Why BRICS’ Cornerstone isn’t Gold

Written by Bryan Lutz, Editor at Dollarcollapse.com:

 

Gold belongs to its owners.

Every agreement after that works just like a barter system.

And the BRICS alliance effort to crush the US dollar is just that. It’s an agreement.

The fact that “together” they own a lot of gold doesn’t mean much at all if differences can’t be worked out internally.

Or, if the prospect of violent conflict is in the near future.

Nations want to protect their own.

And that seems to be what’s happening.

Asia Times reports:

Rio summit made clear BRICS is sliding towards irrelevance

“The BRICS group of nations has just concluded its 17th annual summit in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro. 

But, despite member states adopting a long list of commitments covering global governance, finance, health, AI and climate change, the summit was a lackluster affair.

The two most prominent leaders from the group’s founding members – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – were conspicuously absent. 

One was Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, who attended only virtually due to an outstanding arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court over his role in the war in Ukraine.

China’s Xi Jinping avoided the summit altogether for unknown reasons, sending his prime minister, Li Qiang, instead. 

This was Xi’s first no-show at a BRICS summit, with the snub prompting suggestions that Beijing’s enthusiasm for the group as part of an emerging new world order is in decline.”

It’s no secret China has been positioning themselves to become the global leader for over thirty years. Temporary alliances like BRICS feed the idea that partnerships are equal and everyone has mutual interests.

But in the end, the global currency power goes to the most trusted coin. Whether that is gold-backed, or the fiat-based US Dollar we use now. Agreements prosper after trade prospers, but mostly to the benefit of the dominant currency.

And that is the persuasion that is making it difficult for the BRICS alliance to maintain ties.

For example, China and India have long-standing love-hate relationship. They aren’t just competitors in local trade, they constantly compete for land along India’s northern border.

And recently, they are competing for manufacturing jobs for high profile names like Apple, which is now moving their iPhone build to India.

That being said, despite being so far apart, the United States is India’s largest trading partner, which means that stifling trade with the US dollar and the United States would only inflict self-harm.

 

Times of India reports:

India-US Trade Ties

“India’s largest trading partner since 2021-22 has been the United States. The bilateral trade figures for 2024-25 reached $131.84 billion, comprising $86.51 billion in exports, $45.33 in imports, resulting in a trade surplus of $41.18 billion.

In the April-May period of the current fiscal year, India’s merchandise exports to the United States increased by 21.78 per cent, reaching $17.25 billion. 

Similarly, imports grew by 25.8 per cent to $8.87 billion. Services trade between the two nations expanded from $54.1 billion in 2018 to approximately $70.5 billion in 2024.

The United States represents a significant market for Indian entreprises, particularly in sectors including profession, scientific, and technical services, manufacturing, and information technology. 

In terms of India’s overall trade composition, the United States contributes approximately 18 per cent of total goods exports, over 6 per cent of imports, and roughly 11 per cent of bi-lateral trade.”

 

So, BRICS is only as good as its agreements, and BRICS’ agreements are only as good as it allows for each nation’s prosperity.

The fact that they hold a lot of gold only matters if the agreement stays strong…

In the end, gold is private property.

Each State owns its own. Not BRICS.

And that’s why BRICS cornerstone isn’t gold. The real threats to the dollar are debt, distrust, and devaluation.