He covered a bunch of topics in his interview with the BBC. Here’s his take on the Middle East conflict:

• If Iran remains a threat and higher oil prices hold, it will have “profound implications” to the global economy
• It is too early to say what the outcome will be on the conflict
• However, it is likely to lean towards one of two extreme outcomes
• The first being the war ending and Iran becomes a country that can be accepted again by the international community
• That will see oil prices fall back to below where it was before the war started
• The other, could lead to “years of above $100, closer to $150 oil”
• And that will probably trigger a stark and steep recession
• If oil prices keep closer to $150 for a few years, many countries would be rapidly moving to solar and maybe wind energy

As for the overall market feel and how equities are faring, he had this to say:

• There are zero similarities to the financial crisis in 2007-08
• Overall market and investment from institutions remain strong
• “I do not believe we have a bubble at all”
• There could be a few stumbling blocks with AI but “that I’m fine with”
• There is a race now for technology dominance, mandatory to build out AI capabilities

His comments aren’t ones that will move markets but they are worth noting generally.

This article was written by Justin Low at investinglive.com.