The point of a business column is to step back from the emotion and try to work out what it all means for financial markets and the economy. There have been many strange things happening on financial markets over the summer break. Photo / Sarah IveyRegardless, gold prices have soared – up about 90% in the past year. By “mega-forces”, BlackRock means the power of bond markets to curtail Trump’s trade policy excesses. It hit 79 when Lehman Bros collapsed, sparking the global financial crisis in October 2008.

Source: New Zealand Herald January 31, 2026 19:03 UTC