There Xi goes again – Sound Economies with Mel & Peter, 17 September 2026

Preparatory talks are underway ahead of President Xi Jinping’s meeting with US President Donald Trump in the White House. We expect the tariff war and rare earths exports on the agenda, but we think that the US will seek China’s support in the Russia-Ukraine war. This episode, we also look at the success of New Zealand’s sovereign fund, Indonesia’s newest finance chief, and forecasts that the Hormuz strait will remain shut until December.

Timestamp:

(00:00) – Episode rundown

(00:26) – Intro

(00:54) – Quick updates

(01:33) – New Zealand’s wealth fund raises the bar high

(05:40) – Indonesia seats its new finance minister

(09:55) – Expectations on President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping’s meeting next week

(18:59) – Hormuz strait expected to stay closed until yearend

(23:17) – Our global outlook

(25:56) – Lundgreen’s Invest – High-Tech Defence Fund secures quadruple exit

(26:26) – Lundgreen’s Capital – Next big step: IPO in 2 years

“Sound Economies with Mel & Peter” is a weekly podcast where our founding CEO Peter Lundgreen and Manila-based Chief Economist for Southeast Asia and China Mel Lopez discuss what’s happening in economies around the world and their views of the global financial markets.

Tune in to this episode on Spotify, YouTube, and wherever you listen to podcasts.