Bloomberg reports that Goldman Sachs, which managed to bag $3.44bn in the second-quarter, has astounded the market by its trading prowess in the period.

The news agency reports that, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, Goldman only lost money on two trading days during April, May and June, and that the firm made at least $50m on 58 of the 65 trading days in the period. Goldman also reaped profits of at least $100m on 46 days, 71% of the time!

Many think that Goldman's trading success is built on some kind of black magic formula, or cooked up by special recipe. Well, it's not. Our Highly-Placed Professional says: 'Many firms increased VAR when it became clear earlier this year that there would be no financial meltdown, but Goldman has the biggest risk appetite, and some of the smartest people who trade perhaps the broadest portfolio of products out there. And, just as importantly, their risk management tools are among the best on the Street'.

In the meantime, The Business Insider reports that Goldman President Gary Cohn has refuted any suggestion that his firm was close to collapse last September. 'We did not have a near-death experience', he is quoted, and is said to have pointed out that the US government may have saved the banking industry as a whole, but that it did not save Goldman Sachs.

And Reuters reports that Goldman has also confirmed in a filing that the US government has asked the firm about it compensation practices and the way it uses certain credit derivative products.

Finally, The New York Post ran an interesting little item earlier this week about Goldman CEO Lloyd Blankfein's wife. The story goes that Laura Blankfein and a friend were attending a charity bash last weekend, and became upset that they had to wait in line (to gain entry to the event) with other patrons 'who spend less money than me'. The newspaper quotes one observer who said that 'the woman were so impatient, it was as if they were waiting in line for a kidney transplant instead of a charitable designer clothing sale'. So much for keeping a low-profile, Lloyd!

But our sources tell us that this story is 'significantly exaggerated', and likens it to 'a castle built on sand'.

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