In this week’s video insight, I highlight the folly of buying physical gold amid the recent surge in prices. When people were lining up at Sydney’s bullion stores paying nearly $225,000 per kilo, it signalled a market nearing its peak – exponential rallies like that are rarely sustainable. Beyond timing risk, buying bullion involves steep frictional costs, with a spread of around 7 per cent between buy and sell prices. Since then, gold prices have fallen sharply, leaving many buyers facing losses. If you really want exposure to gold, I argue it’s far more efficient to buy a low-cost exchange-traded fund (ETF) rather than lining up for physical bullion. Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Video Insights.

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Yesterday I joined Jess Maguire on ABC’s Statewide Drive to discuss the sharp fall in Meta’s share price after it revealed another huge increase in artificial intelligence (AI) spending. I explained that while Mark Zuckerberg insists the investment will eventually pay off, the scale of AI infrastructure costs – potentially US$3–5 trillion by 2030 – means companies will need extraordinary revenues to justify the outlay. History shows transformative technologies often enrich consumers more than investors, and while today’s firms are profitable – unlike in 1999 – the “build-now, profit-later” mentality risks colliding with commercial reality.

Catch the full episode from 1:43:29 ABC Statewide Drive here.
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by Roger Montgomery Posted in Radio.

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October 2025 will go down as an extraordinary month for investors. NVIDIA, which has appreciated by over 50 per cent in the first ten months of 2025 and seen its market capitalization exceed US$5 trillion. The aggregate market capitalization of the Magnificent Seven (including Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft and Tesla) hit US$22 trillion, or 37.4 per cent of the S&P 500 and the excitement surrounding artificial intelligence (AI) is palpable. Continue…

by David Buckland Posted in Market commentary.

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Today on Ausbiz I joined Sue Lannin to discuss the striking similarities between the 2011 iron ore boom and today’s artificial intelligence (AI) investment frenzy. Back then, surging optimism and over-investment in mining services ended abruptly when supply outstripped demand. I’m seeing echoes of that now in AI, with forecasts of trillions in annual spending that don’t appear sustainable or supported by realistic revenue. With companies like Meta and Microsoft already under pressure, I believe we’re nearing the end of this boom as investors start questioning whether the numbers truly add up.

Watch the episode on Ausbiz here: What does the AI Boom have to do with iron ore?

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by Roger Montgomery Posted in TV Appearances.

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In U.S. trading overnight, Nvidia achieved a market capitalisation of US$5 trillion, after which Microsoft, Meta Platforms and Google’s parent company Alphabet delivered their September quarter earnings.

The results were impressive, as expected. Microsoft reported Q1 revenue of US$77.67 billion, beating estimates of US$75.33 billion, with earnings per share (EPS) of US$4.13, surpassing the US$3.67 forecast. Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Market commentary.

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Fourteen years ago, in 2011, a commodity boom in iron ore saw BHP’s share price hit $40 for the first time. It was the 8^th of April 2011. There was great excitement, surrounding Australia being the ‘lucky’ country yet again. Peter Richardson, Morgan Stanley’s then global metals chief economist, put forward a strong investment case for the “crucial” steelmaking commodity.

We will see Morgan Stanley again soon.

By contrast, on April 11 that year we published a blog Will China demand Iron… or…?, where we wrote that iron ore prices would henceforth decline, ending the commodity boom and causing buoyant share prices to fall. Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Market commentary.

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I joined Paul Turton on ABC Newcastle Mornings yesterday to discuss how markets remain strong but expensive, with investors shifting from artificial intelligence (AI) stocks to safer sectors like healthcare and utilities. Despite record highs, valuations suggest future returns may be lower. I explained that while a correction isn’t inevitable, there are promising opportunities in smaller, innovative companies that are starting to outperform larger ones.

You can listen to the full episode from 39:45 here: ABC Newcastle Mornings

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by Roger Montgomery Posted in Radio.

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Earlier this month, Nvidia – the company at the heart of the artificial intelligence (AI) boom – announced it had agreed to invest up to US$100 billion in OpenAI to help the Large Language Model (LLM)-maker fund its data centre build out. In turn, OpenAI agreed to fill those data centres with Nvidia Chips.

If it sounds odd, it is. That’s because it’s akin to convincing Nick Scali to buy you a house if you agree to fill it with Nick Scali’s furniture.

In fact, the Nvidia/OpenAI deal was immediately criticised for being ‘circular’. Continue…

by Roger Montgomery Posted in Market commentary.

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