May Market Recap: Gold, Bitcoin, Nuclear – Chaos Is Here, So Is the Playbook
June 09, 2025
Read Time 2 MIN
Fiscal Insanity: Borrow, Spend, Deny
Let’s break down Washington’s strategy:
- Borrow into oblivion.
- Offer no plan to pay it back.
- Pass a “Big Beautiful Bill” that leans into the chaos.
The CBO says it adds $2.4 trillion to the deficit over 10 years. Elon Musk said it best:
Gold. Bitcoin. Nuclear. Chaos is Here, So Is the Playbook
Nuclear Is Back:
Trump’s executive orders mark the biggest U.S. energy shift in 40 years - finally embracing nuclear as a clean, reliable, science-first solution. What’s changing:
- Fast-tracking next-gen reactors
- Reviving uranium mining
- Unlocking federal land
- Cutting the red tape
This isn’t politics. It’s physics. Nuclear is the only energy source that’s clean, scalable, and always-on. AI-driven power demand is surging. Datacenters don’t run on dreams. They run on nuclear. This shift is overdue - and investable.
Trade War Interrupted:
Trump’s tariff strategy hit a wall: a U.S. trade court ruled key tariffs exceeded presidential authority.
The legal blow is less important than the signal: America’s trade policy isn’t cohesive. Markets hate that.
Some say TACO - Trump Always Chickens Out. But Trump doesn’t pull back. He escalates. And bruised ego is hard to price in. Policy can be modeled. Pride can’t.
Where to Go From Here:
- Diversify Beyond the Dollar: Being long the dollar used to mean stability. Now it means exposure to dysfunction and debt. Don’t ditch it - but hedge it.
- Own Gold and Bitcoin: Both are decentralized store of value assets that protect against fiat decay.
- Go Long Nuclear: Look for investments that provide exposure to miners, processors, reactor developers, and utilities.
Models Favor Gold, Nuclear, and Bitcoin
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Market Review
Equities:
- AI leadership is back. Nvidia passed Microsoft in market cap.
- May surged: S&P 500 +6.3%, Nasdaq 100 +9.2%
- International/EM lagged in May, but leads YTD
- Watch FX tailwinds if the dollar weakens
Fixed Income:
- The curve is steepening - we’re positioned for it
- Long-end yields rising on fiscal concerns
- Unpopular view: The Fed may eventually step in to cap long-term yields via asset purchases
Real Assets:
- Nuclear stocks rallied 50% off April lows, +25% in May, driven by Trump’s orders and Meta’s 20-year nuclear deal with Constellation
- We are bullish on gold, but it may trade sideways near term
Digital Assets:
- Bitcoin rallied to $111K from $77K. We think it goes much higher.
Final Word
I write it every month and say it every day. I’m not going to miss the chance to say it again now: Buy gold. Not because it’s shiny - but because it protects. From reckless spending. From rising debt. From the slow, steady erosion of fiat.
Buy Bitcoin, too. Same goal, different design - decentralized, portable, digital.
And own nuclear. It’s the only scalable, reliable, carbon-free energy source - and demand is accelerating.
These are differentiated assets solving different problems. That’s real diversification.
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Important Disclosures
Bitcoin (BTC) is a decentralized digital currency, without a central bank or single administrator, that can be sent from user to user on the peer-to-peer bitcoin network without the need for intermediaries.
Please note that VanEck may offer investments products that invest in the asset class(es) or industries included in this blog.
This is not an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation to buy or sell any of the securities, financial instruments or digital assets mentioned herein. The information presented does not involve the rendering of personalized investment, financial, legal, tax advice, or any call to action. Certain statements contained herein may constitute projections, forecasts and other forward-looking statements, which do not reflect actual results, are for illustrative purposes only, are valid as of the date of this communication, and are subject to change without notice. Actual future performance of any assets or industries mentioned are unknown. Information provided by third party sources are believed to be reliable and have not been independently verified for accuracy or completeness and cannot be guaranteed. VanEck does not guarantee the accuracy of third party data. The information herein represents the opinion of the author(s), but not necessarily those of VanEck or its other employees.
The models are not mutual funds or other types of securities and will not be registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission as investment companies under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and no units or shares of the models will be registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, nor will they be registered with any state securities regulator. Accordingly, the models are not subject to compliance with the requirements of such acts.
S&P 500 Index consists of 500 widely held common stocks covering industrial, utility, financial and transportation sector. MSCI Emerging Markets Index tracks large and mid-cap representation across emerging markets countries. MSCI EAFE Index is designed to represent the performance of large and mid-cap securities across 21 developed markets, including countries in Europe, Australasia and the Far East, excluding the U.S. and Canada.
There are inherent risks with equity investing. These risks include, but are not limited to stock market, manager, or investment style. Stock markets tend to move in cycles, with periods of rising prices and periods of falling prices.
There are inherent risks with fixed income investing. These risks may include interest rate, call, credit, market, inflation, government policy, liquidity, or junk bond. When interest rates rise, bond prices fall. This risk is heightened with investments in longer duration fixed-income securities and during periods when prevailing interest rates are low or negative.
Emerging Market securities are subject to greater risks than U.S. domestic investments. These additional risks may include exchange rate fluctuations and exchange controls; less publicly available information; more volatile or less liquid securities markets; and the possibility of arbitrary action by foreign governments, or political, economic or social instability.
Investments in commodities can be very volatile and direct investment in these markets can be very risky, especially for inexperienced investors.
Gold investments are subject to the risks associated with concentrating its assets in the gold industry, which can be significantly affected by international economic, monetary and political developments. Investments in gold may decline in value due to developments specific to the gold industry. Foreign gold security investments involve risks related to adverse political and economic developments unique to a country or a region, currency fluctuations or controls, and the possibility of arbitrary action by foreign governments, or political, economic or social instability. Gold investments are subject to risks associated with investments in U.S. and non-U.S. issuers, commodities and commodity-linked derivatives, commodities and commodity-linked derivatives tax, gold-mining industry, derivatives, emerging market securities, foreign currency transactions, foreign securities, other investment companies, management, market, non-diversification, operational, regulatory, small- and medium-capitalization companies and subsidiary risks.
Digital asset investments are subject to significant risk and may not be suitable for all investors. Digital asset prices are highly volatile, and the value of digital assets, can rise or fall dramatically and quickly. If their value goes down, there’s no guarantee that it will rise again. As a result, there is a significant risk of loss of your entire principal investment.
All investing is subject to risk, including the possible loss of the money you invest. As with any investment strategy, there is no guarantee that investment objectives will be met and investors may lose money. Diversification does not ensure a profit or protect against a loss in a declining market. Past performance is no guarantee of future performance.
© Van Eck Associates Corporation.
Intelligently-designed exposure across asset classes for diversified portfolios
Important Disclosures
Bitcoin (BTC) is a decentralized digital currency, without a central bank or single administrator, that can be sent from user to user on the peer-to-peer bitcoin network without the need for intermediaries.
Please note that VanEck may offer investments products that invest in the asset class(es) or industries included in this blog.
This is not an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation to buy or sell any of the securities, financial instruments or digital assets mentioned herein. The information presented does not involve the rendering of personalized investment, financial, legal, tax advice, or any call to action. Certain statements contained herein may constitute projections, forecasts and other forward-looking statements, which do not reflect actual results, are for illustrative purposes only, are valid as of the date of this communication, and are subject to change without notice. Actual future performance of any assets or industries mentioned are unknown. Information provided by third party sources are believed to be reliable and have not been independently verified for accuracy or completeness and cannot be guaranteed. VanEck does not guarantee the accuracy of third party data. The information herein represents the opinion of the author(s), but not necessarily those of VanEck or its other employees.
The models are not mutual funds or other types of securities and will not be registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission as investment companies under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and no units or shares of the models will be registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, nor will they be registered with any state securities regulator. Accordingly, the models are not subject to compliance with the requirements of such acts.
S&P 500 Index consists of 500 widely held common stocks covering industrial, utility, financial and transportation sector. MSCI Emerging Markets Index tracks large and mid-cap representation across emerging markets countries. MSCI EAFE Index is designed to represent the performance of large and mid-cap securities across 21 developed markets, including countries in Europe, Australasia and the Far East, excluding the U.S. and Canada.
There are inherent risks with equity investing. These risks include, but are not limited to stock market, manager, or investment style. Stock markets tend to move in cycles, with periods of rising prices and periods of falling prices.
There are inherent risks with fixed income investing. These risks may include interest rate, call, credit, market, inflation, government policy, liquidity, or junk bond. When interest rates rise, bond prices fall. This risk is heightened with investments in longer duration fixed-income securities and during periods when prevailing interest rates are low or negative.
Emerging Market securities are subject to greater risks than U.S. domestic investments. These additional risks may include exchange rate fluctuations and exchange controls; less publicly available information; more volatile or less liquid securities markets; and the possibility of arbitrary action by foreign governments, or political, economic or social instability.
Investments in commodities can be very volatile and direct investment in these markets can be very risky, especially for inexperienced investors.
Gold investments are subject to the risks associated with concentrating its assets in the gold industry, which can be significantly affected by international economic, monetary and political developments. Investments in gold may decline in value due to developments specific to the gold industry. Foreign gold security investments involve risks related to adverse political and economic developments unique to a country or a region, currency fluctuations or controls, and the possibility of arbitrary action by foreign governments, or political, economic or social instability. Gold investments are subject to risks associated with investments in U.S. and non-U.S. issuers, commodities and commodity-linked derivatives, commodities and commodity-linked derivatives tax, gold-mining industry, derivatives, emerging market securities, foreign currency transactions, foreign securities, other investment companies, management, market, non-diversification, operational, regulatory, small- and medium-capitalization companies and subsidiary risks.
Digital asset investments are subject to significant risk and may not be suitable for all investors. Digital asset prices are highly volatile, and the value of digital assets, can rise or fall dramatically and quickly. If their value goes down, there’s no guarantee that it will rise again. As a result, there is a significant risk of loss of your entire principal investment.
All investing is subject to risk, including the possible loss of the money you invest. As with any investment strategy, there is no guarantee that investment objectives will be met and investors may lose money. Diversification does not ensure a profit or protect against a loss in a declining market. Past performance is no guarantee of future performance.
© Van Eck Associates Corporation.