Passive equity funds are taking over the market:
The three largest S&P 500 ETFs now have a record $2.6 trillion in assets under management (AUM).
This represents 17.4% of AUM in all US ETFs and 11.9% of AUM in global ETFs.
The S&P 500 ETF, $VOO, alone now has AUM of over $1 trillion, the first ETF in history to surpass such a milestone.
This is followed by S&P 500 ETFs, $IVV, and, $SPY, whose AUM surged to a record ~$860 billion and ~$780 billion, respectively.
Combined assets across these three funds have TRIPLED since the 2022 bear market.
The ETF market has never been bigger.
More Central Banks Than Ever Say They Will Buy Gold This Year
More central banks than ever expect to increase their gold reserves, a sign one of the key forces behind bullionโs record-breaking rally remains intact despite this yearโs pullback.
In a survey of 74 central banks, 45% said they plan to buy in the coming year, the biggest-ever share in data collected by the World Gold Council and YouGov Plc since 2018. Just one said it planned to cut holdings, the WGC said in a report Tuesday.
In the coming year, emerging-market and developing-economy central banks make up most of the prospective buyers, according to the WGCโs survey. About 53% of those respondents said they expect their holdings to increase, compared with 18% of advanced-economy central banks. (Bloomberg)
The US stock market is rewriting every record in the financial history books:
The top 10 US stocks now have a combined market cap of $25.3 trillion.
If the top 10 were a stock market, they would be the 2nd-largest in the world, even exceeding China.
The top 10 US stocks' market value is also larger than China's GDP of $19.4 trillion, the worldโs 2nd-biggest economy.
Together, these companies are now worth ~80% of US GDP.
Furthermore, the top 5 companies alone have a combined market cap of $18.6 trillion, exceeding the value of every global stock market outside the US.
Truly unprecedented numbers.
This is a storm, not the end of a cycle.
Iโm staying firm.
The hard asset cycle likely has much further to run.
For perspective:
Previous commodity supercycles unfolded during periods when the dollar was tied to gold, debt burdens were far lower, and globalization was accelerating.
Those were fundamentally different environments.
This cycle is being driven by monetary debasement, record leverage, fiscal excess, and the most significant wave of geopolitical fragmentation since the WWII.
Not the time to be shaken out of one of the most important macro theses of this decade.
https://t.co/yCHXf9QiO3
BREAKING: The average price of US ground beef rises +13% YoY in May to a record $7.06 per pound, with prices now up +58% since 2020.
Steak prices surged +16% YoY to $12.80 per pound, the 2nd-highest on record.
This comes as the US cattle herd has shrunk to its lowest in 75 years, with drought conditions, elevated production costs, and a New World screwworm outbreak in Texas limiting supply recovery.
Meanwhile, nearly 80% of US cattle are currently located in areas facing dryness or drought, threatening to keep beef prices elevated well into 2027.
American consumers are paying record prices for beef.
SpaceX's valuation hit a record high of $1.77 trillion today, selling 555,555,555 shares at $135. 3 years ago it was $137 billion, 5 years ago it was $74 billion & 10 years ago it was $10 billion.
At a $1.77 trillion valuation it would be the 7th largest company in the S&P 500.