck Steel ETF (SLX: tracks global steel sector companies (production, mining, fabrication). Highest potential due to recent bottoms, high historical leverage (50-150x for coal/iron ore, 20x for EWZ), strong breakout patterns, and inflation-sensitive demand (EV/BESS for Lithium, Steel +1.1%). Under-the-radar status maximizes asymmetry.

Mid: Copper, Nickel, Natural Gas, Silver, Platinum, Palladium: Strong performers with breakouts or bottoming patterns; Silver/Platinum have top performer potential but face consolidation or supply risks; Copper near highs but neutral Q4 2025; nickel oversupply concerns.

Low: Oil bearish short-term ($60/bbl YE2025); Gold strong but nearing consolidation, and less leverage than Silver.

Lowest: S&P 500, NASDAQ, Bonds. Financial assets face headwinds from rising rates (4.5-5% disconnect); bonds least attractive due to downtrend and rotation to commodities.

The ongoing and escalating worldwide commodity boom is unfolding in a clear sequence: It began in 2022 with a disinflation phase, where gold and silver led as safe-haven assets, potentially pushing silver prices toward $60-90. Over the next six to twelve months, a transition is expected where gold and silver may consolidate or experience choppy trading (point 7. in the historic long-term fractal).

 

 Platinum-Palladium Ratio (monthly bars, 1986 to October 2025).

 

 Platinum-Gold Ratio (monthly bars, 1986 to October 2025).

 

 Platinum-Silver Ratio (monthly bars, 1986 to October 2025).

 

 Copper-Gold Ratio (monthly bars, 1986 to October 2025).

 

  Oil-Gold Ratio (monthly bars, 1984 to October 2025). 

 

Uranium (monthly bars, 2011 to October 2025): Bullish.

 

During this period, other commodities like Crude Oil and Base Metals, which bottomed in April-May 2025, will begin to gain traction. As the cycle shifts to accelerating inflation, oil and base metals are poised to surge, driven by money rotating out of bonds and stocks into hard assets. 

This mirrors historical patterns, such as the 2018-2020 period when gold rose during a slowdown, followed by oil's sharp rally in August 2020 after gold consolidated. The current cycle aligns with the 2001-2008 commodity bull market, characterized by a declining dollar and strong commodity outperformance against financial assets, as signaled by gold's breakout against the S&P 500.

 

In 2025, Precious Metals are surging, with gold and silver both up over 60% year-to-date and mining stocks nearly doubling in value. Technical indicators suggest short-term overbought conditions, but the long-term outlook remains bullish. Notably, spot silver has climbed above $50, showing backwardation against futures prices around $48.70, indicating strong physical demand and potential discrepancies between paper and physical markets.

 

Certain commodities are poised to lead in performance. Gold is a key leader but not the top performer; Silver and Platinum are expected to outshine it, with silver potentially reaching $300 based on historical fractals from the 1940s to 1980s. 

 

Platinum, currently at a 0.4 ratio to gold, could revert to its historical mean of 1.2-2x gold’s price, with potential to hit 5.5-6x as seen in the early 1900s. Crude Oil, Natural Gas, Copper (nearing all-time highs), Steel (breaking out), Iron Ore, Nickel, and Lithium (up 100-300% from bottoms) are also strong contenders. 

 

Platinum-Gold Ratio currently 0.41 (gold/platinum 2.44) as of October 2025, with platinum at $975/oz, gold $3975/oz. Historical: Platinum premium (up to 6.63:1 in 1968) until late 1990s due to industrial demand (catalysts, auto); low 0.05 in 1885. Fluctuations from supply disruptions (South Africa/Russia mines), financial crises, geopolitical tensions, inflation fears; gold safe-haven spikes ratio in downturns (e.g., 2.3x in 2020, 3.1x Feb 2025).

Coal and Iron Ore offer high leverage, with potential for 50-150x gains as seen in the 2000s bull market, making them prime investment targets. Emerging markets like Brazil, through ETFs like EWZ, present 20x potential driven by currency exchange rate unwinds, particularly as the dollar weakens.

Historical parallels provide further context. In the 1930s, gold’s revaluation with flat input costs led to massive mining gains. The inflationary 1970s and 2000s resemble today’s environment, while the 1940s-80s increasing rate cycle mirrors current conditions, with silver moving from consolidation to a boom. 

 

This is not solely a precious metals bull market but part of a broader commodity and hard assets cycle. To maximize returns in the current commodity cycle, one should have invested in under-the-radar commodities like oil, natural gas, iron ore, nickel, and copper between April and May 2025, when they formed quiet bottoms—evident in patterns like inverted head-and-shoulders and double bottoms—before gaining mainstream attention. 

 

These assets, now moving higher, offered significant asymmetry as smart money positioned early, capitalizing on low public interest. For those yet to invest, opportunities remain in inflation-sensitive commodities like steel, coal, and lithium, which are breaking out or showing early uptrends, particularly as the dollar weakens and money flows from bonds and stocks. 

 

Reference:
Andrew Hoese (October 11, 2025) - Early Commodity Cycle: Top Investment Picks. (video) 

 

Commodity Supercycles from 1805 to 2045.

A rotation from Gold back to the Dow might be most prudent if/when inflation-adjusted DJI retreats

back to its 2000 level, which could take many years.  For now, we are right at the upper rail.

The Great Rotation out of Paper Assets into Hard Assets: 
The biggest Bull Market of our Lifetimes is underway.

Gold entering the parabolic phase of the Debt/Fiat collapse.
Moves that took years to unfold now happen in Months/Weeks.

 

Copper: The new oil for this century.

Palladium: Now joining the party. Target $3,430.

 

Platinum: Bullish. First target above $3k. 

 

Silver: A chart pattern that has taken five decades to form.

A generational set-up unfolding. Go long and stay long. 

 

An epic Silver fractal is playing out. 

  

162-Year, 54-Year, and 18-Year cycles in Silver from 1802 to 2025 (quarterly closes, log scale). 

 

The global financial shift isn’t coming—it’s already here. Gold. Silver. BRICS. De-dollarization. Geopolitics and geoeconomics now underpin the unfolding of the next great global commodity supercycle: escalating US–China rivalries, supply-chain fractures, and rising WW3 risks accelerate the decline of the United States’ 250-year empire-life cycle while cementing China’s ascent. 

 

Collapsing US stock indices–to–gold ratios reveal deep monetary stress, aligning with inflationary, interest-rate, and commodity-cycle dynamics that signal dollar devaluation and the breakdown of the post–World War II global financial system. The Great Rotation out of paper assets—equities and bonds—into hard, tangible assets is igniting what the charts suggest will become the greatest commodity bull market of our lifetimes.

 

Wealth preservation now hinges on tangible inflation hedges—metals such as lithium, copper, and nickel; precious metals including gold, silver, platinum, and palladium; and energy assets spanning coal, oil, gas, hydrogen, nuclear, geothermal, and solar. Avoid rate-sensitive exposure in US stock indices, and bonds; instead, accumulate undervalued, cash-flow-rich commodity producers and physical holdings to capture asymmetric, real-asset returns into around 2040.

 

See also:

TPR (October 9, 2025) - The Dow-to-Gold Ratio (DJI/XAU) Collapses: Get Ready for Tangible Assets.

Larry Williams (September 25, 2025) - US Stock Market Outlook for Q4 2025.

The Dow-to-Gold Ratio (DJI/XAU) Collapses: Get Ready for Tangible Assets

The Dow-to-Gold ratio (DJI/XAU) measures how many ounces of gold are needed to buy the Dow Jones Industrial Average. It is used as a long-term indicator of monetary confidence, where a falling ratio shows a shift in real value away from paper assets (cash, bonds, stocks) towards tangible assets like gold, silver, platinum, palladium, rhodium, copper (metals), oil, lumber (energy), and real estate.

Dow-to-Gold Ratio (DJI/XAU) from 1897 to 2025 (quarterly bars, log scale; chart credit: Francis Hunt.)

 Although the Dow has gained roughly 250% in dollar terms since 2000, by Q4 2025, 

its real value has declined by about two-thirds when measured in gold.

 

Over the last century, the Dow-to-Gold ratio has oscillated between periods of equity confidence and monetary stress. In 1929, the ratio peaked at roughly 18.63 before collapsing below 2 during the Great Depression. It reached about 28 in 1966, then fell below 1 in 1980 amid high inflation and currency instability. 

 

Dow-to-Gold Ratio (DJI/XAU) from 1800 to 2020 (quarterly values, log scale).

 
At the 1999–2000 peak, the Dow equaled approximately 45 ounces of gold—its highest in over a century. As of October 2025, the ratio is near 12, a decline of about 73% from that peak. The drop was steep from 2000 to 2011 (reaching a ratio near 6), followed by a rebound to about 20 by 2018, and renewed erosion thereafter. Over that period, gold has outperformed equities in real terms.

 

Dominant 120-Trading Day Cycle (≈174 calendar days) in the daily Gold chart.

 

China is preparing for something.

Buffett Indicator Hits All-Time High with Market Cap-to-GDP Ratio at 212.1%

As of August 12, 2025, the Warren Buffett Indicator has surged past 212%, marking its highest level on record.

 US market cap twice US GDP.

 

 

US debt hits $37T — surpasses entire $31T US GDP, 

matches combined GDP of China, Germany, Japan, India & UK.

 

The Buffett Indicator, or Market Cap-to-GDP ratio, rose to prominence as a long-term stock valuation metric following Warren Buffett’s 2001 'Fortune' interview, where he called it "probably the best single measure of where valuations stand at any given moment." 

The 2000 dot-com bust and the 2007 crash may seem mild by comparison.

 

The ratio compares US public market cap to GDP using the Wilshire 5000 Index, covering nearly the entire stock market.

 

100% Chance of Nuclear War as Early as August │ Martin Armstrong

Six weeks ago, financial and geopolitical cycle analyst Martin Armstrong was signaling a major turn toward war. Now, Armstrong says, "The chances of war with a nuclear exchange are at 100%. Plan on it—this is coming."

» The chances of a war involving a nuclear exchange are at 100%. 

Plan for it—this is coming. Starting in August, this whole situation is going to escalate.  «

 
Can the world avoid nuclear war with President Trump’s 50-day deadline given to Russia to make peace in Ukraine? Armstrong says, "You do not threaten your adversary, who is at your same level, publicly. If you want to say something like that, you do it privately in a phone call. Now, what will happen is Putin cannot possibly sign a peace deal. What—are you crazy—to do this in 50 days? We have staff in Germany, and I was told by my staff that a 60-year-old friend was told to report for duty. 

 

» There is a 100% chance that NATO will trigger a total nuclear war within the next year. «
Martin Armstrong, July 23, 2025.
 

I had a friend who was at the NATO 'Summit on Peace in Ukraine' in Switzerland, and he called me when it was over and said, ‘Holy crap, this has nothing to do with peace anymore. This is all about preparing for war. Everybody should start getting ready for drafts, to start going that way.’ They want war. They are not backing off."

 » They want war. They are not backing off. «

 

Armstrong’s computer, Socrates, is signaling war as early as next month. Armstrong says, "Starting in August, this whole thing is going to be escalating up. Our computer has what we call a ‘Panic Cycle’ within our war cycles for 2026. That is not good. I don’t know what the hell Trump is smoking. My computer has been projecting war, and it is projecting war going into 2026. This is not looking good, and Europe will lose. It is as simple as that."

Reference:
Martin Armstrong (July 19, 2025)  - 100% Chance of Nuclear War. (video) 

 

See also: 

Martin Armstrong (July 25, 2025)  - NATO Plans MASSIVE Troop Surge into Ukraine. (video) 

Martin Armstrong (March 21, 2025)  - Europe's Date with Destiny: Collapse by 2029 is Inevitable.
Martin Armstrong (March 1, 2025)  - Europe Will Go to War, Lose, and Euro Will Become Extinct.

Martin Armstrong (December 23, 2024)  - Outlook for 2025: Depression, Debt, Default & Destruction. 

Martin Armstrong (August 30, 2024)  - The US Is Now Ready for Violence, Civil War & Secession.

Trump’s GENIUS Act Sets the Stage for US CBDC | Martin Armstrong

While the world was distracted by the Epstein debacle, legislators introduced the GENUIS Act that would permit the US government to regulate stablecoins. The GENUIS (Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins Act), primarily sponsored by Senator Bill Hagerty (R-Tennessee), permits the government to oversee, regulate, and define the $250 billion stablecoin market.

Now, stablecoins differ from cryptocurrencies as they are pegged to a stable asset such as a fiat currency or commodity. Cryptocurrencies are allegedly allowed to freely operate on the market based on supply and demand. The GENIUS Act will peg stablecoins to the US dollar and require issuers to maintain a 1:1 reserve ratio in short-term treasuries or cash.

» I just voted NO on the Rule for the GENIUS Act because it does not include a ban on Central Bank Digital Currency and because Speaker Johnson did not allow us to submit amendments to the GENIUS Act. Americans do not want a government-controlled

Central Bank Digital Currency. «
Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, July 15, 2024.

 

Issuers holding over $10 billion in outstanding stablecoins will be subject to federal regulation under a newly created oversight agency. These issuers will now be deemed financial institutions and required to meet the traditional banking regulations as well. Stablecoins can no longer pay interest or act as an alternative to bonds. Perhaps most notably, issuers must not meet anti-money-laundering (AML) regulations, which are set to provide the government with unlimited access to payments.
 

So essentially, the government is turning the stablecoin into a digital dollar of sorts. The concern here is that this could delve into digitizing all currency and creating a CBDC. The act specifically provides the government with the authority to “block, freeze, and reject specific or impermissible transactions.” “A permitted payment stablecoin issuer shall be treated as a financial institution [and]…shall be subject to all Federal laws applicable to a financial institution located in the United States including…policies and procedures to block, freeze, and reject specific or impermissible transactions that violate Federal or State laws, rules, or regulations…”

» In 1971, we left the gold standard. Today, the groundwork is being laid for a cashless society controlled by digital currency.

You won’t control your money. The government will. This would end freedom altogether. «
Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, July 17, 2024.

 

This provision is not intended to protect the world against drug smugglers and thieves. This provision is intended to grant government unlimited control over how people spend stablecoins. The government could have easily frozen the accounts of those who refused the COVID-19 vaccination, for example, and the Biden Administration admittedly weaponized existing financial institutions to spy on Conservative Americans through their payment histories.

 

“Stablecoins are the bait and switch for direct-issued government CBDCs,” Bitcoin Magazine editor Mark Goodwin said, “Stablecoins can be programmed. Exactly like how we fear CBDCs will be programmed. They’re exactly the same tokenized mechanism… They can be taken out of your wallet. Your wallet can be blacklisted. A lot of the things that we fear about CBDCs are totally available within the tool set of Stablecoins.”

 

The GENIUS Act has received bipartisan support. Although Republican Hagerty championed the bill, he had bipartisan co-sponsors, including Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Tim Scott (R-SC), and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY).

 

I warned that governments would NEVER allow any cryptocurrency or stablecoin to compete with their own currency. I long warned that government was merely tolerating these alternative currencies in the past as they posed no real threat. But now the government needs the ability to tax everything to support its perpetual spending. Every digital transaction is traceable. Every digital currency is controllable—the ultimate power grab.

 

One of Donald Trump’s main campaign promises was the prevention of CBDC. The headlines are enraged over his failure to release the Epstein files, but the GENUIS Act is a far deeper betrayal of the American people that has the ability to usher in a new monetary system.

 

Quoted from:
Martin Armstrong (July 17, 2025)  - While the World Was Distracted by Epstein. 

 

See also: 

 Ellen Brown (July 30, 2025)  - The GENIUS Act and the National Bank Acts of 1863-64: Taking a Cue from Lincoln.

! Martin Armstrong (July 21, 2025)  - CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act and the CLARITY Act. !

Martin Armstrong (July 21, 2025)  - The GENIUS Act & Stable Coins – A Repeat of 1863? Debt Crisis?

 

了解你的敌人
Know your Enemies.