What the US vs China means for you

Hey zxcv, it’s Mark.

In May 2026, Donald Trump flew to Beijing, China, on Air Force One. But he wasn’t alone. Sat alongside him were Elon Musk, Tim Cook, Jensen Huang, and other executives worth close to a trillion dollars combined.

Think about that… the most powerful man in America, with the most powerful companies in America, flying to China to make a deal. Beijing didn’t fly to Washington. Washington flew to Beijing.

For years we’ve been told America is winning this trade war against China. But they’re aren’t just fighting over trade.

They’re quietly fighting for who’s going to run the entire global economy: who controls the supply chains, whose money the world runs on, and who the rest of the planet does business with.

So let me show you how this is going to effect your job, savings, and future over the next 10 years:

​

Firstly, pay attention to inflation

A weakening dollar, plus supply chain shocks and tariffs, all push prices up. Anyone telling you this round of inflation is going to be transitory and disappear by next year is, in my opinion at least, not reading the chess board correctly.

This is structural pressure, and that has implications for everything you buy, and the value of the money sitting in your savings account.

​

Secondly, watch hard assets

When the currency you save in is being slowly weakened against gold, the natural thing that happens is gold, real estate, and productive companies tend to hold their purchasing power better than cash sitting in a bank account.

Historically, in situations like this, asset owners are the people who keep up with the cost of living, while cash savers fall more and more behind.

​

Thirdly, keep an eye on asset owners

Right now, the economy is splitting in two. Asset owners are pulling ahead, and wage earners are getting squeezed.

The next decade is going to reward people who can move from being purely a wage earner to also being some kind of asset owner. That might be through stocks, property, or a cash flowing business.

​

Fourthly, pay close attention to the job market

The combination of AI and tariff costs is going to brutally reorganise the American labour market over the next decade.

Some sectors are likely going to boom, like defence, energy, manufacturing, and skilled trades. Other sectors are going to get hollowed out like generic white collar work, and anything that can be easily replicated by AI.

If you’re under 35 and trying to figure out where to bet your career, those labour shifts are worth thinking about.

​

And lastly, be careful about the information you consume

Both sides of this story are going to gaslight you. The American media has its own narrative about China’s collapse, and the Chinese media has its own narrative about the American decline.

Most of what you read on social media is going to be exactly the same, or at least similar to one of those two narratives, and most of it will be wrong.

You don’t have to pick a side here or root for your country to win.

You just have to understand that the era of cheap, stable, predictable globalisation is ending. And the next decade is going to reward the people who saw it coming.

Most people won’t, but after making it to the end of this email, you certainly will.

​

zxcv, which insight did you find most useful in today’s email? I’d love to know, so hit reply to this email.

All the best,

Mark Tilbury