Tradewinds: The Ballast Blog about Current Trends and Our Thoughts on Financial Markets.

20/10 – October Market Commentary

Energy The price for a barrel of crude oil fell to close the month of October at $35.79 (WTI) after spending much of October above $40. This is causing chronic pain in the energy markets where a long list of companies have filed for bankruptcy protection, other...

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20/09 – September Market Commentary

Argentina Oh, Argentina! See our previous posts here. Earlier this month, after arduous negotiations, Argentina reached a breakthrough in debt negotiations when greater than 90% of bondholders agreed to tender their defaulted bonds for new, non-defaulted bonds. By the...

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20/08 – August Market Commentary

Berkshire Hathaway Several major actions were taken in the Berkshire portfolio during August, breaking an extended period of quiet. This is especially noteworthy because, for all the cash on hand, Berkshire has not made any major acquisitions following the panic...

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20/07 – July Market Commentary

Macro The dollar has declined to recent lows, as measured by the DXY index. The DXY index is measured against major trade partner currencies. It fell to $92.50 to close out July, a lower low than March when the year-to-date high of $102.50 and previous low of $94.60...

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20/06 – June Market Commentary

What a year to be alive. Pandemic. Global political turmoil. Military aggressions. Global central bank interventions on an unprecedented scale. Massive public market frauds – some realized, some unrealized. That was only the first half of the year. Six...

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20/05 – May Market Commentary

Jobless US jobless claims fell at the end of May but unemployment rate likely remains near record high. As has happened in the past, it seems this high unemployment rate will grind lower slowly. Restaurants are probably the most illustrative example – it...

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