this post was submitted on 21 Jan 2026
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[–] Sharlot@lemmy.world 5 points 8 hours ago

It’s a striking image, but it’s worth remembering how interconnected global finance really is—big moves tend to ripple, not flip a switch overnight.

[–] Zwrt@lemmy.sdf.org 1 points 8 hours ago

I am sure there is a better format image for this somewhere. I don’t know it though.

[–] Balldowern@lemmy.world 2 points 16 hours ago

At this point, I'm just looking forward to ww3.

[–] ayyy@sh.itjust.works 38 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Sell the bonds to whom, Ben? Asian Aquaman?

[–] Batman@lemmy.world 4 points 1 day ago (1 children)
[–] emergencyfood@sh.itjust.works 7 points 9 hours ago

China has been selling US treasury bonds over the last year.

[–] AdolfSchmitler@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago

I understood that reference

[–] Juice@midwest.social 16 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Trump admin: let's crash the global economy because it will force an asset bubble onto the EU, a crisis that will benefit the most wealthy like 8 people on the planet while harming most everyone else. This will solidify whoever can deliver this gift as the members of the ruling class of their respective hemispheres. Our military power will ensure we can just take what we want from whoever we want, destroy the EU as a regulatory hegemon, so the international ruling class can raid their social democracies like we did social services in the USA. It will also strike a blow to China whose relative strength is propped up by some amount of control over their economy, allowing them to avoid severe financial crashes, even though they have a number of huge bubbles within their own economy that might be forced to burst! Disunity among nations is a boon to big money, and we will all become kings

EU: bored after reading the first line Lets destroy the global economy first!

Guys its gonna be a wild fuckin ride, buckle up

[–] JackBinimbul@lemmy.blahaj.zone 9 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I wish an action like this would actually change things in the US, but it wouldn't.

The American people would continue to suffer and die--the most vulnerable and already marginalized first. Conservatives will get more hostile toward everyone else because of scarcity. They'll start shooting people at Wal-Mart over bread.

The rich will just white-knuckle grip their off shore bank accounts and move elsewhere.

[–] kent_eh@lemmy.ca 1 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

I wish an action like this would actually change things in the US, but it wouldn't

I suspect it is as much to insulate themselves from the chaos the US is causing as it is to punish or harm the Americans directly.

[–] JackBinimbul@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 points 8 hours ago

Oh, I completely get that. I just wish that such a near-global response to American hostility would result in a wake-up call.

[–] PedroMaldonado@lemmy.world 79 points 2 days ago (1 children)

All this shit didn't even have to happen but for the sack of rotten oranges posing as the president. WTF.

[–] ceenote@lemmy.world 86 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (10 children)

We need to fix the system that allowed him to become president. Both the electoral structure and the right-wing propaganda machine. And the useless opposition.

[–] SPRUNT@lemmy.world 7 points 1 day ago (2 children)

That would be the education system, and Republicans have spent decades doing everything they can to destroy it.

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[–] arrow74@lemmy.zip 49 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (15 children)

Correct me if I'm wrong here, but aren't we locked in a weird cycle where the US sells its debts to continue functioning, but then much of the system relies on the revenue generated from those debts being paid by the US.

If a sell off were to begin the price of bonds would plummet. The first countries to sell would be least impacted, but eventually the later countries are in bad shape. You can say sell at the "exact same time" but that's not really how financial markets work.

I suppose the US is still more reliant on these bonds, but I'd imagine a crashed dollar would have pretty large ramifications globally.

Of course of of this will happen anyway if the US decides to invade Greenland.

I can see where countries no longer invest in US bonds, but may be forced to hold onto these to not take a budgetary hit.

[–] wonderingwanderer@sopuli.xyz 22 points 2 days ago (6 children)

That's how it could create a runaway snowball effect. The first few countries to sell off their US bonds would be in the best position, after that the bonds' value starts to dip. Other countries see that and decide to sell off now before it gets worse, and the value dips further, accelerating as more and more countries realize they need to dump their US bonds asap cause it's only going to keep plummeting. The last ones to notice or act on it will be stuck with worthless bonds that will never recover their value.

That's how it would result in total economic collapse for america, and knowing that the sooner you drop the hot potato the better is what will create the rush to sell them off as soon as possible. How many initial sell-offs it would take to precipitate this effect is the question.

And since the crashed dollar will lower the purchasing power of anyone whose wealth or income is primarily in US dollars, anyone who drops these assets ahead of the game will be in the best shape. That's why a lot of US banks are currently buying gold; it's very likely to hold its value and is a very stable asset.

Assuming countries drop their USD-based assets before the crash, the relative values of their currencies should remain similar. For instance, the EUR to GBP conversion rate wouldn't change much. The more heavily invested in USD a nation's economy, the more detrimental the impact would be on their currency.

Commodity prices measured in USD for example would skyrocket, because the relative value of the USD would be crashing, but any currency that untethers from the US economy in time should remain stable relative to commodity prices, or possibly see some advantage if it gains value as a result of the USD crashing.

This is all contingent on countries dropping their US bonds and other assets, of course. The more dependent their wealth is on the US economy, the more detrimental the USD crash-out will be to that country and its currency. All the more incentive to be among the first to drop their US assets.

Even if they decide collectively not to do this, the AI bubble is going to burst sooner or later, and the further they kick the can down the road the worse the crash is going to be. Along with other trends like the US reversal of green energy initiatives while the fossil fuel industry is beginning to show cracks, the impending collapse of oil prices, etc., investing in USD is just really bad fiscal policy. People are only still doing it because they believe they can hold the jenga tower up long enough to grow their portfolios just a little more. Their greed will kick them in the ass if they hedge their bets too far...

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[–] shalafi@lemmy.world 23 points 1 day ago (2 children)

This would be like taking Musk's money by making him sell his stocks. Once the market is flooded with paper, it becomes less and less valuable, very quickly. Musk doesn't actually have hundreds of billions anymore than the UE has trillions in US treasuries.

I know that's ridiculously oversimplified, but someone has to buy those bonds, and the later you are to the selling table, the less you get.

[–] AGM@lemmy.ca 11 points 1 day ago

Yep, the massive bond dump is just a meme. It's financial MAD and would destroy the the finances of the countries selling off. Nobody wants it.

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[–] technocrit@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)

It's a global pyramid scheme. They can't just pick and choose.

[–] Doomsider@lemmy.world 3 points 17 hours ago

The wealthy and their corporations control everything, everything else is just convenient propaganda.

[–] NeatNit@discuss.tchncs.de 33 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (18 children)

Worth sharing: William Spaniel on YouTube is a political scientist, has written books about this kind of stuff, and REALLY knows what he's talking about. He discusses world events like this, and breaks them down really well so it's approachable and understandable for a clueless layman like myself. His videos are short and to the point, and can be listened to like a podcast instead of watched.

He mostly talks about wars, how and why they start, what is likely or unlikely to happen, things like that.

His latest video from yesterday about exactly how America's Greenland ideas would backfire: https://youtu.be/mQGMGnhC-NA

[–] ech@lemmy.ca 17 points 2 days ago (1 children)

exactly how America’s Greenland ideas would backfire

He sounds like a smart guy, but people keep treating this insanity as if it's not intentionally destructive. It's not backfiring if the point was to cause division and chaos.

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[–] Bullerfar@lemmy.world 6 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Thank you. Let's use this. Becoming the 3rd superpower of the World

[–] moonshadow@slrpnk.net 3 points 1 day ago (3 children)

Boromir-ass take, have you not read Lord of the Rings?

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