In this latest installment of Inside the Episode, Roger Hirst examines volatility around geopolitical events and patterns of investor buying related to these events. Breaking down Raoul Pal’s and Julian Brigden’s recent conversation about inflation and the future path of U.S. interest rates, Roger establishes critical historical context for short and long-term interest-rate expectations. Roger compares pre-2020 market drivers with a post-pandemic era characterized by increased retail investing and historically hot inflation indicators. He also touches on the issue of the distortion of the price-discovery mechanism by accommodative monetary policy as well as the impact of fiscal stimulus on wholesale and retail prices. Combined now with what’s devolving into the biggest land war in nearly eight decades, Roger notes that the Federal Reserve and other central banks face a complex set of problems with no easy solutions. Recorded on February 25, 2022.