As the US seems to be turning into late 1980s Japan, an Enterprise Owned State (EOS) becoming more isolationist as asset prices and the currency soar – and we all know how that ends – it strikes me that there is an interesting play for Europe. To become more like China.

For some, the new Cold War between China and the US is about a clash of ideologies, China replacing the Soviet Union as the ideological ‘other’, its failings to be highlighted and indeed exaggerated in order to demonstrate the virtues of sticking with Western Capitalism, more by what it is not than for what it actually is.

A friend trapped in their hotel during last weekend’s violent protests noted that while the shop window of Harry Winston’s was smashed, nobody touched the diamonds.

This morning it was reported that UBS, the largest Wealth Manager in the world had turned bearish on stocks, trimming its core equity position to underweight.

The suggestion that the US SEC is considering easing restrictions on retail investors holding Private Equity raises some interesting questions.