" It’s good news that the S&P 500 has staged a mini comeback over the past two days. But it’s not great—the index is still well below the peak and down 3.5% this year. The uncertainty around President Donald Trump’s tariffs isn’t going away soon.

As the broader market weakened, two assets have kept going up. One is the stock of Berkshire Hathaway, the conglomerate run by billionaire Warren Buffett, which finished at a new record Tuesday. The other is gold, which closed above $3,000 an ounce for the first time.

At first glance, the main thing the two have in common is that they’re safe havens. Gold has been used for thousands of years as a store of value.

Buffett doesn’t have quite as long a record, but Berkshire’s performance is storied impressive. It built up a huge cash pile as the market was rising at the end of last year, and Buffett didn’t see any great opportunities. But now that looks prescient—the stock is up 15% this year, quite a contrast with the S&P. In fact, Berkshire shares have beaten the index over the past three, five, 10, and 20 years.

Of course, Berkshire and gold were also rising along with the rest of the market before the recent slump. Maybe they can be speculative assets, too. It’s an illustration of the fact that the reasons for buying can change, and people can buy for different reasons that are contradictory.

The question now is whether the two can keep rising. As seasoned investors know, past performance is no guarantee of future gains. Analysts at ING and UBS say gold can go higher. For what it’s worth, most strategists surveyed by FactSet give Berkshire a Hold rating.

The fact that gold and Berkshire shares hit highs on the same day the broader market went up hints that, while investors may be looking for less risk, sentiment hasn’t completely soured. That could be a silver lining for stocks."

—Brian Swint