The Gold Report: In your latest book, "The Demographic Cliff: How to Survive and Prosper During the Great Deflation of 20142019," you write about the aging of the Baby Boomers and the wave of Gen-X'ers that follows. What does that tell you about the next five years?
Harry Dent: I discovered this relationship, which I call the spending wave, in 1988. Peak spending happens at about age 46 in the U.S., Japan and most developed countries. That is when a generation will earn, spend and borrow the most money. After that age, spending declines.
More than 20 years ago, we predicted Japanese spending would peak in the late 1980s, and U.S. spending around 2007. Now, Europe is hitting its demographic peak and will start dropping off. The drop off will be especially steep in Germany, the United Kingdom, Austria and Switzerland some of the strongest economies in Europe. How will Europe's rebound continue with these countries plunging in the years ahead?
TGR: Much of Germany's economic strength is based on exports. Would that protect Germany through the decline? Continue reading "How to Prosper in the Coming Downturn"
