Best Michael Cembalest Podcasts (2025)

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Michael Cembalest on Why AI Is the Stock Market Bet of the Century 58:52

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6d ago58:52

58:52

Michael Cembalest has been an investment analyst for almost 40 years and his research notes have drawn a cult following on Wall Street. He's known for going super deep into a wide range of topics, like energy and healthcare. And lately he's been writing a lot about AI, with a particular interest in figuring out whether all the investment in data ce…

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The Sell America Thesis — ft. JPMorgan’s Michael Cembalest 1:17:56

28d ago1:17:56

1:17:56

Scott and Ed discuss Trump’s tariffs on films produced outside the U.S., OpenAI scrapping its plans to become a for-profit company, and Warren Buffett’s decision to step down as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. Then Michael Cembalest, the Chairman of Market and Investment Strategy for JPMorgan Asset & Wealth Management, joins the show to unpack how macro…

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Tariffs Blocked by Court, U.S. Steel’s Golden Shares & Neuralink’s Funding Round 1:02:40

3d ago1:02:40

1:02:40

Scott and Ed discuss the trade court’s ruling that Trump lacked the authority to impose most tariffs, Trump Media’s plan to buy bitcoin and Nvidia’s first quarter earnings. Then they discuss Nippon Steel’s acquisition of U.S. Steel, arguing there was no strong reason to block the deal in the first place and debating when government intervention in …

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Why It's So Hard for Apple to Move Production from China to India 46:02

3d ago46:02

46:02

President Trump wants Apple to make iPhones in America. The company itself has talked about — and to some extent already has been — moving more of its production to other countries, like India. But in reality, Apple remains deeply, deeply enmeshed in the Chinese supply chain. In fact, the rise of Apple, and the iPhone specifically, is the ultimate …

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How Do We Define a Currency? 57:52

5d ago57:52

57:52

What is a currency? This turns out to be one of those questions we just kind of skip over because we don't have clear answers to it (and because economists often like to skip over these foundational things). This special episode of the Odd Lots podcast was recorded as part of Princeton University's “How to Write the Biography of a Currency” event, …

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Krishna Memani on Wall Street's Very Expensive "Free Lunch" 39:20

6d ago39:20

39:20

We're told over and over again that the one "free lunch" in investing is diversification, and that you can improve your returns over time simply by investing in a wider range of assets. This is textbook modern finance. And yet over the past several years this hasn't been the case. An investor would have done great (with the occasional hiccups) just…

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Is the Market Calling Trump’s Bluff? — ft. Aswath Damodaran 1:13:48

5d ago1:13:48

1:13:48

Scott and Ed discuss the latest tariff tensions between the U.S. and the European Union, how the market reacted to BYD’s price cuts, and a potential sale of OnlyFans. Then Aswath Damodaran, professor of finance at NYU’s Stern School of Business, returns to the show to break down what he’s learned about the markets since Liberation Day. He discusses…

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Chicken Hawks: a quick note on the US budget reconciliation bill 16:29

8d ago16:29

16:29

A brief note on the debt and deficit impacts of the House budget reconciliation bill, Henery Hawk and Foghorn Leghorn. View video hereBy Michael Cembalest

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The Story of Scott’s Career 58:38

9d ago58:38

58:38

Starting June 9th, we’ll be publishing a new episode every day of the week, exclusively on the Prof G Markets feed. Be sure to follow Prof G Markets if you haven’t already. For Memorial Day, we’re revisiting one of our favorite episodes where Scott shares the story of his entrepreneurial journey — from launching a video rental business in his 20s t…

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Why Asset Allocators Love Multi-Strategy Hedge Funds 49:43

10d ago49:43

49:43

Multi-strategy hedge funds have been having a moment with big asset allocators pouring billions of dollars into names like Millennium and Citadel. And given all the growth, multi-strat funds have also been battling each other for talent. But why, exactly, do big investors seem to love multi-strats so much? What actually makes a multi-strat good to …

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Zohran Mamdani, the Socialist Who Could Be NYC's New Mayor 46:58

13d ago46:58

46:58

We're just a month away from the hotly-contested Democratic primary for New York City Mayor. And one of the candidates -- Queens assemblyman Zohran Mamdani -- is running on a somewhat unusual platform. Endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America, he's proposing rent freezes, universal childcare, higher taxes on corporations and the wealthy, fr…

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Why America’s Credit Rating Dropped — ft. Scott Goodwin 1:11:25

13d ago1:11:25

1:11:25

Scott and Ed discuss Moody’s decision to downgrade U.S. debt, why universities are offloading private equity stakes at a discount, and Trump’s comments about Walmart raising prices. Then Scott Goodwin, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Diameter Capital Partners, joins the show to break down what investors need to watch in today’s credit markets. H…

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Why Interest Rates Are Shooting Up All Around the World 43:20

14d ago43:20

43:20

This week the big story in markets is the selloff in bonds. Yields on benchmark 10-year US Treasuries jumped 20 basis points from last Friday’s low, while the 30-year rate is back above 5%. Meanwhile, 30-year Japanese government bonds clocked their highest yield since records began in 1999. And rates on UK gilts, German bunds, and Australian bonds …

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The GOP Tax Bill, United Health’s Terrible Week, & Chinese Tech Earnings 1:15:43

17d ago1:15:43

1:15:43

Scott and Ed discuss why United Health’s stock hit a five year low, Warner Bros. Discovery's latest move to rebrand Max, and Airbnb’s foray into offering bookable services for travelers. They then break down earnings from Alibaba and Tencent, highlighting how the results signal the growing momentum of AI in China — and why they're feeling bullish o…

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Scott Bok on How Bankers Spread the Gospel of Capitalism 53:25

17d ago53:25

53:25

When we think about the prospect of deglobalization (whatever that means) we often think about it in terms of the goods economy. Supply chains get rerouted. Manufacturing becomes more localized, and possibly less efficient. But changes to the global world order also have implications for Wall Street, and the world of dealmaking. On this episode of …

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Atlanta Fed's Raphael Bostic on Monetary Policy During Extreme Uncertainty 48:13

20d ago48:13

48:13

This is obviously an extraordinarily difficult time to make economic forecasts. Nobody really knows how tariffs will affect the US economy. And beyond that, nobody knows what the ultimate state of tariffs will be, or if they'll ever settle into a predictable rate. So how do you conduct monetary policy in this environment? On this episode, recorded …

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Why the U.S. Can’t Break Up with China — ft. Alice Han 1:04:20

20d ago1:04:20

1:04:20

Scott and Ed discuss the market’s reaction to Trump’s drug pricing plan, Perplexity’s latest funding round, and Coinbase’s addition to the S&P 500. Then Alice Han, China economist and director at Greenmantle, returns to the show to break down how China views the ongoing trade war. She unpacks the current state of U.S.-China negotiations and why a d…

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The Oil Industry's Double Whammy of Higher Costs and Lower Prices 43:16

21d ago43:16

43:16

The new administration has a "drill, baby, drill" mantra and a much more liberal attitude towards the oil and gas industry than the last one. But that hasn't translated into great profits for the oil industry itself. Crude prices have sunk and tariffs have raised the cost of components for companies trying to get energy out of the ground. So, what'…

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Perry Mehrling on Trump's Echoes of the Nixon Shock 29:04

22d ago29:04

29:04

There's been a lot of talk recently about parallels between Donald Trump's economic policies and the Nixon Shock of the early 1970s. That was when the former president took the dollar off the gold standard, introduced hefty tariffs, and pressured the Federal Reserve to ease monetary policy. The moves sparked stagflation in the US and shook up the g…

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Back to our Regularly Scheduled Programming 29:49

22d ago29:49

29:49

With some kind of tariff equilibrium possibly within reach, we return to some regularly scheduled programming: artificial intelligence and language models which were the primary drivers of equity markets before the trade wars began. View video hereBy Michael Cembalest

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Is Google a Buy? + Is Uber Recession Proof? 1:01:23

24d ago1:01:23

1:01:23

Scott and Ed discuss Trump’s new trade framework with the U.K., the Federal Reserve’s latest decision, and the Melania coin grift. Then they take a look at Apple’s potential move to replace Google as Safari’s default search engine, unpacking the ripple effects on Google’s stock. Ed lays out his case for why the company is deeply undervalued. Finall…

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Philip Diehl on the Booming Business of Gold Coins 41:59

24d ago41:59

41:59

Gold prices have been booming and are near record highs. And seeing the line go up — especially during a period of so much uncertainty — makes people want to buy more. That includes acquiring actual gold coins. But where do gold coins come from? Why do people want coins, as opposed to just bullion? And who is buying them? On this episode, we speak …

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Why the World Keeps Getting Shocked by China's Technological Progress 39:01

26d ago39:01

39:01

Over the last several years, the world has watched as China edges close to or past the technological frontier in more and more areas. Earlier this year, US investors were jolted even further when DeepSeek's AI model proved to be close to the state of the art American models. So what is the process by which China actually develops new tech? Why has …

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Sarah LaFleur On the Existential Threat From the Tariffs 40:16

27d ago40:16

40:16

America's textile industry has famously declined over the years, with a bunch of production moving to lower-cost places like China, Vietnam, and Bangladesh. Now, with the Trump administration imposing heavy tariffs on exports from these countries, the US clothing industry is facing another big shock. In this episode we speak with Sarah LaFleur, fou…

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How China Might Actually Handle a US Trade War 52:28

28d ago52:28

52:28

By now, everyone recognizes that the US and China are in the middle of a trade war, with the Trump administration having imposed tariffs of as much as 125% on Chinese goods. For an export-focused economy like China's, that's a big deal. At the same time, China is pretty much the only major country that's chosen to retaliate against the US with its …

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The Tariff Buzzsaw Is Coming For Hardcore Gamers 46:52

29d ago46:52

46:52

Every industry is going to be affected by the trade war in different ways. In many cases, we don't know how it's going to play out. Other industries are seeing an immediate impact. Companies that specialize in computer gaming are highly reliant on inputs from China and other East Asian countries. These companies assemble customized gaming rigs and …

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Brad Setser on the Big Surge in the Taiwanese Dollar 29:11

30d ago29:11

29:11

There are several markets that have really settled down since the tumult of early April. But strange, unusual things are still popping up, particularly in the currency space. Over the last few days, we've seen a huge surge in the Taiwan dollar. This is important, in part, because Taiwanese life insurance companies are major buyers of US dollar asse…

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Blockbuster Week For Big Tech Earnings + Can the U.S. Fix Its Student Debt Crisis? 1:11:19

1M ago1:11:19

1:11:19

Scott and Ed discuss the latest U.S. GDP report, new data on China’s factory activity, and the launch of Amazon’s new internet satellites. Then they turn to Big Tech earnings, breaking down first quarter results from Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, and Meta. Finally, they examine the Trump administration’s decision to resume forced collections on default…

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Henry Blodget on AI, Dot-Coms, and What's Changed In 25 Years 54:47

1M ago54:47

54:47

What does history say about how big the AI boom can get, and who will ultimately win out? When does a boom turn into a bubble that turns into a bust? On this episode of the podcast, we speak to Henry Blodget, the founder of Business Insider (and Joe's old boss there). In the late '90s, Henry was one of the most well-known Wall Street analysts cover…

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Chris Hughes on How to Craft a Thriving Market 53:38

1M ago53:38

53:38

Over the last several years, both parties in the US have been drifting away from laissez-faire thinking about the economy, and more towards the view that the state has an active role in shaping markets. You have Republicans talking about stricter anti-trust and sovereign wealth funds, and of course Democrats embracing things like industrial policy …