Andrew Moran: Trump Leading a New World Order of Oil Markets

The fallout from the Iranian conflict has resulted in a new world order in oil markets. Prior to the war in the Middle East, multiple factors significantly influenced a sizable share of international energy, including the Strait of Hormuz and the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Almost five months later, it appears these dynamics are shifting, as the United States has lit the match that will blow up the current arrangement.

Overhauling Oil Markets

Andrew Moran: The World Is Begging for America’s Oil

The Strait of Hormuz has been effectively closed for seven weeks. Tanker traffic has cratered, regional production has plummeted by the most on record, and global energy prices have rocketed. In the United States, businesses are paying higher input costs, and consumers feel like it’s 2022 again. But the broader US economy could be relatively unscathed by the war in Iran as the world rushes to buy America’s oil, providing a cushion for growth prospects.

Andrew Moran: Poland — The Very Model of a Modern Major Economy

From communist hellscape to free market symbol.

Borscht. Knife in the Water. Frédéric Chopin. Among the world’s 20 largest economies? Poland is famous for many contributions to humanity, but being a major economy may not be on everyone’s Bingo card. However, the Polish economic environment has evolved substantially since the post-communist ruins of decades ago, transitioning from Marx to markets. What happened?

Andrew Moran: US Economy Chugging on Along Into 2026

The US economy appears to be firing on all cylinders: incredible economic growth, accelerating productivity, stabilized inflation, and an ultra-bullish stock market. The one wrinkle? The US labor market is not breaking the stratosphere like one of Elon Musk’s rockets. This brings us to the recent release of the latest jobs report, which was fine, but not on the Make America Great Again level.

Andrew Moran: 2025 Was the Worst Year for Climate Alarmism

Even Bill Gates abandoned the charade this year.

Since former Vice President Al Gore fooled the world with An Inconvenient Truth two decades ago, climate alarmism has kicked into overdrive. Over the years, politicians and bureaucrats around the globe have committed to spending trillions of taxpayer dollars and making your life as miserable as possible to prevent the Arctic ice caps from melting. Some of the younger generations aren’t even having children because the planet is dying or something. But it turns out that conditions are not as dire as the doomers said.

Andrew Moran: Is the Global Economy Preparing for Another Inflation Wave?

If you don't learn from history, you're doomed to be a Keynesian.

An inflation wave is coming, and it will not be because of tariffs. In the United States and the rest of the world, governments and central banks are preparing to fill the pool with red ink and grease up the printing presses. Whether out of fear that the global economy is on the brink of a recession or conditions need a boost, recent actions and proposals signal policymakers think something is on the horizon.

Andrew Moran: Trump Seeks to Make Coal Great Again

The black rock to power advanced artificial intelligence.

Like Dutch tulips and the dot-com era, the world is euphoric over artificial intelligence (AI), automation, and robots. Humanity has been able to build technology that will eventually be sentient, requiring semiconductors, data centers, and industrial materials. Along the way, we forgot about one pressing need for advancing AI to the next level: energy. The White House thinks coal could potentially help power our appetite for generating AI slop and keeping Neo operating to fold the laundry and unload the dishwasher.

Andrew Moran: Trump Endorses Javier Milei in Argentine Midterm Elections

If the Peronists return to power, no money for Argentina.

Argentine President Javier Milei went to Washington on Oct. 13 for a second meeting with President Donald Trump in a month. During a bilateral lunch meeting between Trump and Milei, the US administration reaffirmed its $20 billion commitment to the anti-establishment leader who has transformed the Latin American nation through a series of sweeping economic reforms.

Can Milei make Argentina great again? Trump and senior White House officials certainly believe so – and the numbers support the hope of resurrecting the adage of “rich as an Argentine.”

Andrew Moran: The Japanification of China

Will the world's second-largest economy be Japanified?

No country for old yen, or big trouble in little China? While the world’s two economic powerhouses can share movie title puns, they are also experiencing comparable economic conditions, albeit three decades apart. In the aftermath of the pandemic, there have been increasing signs of the Japanification of China, which could threaten not only Beijing’s influence but also President Donald Trump’s efforts to rebalance international trade.

Andrew Moran: Is Argentina Back from the Socialist Precipice?

Javier Milei keeps scoring wins.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed that he met with Argentine President Javier Milei on April 14. In an interview with Bloomberg TV, Bessent conveyed the US administration’s support for Argentina and the president’s economic reforms, bringing the Latin American nation “back from the precipice.” Is this the beginning of a beautiful friendship?

Argentina Keeps Racking up Wins

Andrew Moran: Trump Tariffs Bring the World to the Negotiating Table

The art of the deal could be paying off.

Is it 1995 all over again? A 30-year-old video featuring a young Donald Trump lambasting the US government’s auto deal with Japan has resurfaced, with the billionaire criticizing Tokyo’s unfair trade practices and the administration’s abysmal negotiating skills. “In Japan, everything’s restricted, restricted, restricted. We’re sitting but can’t come in, and all of a sudden, this country folds,” he said. Trump declared he would adopt “a much harder stand” and “a much more difficult stand.” Thirty years later, it is the same old real estate mogul – and Trump tariffs are producing the intended results.

Andrew Moran: Trump Axes Globalization With Sweeping Tariffs

In the classic 1924 Giacomo Puccini opera Turandot, the famous “Nessun Dorma” aria concludes, “At dawn, I will win! I will win! I will win!” It was not at dawn, but President Donald Trump did declare victory against the globalist machine when he unveiled the contours of his sweeping tariffs. At an April 2 White House Rose Garden event, the president released details of his long-awaited pursuit of reciprocity.

New Tariffs Are in Town

Andrew Moran: The Double-Edged Sword of China’s DeepSeek AI Sensation

What the heck was that? Oh, nothing. It was just an infant artificial intelligence meteorite from China named DeepSeek that wiped out more than $1 trillion in value on Wall Street. The US financial markets are taking another look at their calculations to determine if they might have forgotten to carry the one when estimating their future AI investments since the ChatGPT craze that began three years ago.

Andrew Moran: Another Study Shuts Down Universal Basic Income

Is universal basic income making a comeback? As the artificial intelligence wave floods the marketplace, offering a future out of The Jetsons, doom-and-gloom prognostications about unemployed populations have been making the rounds as well. They have extolled the virtues of handing out free money to offset the consequences of having Tesla’s Optimus, OpenAI’s ChatGPT, and Google’s Veo generate content, cheat on essays, and solve our daily hurdles. But while common sense has dismissed the concept, more research confirms it is a harmful idea that facilitates stagnation.

Universal Basic Income Studies

Andrew Moran: Justin Trudeau Is on the Brink of Falling

Like a coffee at a gas station Tim Hortons, the career of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Ottawa is burnt. After nearly a decade at the helm of the Great White North, Trudeaumania 2.0 could be fading to black, with a resignation letter from the country’s top job inching closer to being signed. How did Canada’s Liberal Party leader sit on the brink of a political meltdown? It was a morning that will forever be ensconced in modern Canadian history.