+1

A fund that does not mark down properly may fail redemptions, which could expose the fund family and board to worse legal and sentiment risks. Russia did not have a stock market for nearly 70 years before the 1990s. There is no saying that it will not happen again - it does have a history of enabling (fascination for) strongmen who by nature do not conform to norms.

The Corcoran Group Australian writer and director Baz Luhrmann and his wife and creative partner Catherine Martin are listing their New York home, a 19th-century townhouse with a bold, colorful interior, for $19.995 million. The 28-foot-wide Gramercy area property dates to the 1850s and has views over Stuyvesant Square, one of the city’s oldest parks. Anglo-Italianate in style, the house has stately proportions, with four rows of round-arched windows, a paneled cornice and a patterned cast-iron balcony that runs the width of the house. Mr. Luhrmann, director of films including “The Great Gatsby”and “Moulin Rouge,”and Ms. Martin, a costume designer and his frequent collaborator, purchased the property for their family for $13.5 million in 2017 and completed a multiyear renovation project. New Yorkers for over a decade …
They had planned to live there full-time, but the pandemic threw a wrench in the works, keeping them on the Gold Coast of Australia, where they have been their two children have reached around college age and the couple is on the verge of becoming empty-nesters. “We just thought, ‘This is ridiculous.’”Ms. Martin said of their decision to list the home. “The house has been empty for nearly three years. And somebody should be enjoying it. But it’s breaking our hearts.”It isn’t the first time the couple, who have a passion for historic homes, have been reluctant to sell a piece of real estate even long after it was practical.
Excerpted from: The Wall Street Journal - March 4, 2022
Article: “Baz Luhrmann to List Manhattan Townhouse for $19.995 Million” by Katherine Clarke

Guys, c'mon, yes, kind of silly the article's comment about Canada...the author was trying to make a point..I wasn't following it closely but wasn't there talk or actual action of freezing bank accounts etc with the trucker protest...that is what I beleive the author was referring to...who decides what is proper, and who decides and has the power to freeze, confiscate, sanction your wealth outside of exisiting norms/laws? FWIW, I am dual citizen, born in Canada.
To the point of Old Joe's interest of common good, which I completely agree with....does remind me when I moved into my new neighborhood and was talking to a neighbor about the HOA and rational thinking...he told me with a smile, "I believe your thinking is rational as long as it agrees with mine"
How does it work with Bitcoin though...don't you have to declare and pay taxes on it? Is the question how does the gov't prove it, no 1099 etc, so some are not paying taxes on it? I don't hold any so I don't know, but my CPA did ask me if I held any the other day when prepping taxes.
Curious as to if the class would be ok with a US Dollar digital currency? I do know many who would not be comfortable with that. I dunno.
Best,
Baseball Fan

That would be the worst scenario in geopolitical risk! Will China buy Russian bonds as their only lifeline?
In addition, this month's Commentary made reference to M* on bond funds with sizable exposure (8-16%) to Russian bonds.
https://morningstar.com/articles/1081969/which-funds-had-heavy-holdings-of-russian-debt

Data from M* or TRP on holdings are dated through 1/31/2022. If he is buying Apple, that would be a new position for the fund. It will be awhile before it reaches top 10 holdings given the large asset base. Health care and technology are the largest sectors he invested in.

@Sven said “What about those who own EM local currency bond funds, and will those Russian debt goes to zero?” From the same issue of The Wall Street Journal, March 4
Article: “Some Russian Bond Trading Defrosts as Investors Hunt for Deals”
Excerpt:
The freeze that Western sanctions put on Russian bond markets is starting to thaw despite the looming risk of the country’s first potential default in over two decades. Resumption of trading is crucial for pension funds, insurers and money managers that are struggling to divest their Russian securities because most transactions halted when sanctions were imposed. The banks and clearinghouses that intermediate trading have resumed some activity as they try to balance their client’s needs against the risk of running afoul of current or future sanctions. For now, trading is primarily between international banks and investors in dollar-denominated government and corporate debt, fund managers said.
The market is still in limbo for Russian treasury bonds, a component of a widely followed index maintained by JPMorgan Chase & Co. “The dollar stuff is trading but at very distressed levels. Its sellers are wanting to get rid of it at any price, and there are some buyers willing to pick it up at these levels,”said Viktor Szabo, an emerging-market fund manager at Abrdn. A Russian government dollar bond due in 2026 was quoted around 20 cents on the dollar on Wednesday, down from about 100 last week … Wall Street banks have resumed trading of some Russian corporate bonds but are demanding trades settle a day faster than usual.

Pretty messy for sure. Just reviewed our holdings and Russian stock exposure is quite small in our already small EM funds. Pimco Income, PIMIX holds 1.5% Russian bonds. This week it loss over 2%. What about those who own EM local currency bond funds, and will those Russian debt goes to zero?

Here’s an extended excerpt from the March 4 print edition of The Wall Street Journal. Article by Justin Baer
Excerpt:
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has created a conundrum for U.S. investment firms, pressuring them to unload Russian securities when the country’s stock market is closed and foreigners are blocked from selling shares there. In response to sanctions and other steps the U.S. and other countries have taken to punish Russia, the Moscow exchange suspended stock trading every day this week through Thursday. Russia on Monday banned brokers from selling securities owned by foreign investors.
Some U.S. money managers with Russian securities held in funds that focus on emerging markets are worried that their investors will pull money over concern about their Russian exposure. If they can’t sell Russian shares to meet the demand, funds could be forced to deplete cash on hand or sell other assets. That could deliver a double whammy for emerging-market managers: a reduction in the share of their funds in liquid assets that coincides with an increase in the weightings of their Russian holdings.
Some firms are thinking about asking the Securities and Exchange Commission for relief from a cap on the proportion of illiquid securities that funds can hold—currently 15%—and from rules governing redemptions, people familiar with the matter said. An SEC spokesman declined to comment. BlackRock Inc. is one of several money managers that have had informal discussions with SEC officials on the challenges they face and ways in which the pressure could be alleviated …
U.S. mutual funds and exchange-traded funds owned more than $71 billion in Russian equities and bonds at the end of January, according to Morningstar Direct estimates. Clients of some mutual funds that hold Russian stocks and bonds pulled more money than they added last month. Net outflows from Invesco Ltd.’s Developing Markets Fund, whose Russian stocks accounted for 7.9% of assets at year-end, totaled about $348 million in February, according to a preliminary estimate compiled by Morningstar Direct. Harding Loevner’s Institutional Emerging Markets Portfolio fund, with more than 8% invested in Russia at the start of February, had outflows of $221.6 million, Morningstar Direct said.

Yup @Bopa, I'm in and have been for a while.
I've watched the snippets of Cipollini III the fund mgr, formerly one of the fund mgr's of Berwyn Income and like what I hear. Rational thinking, talks to picking up holdings during volatility in the markets...I know he would make better decisions than me during the frequent market schmeissings, the fund allows me to stay invested during the large downdraft days. I also like that he is I'm guessing 15 years or so younger than me so I'm thinking I can hold this one as I get older, maybe?
Stock portfolio portion is balanced between small, mid, large stonks, some intl stocks, def value stocks, real balanced between categories meaning defensives, cyclicals, market senstitive segments.
I think he was in something like 20% cash going into 2022 which likely assisted the positioning of the fund.
Someone here did mention the co-port mgr, Saylor left the fund several months ago?
This one, HSAFX Hussy and PVCMX Palm Valley have been some funds that have allowed me to stay invested over the past few months.
I do remember when he was running BERIX few years back, there was a posted brochure on their website that going back 10 years, drawing down THE 4% every year, the BERIX fund then co managed by Cippollini III, actually increased in value even when accounting for the withdrawls. Maybe he can make that happen here too?
FWIW, from my perspective, it's a keeper, YMMV.
Good Luck to All,
Baseball Fan

Is anyone falling PMEFX or have it as a part of your portfolio? It seems to be holding up well so far this year. Down .79%

there are a ton such, and the one I cited is like 11y old

This link should pull up the list & photos if interested

Suddenly it's gonna dawn on you ... Datsun Saves.

1984 (US) name change to Nissan

+1

I thought in the light of world events it was worth taking a second look at Wien’s yearly predictions - a tradition dating back now for decades.
Nothing about Russia invading Ukraine.
He did predict oil topping $100.00
And, while gold hasn’t set a new record high as he forecast yet, it appears headed in that direction.
Predictions

Kind of interesting.....Russian ADRs are still ok to trade, but Russian stocks are not.
"Friday at 4 a.m., the NYSE Arca brought trading of the iShares MSCI Russia ETF (ERUS) to a halt. The reasons cited were its exposure to the Russian market, MSCI’s removal of Russian stocks from its indexes and the closure of Russia’s stock market, according to a press release.
The $124 million VanEck Russia ETF (RSX) continues to trade; however, while ERUS holds Russian stocks, RSX mainly holds depositary receipts, which are not currently restricted from trading."

Dear Wife had a 1970 240Z exactly like this ONE. But, alas; was sold to provide for a Masters Degree.

+1 Mark