Jim Rogers needs little introduction.
He’s the man behind the Quantum Fund – one of the most successful hedge funds of all time. Jim is an investing legend, best-selling author and Guinness World Record holder. So when he speaks, smart investors listen.
[REITs]
Q1 hedge fund letters, conference, scoops etc, Also read Lear Capital: Financial Products You Should Avoid?
I’ve had the pleasure of sitting down with Jim a few times to get his thoughts on the markets… life lessons… and where investors should put their assets today.
What follows are a few excerpts from our conversations…
Why you need to be invested in China
Kim: If you were buying assets to put into the retirement accounts of your two daughters, what would you invest in? In other words, how do you see markets unfolding over the long term?
Jim: If you sold U.S. stocks in 1916, you’d have looked smart for a year or two. But over the past century, of course, the U.S. has been the big story. And in coming decades, China will continue to emerge. It’s going to be the big story. So with that kind of time horizon I’d be looking to buy shares of Chinese companies, and looking past the challenges that China is facing now and will continue to face in coming months.
Kim: What about, when we’re speaking of China, the One Belt One Road Initiative? When you look at that, do you see it as this enormous investment opportunity, or do you see it as a geopolitical black hole that China is just shoveling money into?
Jim: It may be both, but it’s certainly a great opportunity.
It’s rare that geography changes. Five hundred years ago, the Spanish and the Portuguese started sailing around the world, changed geography. Two hundred years ago, we found the railroad, changed geography. In America, there’s a city called Chicago, everybody’s heard of Chicago. But Chicago is only there because of the railroad. Denver, a big city in Colorado, is only there because of the railroad. The railroad, for example, totally changed world geography.
The Chinese are doing the same now with One Belt One Road. Some people are going to make vast fortunes. If you’re left out, you’re going to disappear and nobody will ever hear of you.
I live in Singapore. And Singapore’s going to have problems because much of what will be transported is going to go around Singapore. Part of Singapore’s key to success in the past 50 years is its port. As Asia started booming, this port became the most important port in the world.
Well, now it’s not going to be the most important port in the world. So some people are going to suffer, some people are going to boom. Kazakhstan, Central China, many places are going to actually boom now because of this. Figure out where and you’ll get rich. You get the wrong places, nobody will ever hear of you. There are cities in America that nobody ever heard of because they disappeared – because the railroad went the other way.
Gold… farmland… and real estate
Kim: All right – China. Where else should people put their pensions?
Jim: Beyond that? Maybe gold. It’s preserved its value over long periods of time.
That, and a farm in North Korea. I’m a big believer in agriculture and farmland. And at some point North Korea will join the rest of the world.
Agriculture is probably going to do well, even if the world comes to an end, because agriculture has already been going down the tubes for 35 years now. Agriculture has been terrible. I would suspect that’s a place to rescue yourself.
Probably the best thing to do is to become a farmer. I’m not going to become a farmer. But if people want a new life outdoors, especially in China, the Beijing government is doing everything it can to help farmers and to help the countryside. So agriculture, especially in China. And Russian agriculture because of what’s happening with sanctions. But agriculture worldwide.
Kim: You mentioned farmland, being a farmer. What about real estate more generally?
Jim: Well, Kim, it’s a big world out there. I wouldn’t buy a property in New York or Hong Kong. But I might buy a farm in Central China or in the agriculture part of China.
There are bubbles in Qinghai, certainly there are other Chinese bubbles. New York has already started going down, London has already started going down. These were bubble cities.
If you want to buy a property, what I suggest you do is go to China and buy a farm. Get yourself a Chinese wife who’s a farmer and you’ll be very, very happy.
These markets should also be on your radar
Kim: What other markets are on your radar?
Jim: Well, Vietnam. I don’t know if I mentioned it last time. Vietnam is doing very well right now. I prefer the bad things that are hated. But there are big changes in the country, and it’s right on the Chinese border. It’s a country of 90 million people, educated, disciplined, hardworking. They call themselves Communist, but take that with a grain of salt.
I’m trying to figure out about Korea. It’s a place that’s going to be very exciting soon, if it’s not already starting. Nigeria, Kazakhstan.
Again, China. I’m looking for investments in China. China’s market is 40 percent below its all-time high. Japan is 50 percent below its all-time high. I’d much prefer China and Japan to, say, America and Germany. You know, these are markets that are near all-time highs. And I know that watching you guys, you know to buy low and sell high.
Good investing,
Kim Iskyan
Publisher, Stansberry Churchouse Research
