Canine Roundup

Readers who follow this kind of thing will note that we have already bailed out of the most recent spread trade. That happened at Monday close, but a broken computer, followed by disruptions in Telefónica's DSL service, have us reporting it today. It is clear what went wrong.

Inherently a bear market punt - betting, as it did, on Iberdrola Renovables not ordering all the wind turbines they have contracted from affiliate, Gamesa - thrown into the teeth of a short term bull. The loss was around ten percent (three of which being attributable to having thought about it for too long), and taken when IBR's 4.5% rise at the beginning of the week was nicely offset by a 14% same for GAM. The usual problem with countertrend plays - the more they go against you, the more convinced you are of your take. We might be back for that one another day.

A Bit of Publicity

A friend has begun publishing a monthly subscriber newsletter that distills the contents of recent academic research pertinent to followers and players of markets. We think it is a brilliant, and brilliantly executed, idea. Readers can look over the first issue of Academic Research Monitor here.

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