Live Q&A with Rick Rule, hosted by Steve Barton 📱

Rick Rule argues resource equities remain attractive despite recent runs, with gold mining shares supported by rising free cash flow and accelerating M&A. He says the sector is not obviously expensive relative to the earnings/cash-flow outlook, and for investors underweight the space, exposure still makes sense — though those already heavily allocated may not need to add more. A key warning in the discussion is liquidity risk. Rule says a combination of persistent inflation, higher rates, rising tax burdens and private-equity stress could trigger a broader liquidity scare, potentially even a 2008-style event. In that scenario, overexposed investors could become involuntary sellers regardless of the underlying fundamentals, so portfolio liquidity matters as much as conviction. On mining-sector consolidation, Rule says the industry has too many management teams and too much duplicated G&A, making mergers financially logical. Bigger companies also tend to gain index inclusion and passive flows, which can support share prices and lower cost of capital. His takeaway is that M&A should continue to be a major tailwind for gold equities even if the macro backdrop remains volatile.