The Confluence Mailbag – No Solutions, Only Tradeoffs: Investor Self-Awareness, Oil's False Calm, and Fed Opacity (7/7/26)

Bill O'Grady and Mark Keller explore why investors should resist the temptation to abandon their core investment style during periods of market momentum. They unpack how oil prices surprisingly avoided a spike given recent events in the Strait of Hormuz, with a note of caution for future changes as the world adjusts. The conversation turns to Chair Warsh's first FOMC meeting and a likely shift toward reduced Fed transparency, closing with a look at the economic tradeoffs in today's world of no recessions and their long-term outlook for gold.