A Podcast Linking Elon Musk, Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Sid Vicious

Andrew Wilkinson, IBKR’s director of investor education, takes a look back at the best calls and key highlights of 2022 with his colleagues Steve Sosnick, chief strategist, and Jose Torres, senior economist.

Note: This podcast was recorded on December 5, 2022. 

Summary – IBKR Podcasts Ep. 52

The following is a summary of a live audio recording and may contain errors in spelling or grammar. Although IBKR has edited for clarity no material changes have been made.

Andrew Wilkinson

OK folks, so since it’s holiday season here at IBKR podcasts, we thought we’d have a little bit of fun and I’m going to do a few quick-fire questions with both of my guests here. Jose, I’m going to turn to you first, what film or song would you choose that best describes 2022 for you?

Jose Torres

We Didn’t Start the Fire [by] Billy Joel.

Andrew Wilkinson

Okay Steve, how about you?

Steve Sosnick

Well, my song that I put on our website earlier this year was “I’ve Been Down so Long (It Looks Like Up To Me)” But I think now that we’re not on the lows anymore, I probably need to rethink that. Possibly right now, for our crypto friends, I would say “The Crying Game” but certainly with Sam Bankman-Fried’s apology tour, I think that’s probably the most appropriate.

Andrew Wilkinson

All right, Steve, Let’s stick with you. Who’s your person of the year?

Steve Sosnick

I’ve got to go with Volodymyr Zelenskyy. I mean, I know that’s not necessarily the most out-of-the-box choice, but how do you not do that? And I won’t belabor, everybody knows what’s going on over there.

Andrew Wilkinson

Yeah, yeah. Jose, who’s your person of the year?

Jose Torres

Elon Musk.

Andrew Wilkinson

And Steve, how about your most notable moment of this year?

Steve Sosnick

You know, Russia invading Ukraine.

Andrew Wilkinson

Yeah, okay. Jose, have we reached peak Trump season or not?

Jose Torres

Absolutely, the Republican Party no longer has an appetite for his divisiveness and harsh tone. In the US elections are won with swing voters and Trump can’t get a few Democratic voters to switch sides and vote for him. President Reagan was able to do that appeal to both sides. Trump is terrible at it.

Andrew Wilkinson

Steve Sosnick, do you want to take the 5th, or do you want to answer the question?

Steve Sosnick

I’ll answer the question generically. I know we’re not supposed to talk politics really on these, but yeah, I we have. I think it’s clear, although as of today when we’re taping this, it’s shortly after his “Truth” about upending the Constitution, and yet there still there still is not a widespread condemnation from many of his former supporters.

The one person, the one thing, I’m kind of proud of this year was shortly around Jose’s event to the year, the takeover of Twitter. I posited on Traders’ Insight, have we reached peak Musk? And I stand by that call that we have reached peak Musk. We hear from him more and more but that was more or less his peak of wealth, and it was just before he basically spent $44 billion on something that was worth maybe half that.

Andrew Wilkinson

Sold. So, let’s have a look in your rearview mirror, Steve. What was your trade of the year?

Steve Sosnick

Just before we started the year — like December 28th or something, I’d have to look on the website — my call for 2022 is expect volatility. I think we can kind of check that one off on the win column and along with the have we reached peak Musk. Those are the two I’m sort of most proud of.

Andrew Wilkinson

Very good. Jose your favorite trade of the year?

Jose Torres

Well, the VIX at 20 has signaled investor complacency all year and pretty much all bear market rallies have ended right around the VIX being at 20.

Steve Sosnick

I’m going to turn tables on my friend Andrew Wilkinson and asked him the same questions that he just asked us, and I know I’m catching you off guard even though you wrote the questions. Andrew, what film or song describes 2022 for you?

Andrew Wilkinson

Well, it wouldn’t be a film, but for me it was — I think it was on Hulu — it’s called Pistol and it was a review. It was an insight into the birth of punk rock in the UK back in ‘75. Fantastic if you haven’t seen it, have a look at that, Pistol.

Steve Sosnick

The Sex Pistols describes 2022 for you?  God Save the Queen, I guess?

Andrew Wilkinson

God Save the Queen. That was going to be my Secret Santa gift to Steve Sosnick.  Well, it was going to be “My Way” by Sid Vicious and the Sex Pistols, but we were going to do it in a nice way for you Steve.  It was going to be Sex Pistols unplugged.

Steve Sosnick

Well, while we’re talking about Sid Vicious, who was your person of the year?

Andrew Wilkinson

It’s going to be Harry Kane, the England captain who took the England Football Team to World Cup glory this year and the first time in my life. I was born just after England won the World Cup in 1966 so I’ve not seen it in my lifetime, but that was a landmark year.

Steve Sosnick

Let me just say that while I hope that this becomes your trade of the year, we are taping this before the England-France match up in the round of 16, so I hope this comment ages better than some soft cheeses from France at this point.

Finally, have we … I won’t throw the peak Trump question at you, but I was going to ask your event of the year, but you’re preemptively calling an England World Cup win so I think that would have to suffice.

Andrew Wilkinson

I think so. It’s probably the moment when I jump up off the couch at home, here in New York State and proclaim England as champions of the world.

Steve Sosnick

On that happy note, hope it comes to pass for you and we’ll wrap up this silly version of IBKR Podcasts year-end Holiday Edition. Take care everybody.