What happens when the data goes dark, yet markets barely flinch? In this episode, Niels and Katy unpack the month of October defined by missing economic releases, relentless equity strength and three extraordinary days of Liberation Day turbulence. They explore why price often tells the truest story, how total portfolio thinking could rewrite the role of trend, and why short term strategies faltered while precious metals surged. The conversation then shifts to the coming wave of alternatives in private wealth and the silent risk inside target date funds, asking how managed futures can reshape retirement outcomes when timing paths go wrong. ----- 50 YEARS OF TREND FOLLOWING BOOK AND BEHIND-THE-SCENES VIDEO FOR ACCREDITED INVESTORS - CLICK HERE ----- Follow Niels on Twitter , LinkedIn , YouTube or via the TTU website . IT’s TRUE ? – most CIO’s read 50+ books each year – get your FREE copy of the Ultimate Guide to the Best Investment Books ever written here . And you can get a free copy of my latest book “ Ten Reasons to Add Trend Following to Your Portfolio ” here . Learn more about the Trend Barometer here . Send your questions to
[email protected] And please share this episode with a like-minded friend and leave an honest Rating & Review on iTunes or Spotify so more people can discover the podcast. Follow Katy on LinkedIn . Episode TimeStamps: 00:00 - Introduction and catching up from Boston 02:00 - Life without economic data and what markets really need 04:20 - Price as the only truth and the limits of official data 05:45 - CalPERS, total portfolio thinking and what it means for trend 08:20 - AI, data centers and the inflation story hiding in electricity 10:30 - Inflation regimes, unstable prices and why trend cares about change 12:40 - Year to date trend review across equities, metals, FX and bonds 15:10 - Why short term traders struggled in a headline driven year 20:00 - Picking “the best strategy” and why robustness matters more than Sharpe 24:10 - Parameters, speed of response and treating markets differently 26:20
