The Gold Hour
with Alan Johnson
A full hour, twice a week. No breaks, no call centre, no panic selling — just what is actually happening to money and what it means for a retirement.
- September 2, 2026 · 00:58:17
War broke out and gold went down
The military hit two Iranian rocket launchers on Sunday. Oil jumped. Gold fell. Most people would tell you that is backwards — and understanding why it happened explains how this market really works.
- August 26, 2026 · 00:56:50
The inflation number, three hours old
The government released the inflation figure the Federal Reserve watches three hours before air. Alan opens it live and reads the part underneath the headline — the part that does not make the news.
- August 23, 2026 · 00:57:22
Forty trillion, from Malibu
The Treasury reported the national debt crossed a number with a lot of zeros, and that same week gold closed its best week since spring. Alan takes the number apart the way a banker walks you through your own statement — and shows the rule of finance the market threw out the window this week.
- August 19, 2026 · 00:59:15
Three billion dollars a day
America's interest bill passed Medicare for the first time and broke a record standing since 1991. On the same Tuesday, the world's lenders repriced every big borrower on earth. Plus the Fed minutes, opened live.
- August 16, 2026 · 00:58:18
The report and the receipt
Washington said inflation is cooling. The same week, gas hit its highest August price on record, paychecks lost to prices for a fourth straight month, and shoppers cut spending the most in over a year. The hour is about the space between the report and the receipt.
- July 15, 2026 · 00:58:20
The machine is already broken
An analyst wrote one line this week that stopped Alan cold: the machine is already broken, it simply has not been told yet. A full hour on the borrowed time between when something breaks and when everyone finds out.
- July 12, 2026 · 00:58:15
The signal that passed the dot-com peak
A momentum signal in the stock market has gone past where it stood in 2000, before the NASDAQ fell nearly 80%. Not approaching it, past it. What that means for a retirement account, in plain English.