Join Us at the 2023 World Economic Conference in Orlando, Florida!

? Dates: November 17, 18, and 19 ? Location: Orlando, Florida, USA (or tune in from home with our virtual ticket options)

Are you ready to unlock the future of economics and finance? Prepare for an unforgettable World Economic Conference experience in sunny Orlando, Florida! This premier event is your gateway to insights, networking, and valuable resources that will supercharge your understanding of the global economy.

?️ What’s Included for In-Person Attendees:

1. Event Admission: Enjoy reserved seating assigned based on the order of ticket sales, ensuring you have a prime view of every presentation.
2. Presentation Slides: Gain access to the presentation slides from all speakers, allowing you to delve deeper into the topics discussed.
3. Video Recording: Can’t make it to a session? No worries! You’ll receive access to video recordings of all conference presentations, so you can catch up at your convenience.
4. WEC Event App: Connect with the conference on a whole new level. Access presentation slides, bonus reports, recordings, and more via the official WEC Event App.
5. Bonus Conference Materials: Get a package of bonus conference-related materials, including exclusive bonus reports and videos (as provided by Martin Armstrong).
6. Morning Information Sessions: Don’t miss out on important morning information sessions, screened on-site in the meeting room on Saturday and Sunday.
7. Networking Opportunities: Exclusive access to the Event App Networking Feature allows you to connect with fellow attendees, both in-person and virtual, fostering valuable professional relationships.
8. Culinary Delights: Savor delicious breakfast and lunch on Saturday and Sunday, prepared to keep you energized throughout the day.
9. Cocktail Reception: Kick off the conference in style at our Friday evening cocktail reception. Meet and mingle with fellow attendees while enjoying refreshing drinks.
10. Swag Bag: As a token of our appreciation, each in-person attendee will receive a swag bag filled with goodies, including an Armstrong Economics notebook, pen, and an event collector’s mug!

Unable to travel? We also have two different ticket options for those wishing to attend virtually! 

Don’t miss this opportunity to be part of a global gathering of economic and financial minds. Secure your spot at the World Economic Conference in Orlando, Florida, and gain the knowledge, connections, and resources you need to thrive in the world of finance and economics.

Space is limited, so act now and reserve your seat! Visit our Events page to register and join us in sunny Orlando this November.

Now available at all major retailers!

The eBook will be available shortly.

The second edition of “The Plot to Seize Russia – The Untold History” is now available for purchase in paperback and hardcover on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. The ebook will be available shortly.

Book description:

“Take care of Russia,” Boris Yeltsin said as he departed his presidency in August 1999. These words were directed at current Russian president, Vladimir Putin. Yeltsin specifically picked Putin as his predecessor to prevent the takeover of Russia.

So, who was Yeltsin warning against? Newly declassified documents from the Clinton Administration prove that there was a plot to rig the Russian election of 2000. These never-before-seen documents confirm numerous attempts to implement pro-Western policies using the Russian oligarchy headed by Boris Berezovsky.

On the other side were the communists who desired a return to the glory days of the Soviet Union. As one of the largest international hedge fund managers, author Martin Armstrong found himself in the middle of perhaps the greatest espionage, or attempt at a regime change for Russia, in modern history.

The Plot to Seize Russia pulls back the curtain to expose the most extraordinary attempt to seize power in modern history, but with the pen rather than armies. These declassified documents reveal a plot that has altered our thinking about the relations between the United States and Russia. The thirst for power comes seething through every line of these papers that alter our perception of reality, change the course of history, and now threaten us with World War III.

Deemed the “mother of all deals” by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, India and the European Union signed a historic trade agreement that will permit near free trade between the two economies. The EU plans to phase out tariffs on Indian goods by up to 95% over a multi-year period. India will begin phasing out tariffs on EU-dominated imports. The proposed India–EU trade agreement is being promoted as a strategic breakthrough, but in reality it reflects Europe’s growing isolation rather than strength.

Total services between the two economies have been rapidly increasing from the €26 billion spent in 2023 to the estimated €120 billion today. Reduced restrictions will permit services to continue expanding. The EU primarily imports machinery and electrical equipment, chemicals, and transport equipment to India.

The EU has angered its top trading partner in the process. “The U.S. has made much bigger sacrifices than Europeans have. We have put 25% tariffs on India for buying Russian oil. Guess what happened last week? The Europeans signed a trade deal with India,” US Treasury Secretary Bessent told ABC News Sunday.

China came out earlier in the week to publicly praise its relations with India. India’s neutrality politically has caused it to become indispensable in the global marketplace. Most nations turned to India to bypass Russian energy sanctions, and now, they are turning to India to bypass tariffs and political uncertainty.

From India’s perspective, this deal is about leverage, not partnership. India gains access where it wants it, while carefully protecting its domestic industries. Europe, meanwhile, is trying to replace what it lost with Russia and China by pivoting to India without changing the policies that caused the damage in the first place. Europe’s problem is not a lack of trade agreements. The problem is that confidence in government is collapsing, and capital follows confidence.

Non-tariff barriers, regulatory obstacles, carbon taxes, ESG compliance, and digital rules are all designed to protect Europe’s internal market while demanding open access abroad. India noted that these areas have made preliminary discussions extremely difficult. You cannot tax, regulate, sanction, and militarize your economy and then expect trade deals to reverse capital flight.

The Economic Confidence Model has consistently warned that Europe would fracture economically before it ever unified politically. The EU can now sell in India, but so can other economies that may have a competitive advantage due to a lack of regulatory and political pressures from a centralized control powerhouse. India has come out on top yet again.

Criminals are operating in increasingly sophisticated ways, but some forces are fighting crime in a digital age with analogue methods.

We will launch https://t.co/kDcAf3UrlD – investing a record £115 million in AI and automation to make policing more effective. pic.twitter.com/RucIqbqXMF

— Shabana Mahmood MP (@ShabanaMahmood) January 26, 2026

UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced the largest national AI surveillance program, using Live Facial Recognition (LFR) technology, to be deployed in cameras across England and Wales. “You can’t enjoy any of your liberties if you’re not safe,” she warned.

Police.AI is the new artificial intelligence branch of security that cost the government 140m pounds to develop. “For 20 years we’ve been talking about Big Brother societies, maybe for even longer than that, I just really reject that analysis. I think that law-abiding citizens going about their daily business can do so in security, nothing about that will change,” she decided, later adding, “We have seen what happens when facial recognition technology is rolled out without clear safeguards: children are wrongly placed on watchlists, and black people are put at greater risk of being wrongly identified.”

The AI branch of policing will rapidly analyze CCTV, phone, doorbell, and other sources of footage to pinpoint citizens based on their clothing, vehicles, and of course, facial recognition. The AI system can transcribe phone calls and sift through hours of information, constantly monitoring the public. Government claims it will equate to six million policing hours annually, or the workload of 3,000 officers.

The ethics behind such measures present a challenge. Who has access to this wealth of data? Individual organizations in the UK must obtain permission and be transparent about their policies, but no such restrictions exist for the government. We have seen countless data breaches in recent years, with independent hacker groups infiltrating every supposedly secure data center. Civil liberties groups believe the government is infringing upon human rights by spying on their every move, but governments no longer permit individual freedoms.

Everyone is a potential criminal—your face and likeness exist within a government database, and your file is ever-expanding. The Home Office has even stated it would monitor citizens’ emotions and body language at known suicide hot spots.

UK Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner Fraser Sampson admitted that private companies will have access to user data. “We, the people, are now using sophisticated surveillance tools once the preserve of state intelligence agencies, routinely and at minimal financial cost,” he writes. “We freely share personal datasets – including our facial images – with private companies and government on our smart devices for access control, identity verification and threat mitigation. From this societal vantage point it seems reasonable for the police to infer that many citizens not only support them using new remote biometric technology but also expect them to do so, to protect communities, prevent serious harm and detect dangerous offenders.”

Live cameras are monitoring the public at all times. Both the private and public sector have access to your whereabouts at all times. This is one of the reasons why the UK is implementing a digital ID system, which will later become linked to digital payment systems and CBDC. At the final stage, everything will be linked to a social credit score that includes each citizen’s water and carbon footprint. The plans are well-documented but sound too dystopian for the public to accept, but this is not a conspiracy—they are watching you.

US consumer confidence has plunged to its lowest level since 2014. The Conference Board’s index fell sharply in January to 84.5 — well below expectations and even below the depths reached during the pandemic panic.

Consumer confidence is a quantifiable measure of the public’s willingness to engage in economic activity. When confidence drops, consumers tighten their spending, postpone big purchases, and shift from growth-oriented to survival-oriented behavior. And where consumers go, capital inevitably follows.

“All five components of the Index deteriorated, driving the overall Index to its lowest level since May 2014 (82.2) — surpassing its Covid-19 pandemic depths,” Dana Peterson, chief economist at The Conference Board, said in a release. “References to prices and inflation, oil and gas prices, and food and grocery prices remained elevated.”

Grocery aisles, energy costs, health insurance premiums, and rent have not retreated to historic norms. Consumers are not just fearful of future inflation; rather, they are learning to manage the ever-increasing cost of living. This is a sign that real wages and purchasing power are under stress. The price of essentials never meaningfully waned from the worldwide lockdown, and the world is beginning to accept that high prices are the new norm.

Hiring has slowed, and households don’t feel secure. Corporations began mass layoffs last year and the trend is continuing. Right now, the cost of living is through the roof, jobs are scarce, and geopolitical tensions are high. Confidence has evaporated and will only improve when people see consistent improvement in their own finances.

The idea that Europe always tries to conquer Russia is a common historical fact. To be accurate, there have been several major conflicts initiated by European powers against Russia, driven by specific geopolitical, ideological, and strategic reasons. It’s not a constant effort by a monolithic “Europe,” but rather a series of distinct invasions from different Western powers at different times; the goal has always been to capture Russian wealth. They consistently rewrite history to justify their endless greed to conquer Russia. The truth about the January 1863 Uprising against Russia, it was the Polish-Lithuanian Army that invaded and even occupied Moscow until the Russian people staged an uprising to take their country back.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, Lithuania’s President Gitanas Nauseda, and Poland’s President Karol Nawrocki met to commemorate the 1863 January Uprising against Russian rule. They have declared their hatred for Russians and boldly stated “Russia will ALWAYS be a threat.”

The January Uprising is a central symbol of Polish resistance and the fight for independence, and its memory is honored for its heroism and sacrifice. However, this is also a one-side revision of history.

The January Uprising of 1863 was not a war, it was a major Polish-Lithuanian rebellion against the Russian Empire that ended in a decisive defeat for the rebels. What they omit from their history books is the blunt fact that the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth invaded Russia during a period of profound crisis known as the Time of Troubles (c. 1598-1613). This was not a single, clear-cut war but a complex series of interventions and campaigns driven by Polish-Lithuanian ambition to conquer Russia for its wealth taking advantage of internal Russian instability. So to be historically correct, they sought to conquer Russia, lost, were then occuppied, and celebrate this 1863 uprising as if they were the victims of an invasion they launched and lost.

The Dimitriads (1605-1612)
This refers to Polish-backed campaigns by pretenders to the Russian throne, known as False Dmitrys. False Dmitry I (1605-1606) with the support of Polish magnates, invaded Russia, gained support from disaffected Russians, and briefly seized the throne in Moscow. His rule ended with his assassination.

False Dmitry II (1607-1610) was a second pretender, also backed by Polish-Lithuanian forces and Cossacks, set up an alternate court near Moscow. His campaign further destabilized the country.

Then came the Polish-Muscovite War (1609-1618). As the chaos continued, King Sigismund III Vasa of Poland-Lithuania shifted from covert support for pretenders to an open, royal invasion with the goal of conquering Russia and placing his son (or himself) on the throne.

The Polish-Lithuanian army besieged and captured the key fortress city of Smolensk (1609-1611) after a long and brutal 20-month siege. A decisive Polish-Lithuanian victory over a much larger Russian-Swedish army took place at the Battle of Klushino in 1610. This opened the road to Moscow.

Polish Occupation of Moscow the took place 1610-1612. Following Klushino, a group of Russian boyars invited the Polish prince Władysław IV Vasa to become Tsar, on conditions including his conversion to Orthodoxy. Polish-Lithuanian troops entered and garrisoned the Moscow Kremlin. However, King Sigismund insisted he should be Tsar, negotiations broke down, and the occupation turned into a hostile siege from within the Kremlin itself.

A Russian national uprising, led by Kuzma Minin and Prince Dmitry Pozharsky, formed a militia and besieged the Polish garrison in the Kremlin. In November 1612, the starving Polish forces surrendered, ending the occupation. This event is now commemorated in Russia as National Unity Day.

The war officially ended with the Truce of Deulino (1618), which granted the Commonwealth significant territorial gains, including the Smolensk region. However, the primary goal of placing a Polish king on the Russian throne had failed.

The Polish invaded Russia during a civil war. The Commonwealth exploited Russia’s internal collapse (dynastic crisis, famine, peasant uprisings). It ultimately failed yet the Commonwealth gained territory, the core ambition of political control over Russia was defeated by a national uprising.

In Russia, this period is remembered as a patriotic struggle against foreign invaders. In Poland, it is seen as the zenith of the Commonwealth’s power and a “lost opportunity” to dominate Eastern Europe.

This invasion was a pivotal moment that deepened the long-standing rivalry between the two powers, setting the stage for future conflicts (like the Smolensk War and The Deluge) and contributing to a mutual distrust that shaped Eastern European history for centuries.

To this day, celebrating the January Uprising of 1863 is a revision of history for Russia has NEVER invaded Europe even once, whereas there have been five attempted conquests of Russia all based on the fact that to this day, Russia is still the richest country on Earth from a natural resource perspective. In 1917, Russia had the largest gold reserves in the world. Someone hid them so the Communists would not get them, and they have never been found since.

The German Emperor Wilhelm II Imperial Government actually feared that Russia would enter World War I. The rising communist movement in Russia was anti-war. Germany saw a chance for victory in Europe if it kept Russia out of the war. Hence, Germany supported the Communist anti-war sentiment of the Bolsheviks in Russia. Germany permitted Vladimir Lenin (1870-1924) to travel in a sealed train wagon from his place of exile in Switzerland through Germany, Sweden, and Finland to Petrograd. Since the start of the February Revolution in Russia, Lenin was trying to figure out a way to get back into Russia. Germany aided his return assuming he was anti-war and would thus keep Russia out of World War I. Lenin returned to Russian on April 16th, 1917. Within months of arriving, Lenin led the October Revolution in Russia and the Bolsheviks seized power and indeed Russia withdrew from the world war. According to Leon Trotsky, the October Revolution would not have succeeded without Lenin.

The West has been obsessed with Russia for centuries. They are painted as evil and the excuse always changes. Before Gorbachev, it was that Russia was Communist and wanted to spread communism and conquer Europe. Communism collapsed all by itself, but the claim that Russia wants to still invade Europe remains. It does not matter who is the head of state in Russia, they will always change the narative to justify the conquest of Russia no matter what. Just follow the greed for wealth.

As one of our readers from Poland noted, the October 26th 2023 turning point was the precise day that President Duda called for a new Polish parliament to convene after the October 15th elections. Our models show a Directional Change in 2027 and that volatility in Poland was due to start rising here in 2026 all the way into 2034.

Europe seems to have a death wish because the EU experiment is failing. Instead of addressing the issues, they prefer to live in the past, assume they can conquer Russia and the 6th time will be the charm. They dream of $75 trillion in assets, free gas for all, and the EU will rise to lead the world, which is why Carney is taking Canada into the arms of the EU. ‘Old World Order Not Coming Back’ Carney declared at DAVOS 2026.

I wish the computer was wrong.

PRIVATE BLOG – The Euro Rally & Geopolitical Chaos

Private blog posts are exclusively available to Socrates subscribers. To sign-up for Socrates or to learn more, please visit Ask-Socrates.com.

https://ask-socrates.com/

QUESTION: Marty, you always criticized the gold bugs for claiming gold rises with inflation. You are the only one who projected $5,000 gold, and you said it would be on geopolitics. I think you also said it could reach $10,000 by 2032. You also said we were headed into a global recession, but it would be stagflation because of shortages. Well, we have silver shortages, but buy prices are $15+ below spot. I just saw you on Russia Today talking about Germany recalling its gold from the United States and explaining the rift between the US and EU and the Indian trade deal how Russia can sell its oil to India, they refine it, and send it to Europe circumventing Trump’s tariffs. Can you shed any light on this crazy world?

Pete

ANSWER: In gold, the next major resistance level is at 7600. Yes, by 2032, that target was $8,350 to $10,000. The crisis in the Euro has not changed. We still see that in 2029. Now, as far as the discount in silver if you try to sell, the dealers are flooded. The refineries are so backed up that it can take 2 to 3 months to get paid. That is the reason for the discount. Plus, a lot of silver is being sold on the market by people who have held it for decades. I was told today that they are not even buying 90% silver coins because they cannot refine anything right now.

The problem with the Euro is the underlying economic crisis, which is the entire reason for instigating war with Russia. This is all becoming chaotic. The EU is turning its back on the US, as is Canada, and of course India. NYSE (U.S.) has a capitalization of $28–30 trillion in market value. All of the European Exchanges (combined) have only a capitalization of $18–20 trillion in market value. With war becoming inevitable in Europe, the capital flows to the dollar will unfold once again as it did for World War I and II. Between now and 2032, this is going to be  chaotic period to say the least.

COMMENT: Well, these economists and market soothsayers will never match Socrates or your Economic Confidence Model. Consumer Confidence just collapsed to a 12-year low. Amazing how you can forecast recessions years in advance.

LK

ANSWER: These people reject even the idea of a regular cycle, for that means that they cannot manipulate society. If they cannot manipulate the economy to retain power, OMG, then the future requires fiscal management, not mismanagement.

US consumer confidence has plummeted in January to the lowest level in 12 years on more pessimistic views of the future. The press will tout that Americans are worried about the nation’s economy, inflation, and a weakening labor market. But they are also concerned that we have NOT freed ourselves from these Neocon Endless Wars.  The figure was the lowest since May 2014 and fell short of all economists’ estimates.

The capture of Valerian I (253-260AD) was the first time a Roman Emperor had ever been captured in battle. Bankers were not sure if they should even accept Roman coinage. That set in motion the Crisis of the 3rd Century AD. Can you image if Trump was captured by China or Russia and the uncertainty that would set off globally?

I have researched the centuries and the common denominator is CONFIDENCE. Once a government loses the confidence of the people, it can no longer survive.

We are in a recessionary trend GLOBALLY into 2028. Europe is now insisting that they no longer need the United States. They can conquer Russia all by themselves for the 6th time. The next ECM turning point will be July 2026. Just review how many markets are all showing high volatility or Panic Cycles in July. TIMING is everything.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, Lithuania’s President Gitanas Nauseda, and Poland’s President Karol Nawrocki met to commemorate the 1863 January Uprising against Russian rule. Even though 163 years have passed, politicians still believe that Russia is an enemy that could attempt to conquer their land at a moment’s notice. The Europeans simply cannot help themselves. They NEVER learn from history, and that is why history keeps repeating itself. Kyiv Post ran an article with the headline “Russia and Its Leaders Will Always be a Threat to Europe” that basically sums up the mindset that has been driving this entire conflict from day one.

“Policies backing a ‘reset’ with the Russian Federation are disappearing, but one thing remains unchanged: whether it’s Tsarist Russia, Bolshevik Russia, or Vladimir Putin’s Russia, our countries, now independent, still face the same threat from the Russian Federation,” Poland’s President Nawrocki said. He added: “The countries of central and eastern Europe were not wrong in their opinions about the Russian threat, even at a time when western Europe was still focused on climate policy or letting in illegal immigrants.”

https://t.co/2ToHWHu3OK

— Gitanas Nausėda (@GitanasNauseda) January 25, 2026

This is the same propaganda cycle that we have seen for centuries. You demonize the opponent, you claim they are inherently aggressive, you declare that they will “never change,” and then you justify endless war spending, suppression of dissent, and total economic destruction at home. President Nawrocki admitted that Europe will always view Russia as a threat, regardless of who is in charge.

The real threat is Europe’s leadership, which is dragging the continent into an economic depression. Every time they push sanctions, weaponize trade, and centralize power in Brussels, they accelerate the capital flight and the collapse in confidence. People do not understand that wars are not just fought with weapons. They are fought with capital flows. Once confidence breaks in government, money moves. That is why gold rises when people are trying to get OUT of the system. They are trying to escape the arbitrary rule of government and the risk of confiscation, capital controls, or banking restrictions. Europe is walking right into that trap again.

And of course, once they create this narrative that “Russia will ALWAYS be a threat,” then there is no room for peace. You cannot negotiate with someone you claim is permanently evil. That is the entire point. If peace breaks out, then the excuses for authoritarian policy at home disappear. The budget scams get exposed. The censorship ends. And the public begins asking why they were sacrificed for a political agenda.

This is why I have warned that the war cycle is rising into 2026. War becomes the tool of last resort for governments that have destroyed their own economies and need an external enemy to blame. It is not about defending Ukraine. It is about preserving a system that is collapsing under sovereign debt, energy shortages, and political corruption.

China’s President Xi Jinping praised India for its friendship as India celebrated its 77^th Republic Day. Xi exclaimed that China-India relations are of “great significance for maintaining and promoting ​world peace and prosperity,” as he praised their alliance, adding, “dragon and the elephant dancing together.”

The two nuclear powers share a 2,400 mile border that has been the culprit of disputes over the years. In 2020, a heated fight at the border led to the deaths of 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers. Both sides increased their military presence along the Himalayan border, but after five years, the nations realigned based on trade, the great peacemaker.

India is not Europe. It is not beholden to a centralized power source. India still thinks in terms of nationhood, sovereignty, and survival. That is why it is rising. It will not destroy itself to satisfy some international bureaucrat or climate agenda. That puts India in a unique position in the emerging multipolar world.

China also understands something Europe does not–you cannot fight on too many fronts. We have countless historical examples. Napoleon did not lose because he lacked courage. He lost because he expanded too far, opened too many fronts, and logistics collapsed. Empires do not die from one battle. They die from overstretch, internal division, and loss of confidence. China does not want a major escalation with India while it is already managing Taiwan tensions, trade wars, and internal economic strains. China does not need another neighboring enemy.

India will benefit from this shift because it is being viewed as an alternative manufacturing base and a political counterweight. That does not mean India is “anti-China.” It means India is becoming strategically indispensable. China does not want India firmly locked into the Western sphere, and India is benefiting from remaining neutral.