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David Bell

Age pension reform: income taper change is unlikely

Tapering is the rate at which pensions reduce as other sources of income increase. A change is unlikely to make it onto Joe Hockey's list of pensions amendments in the upcoming budget.

Squiggly lines and lessons in market timing

Obviously it’s best to sell high and buy low, but in the irrational world of stock markets, the past may offer little guide to the future. The most we can realistically expect is to learn how to tilt the odds in our favour.

Pension indexation is a $300 billion question

With the budget in deficit, debate about the sustainability of welfare and spending gathers pace. Looking at pension indexation alone, the two methods used differ by $300 billion in revenue between now and 2050.

Bruce Springsteen and Professor Robert Engle

Professor Engle received the 2003 Nobel Prize for his work on volatility, but he's moved on to systemic risk, and his calculations are far from reassuring. He also has a free website full of useful data.

Age pension reform and its consequences for financial plans

It's highly likely that the age pension will experience future reforms. A useful financial plan should model a reduction in pensions, rather than making an assumption that it'll be there when the money runs out.

The effect of real wage changes on retirement incomes

The impact of real wage growth on your future retirement income depends a lot on your pre-retirement position. Will you be kept in the manner to which you have become accustomed or will some adjustments need to be made?

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Taxation

3 ways to defuse intergenerational anger

With the upcoming budget increasingly likely to include bold proposals to alter the tax code I’ve outlined three incremental steps with fewer unintended consequences.

Economy

Why an extended US-Iran war will punish mortgage holders

The impact of the Iran War is far more than expensive petrol. Higher oil prices have secondary inflationary impacts that reverberate throughout the economy which could be bad news for Australians with mortgages.

Infrastructure

Don’t forget the yield

Global Listed Infrastructure dividends are forecast to grow 5-6% p.a over the next two years. After a hiatus, share buybacks are back on the agenda and will play an integral role in shareholder returns.

Iran war hands politicians free ticket to blame oil prices for inflation

Past oil shocks offer lessons for investors dealing with the fallout from the Iran War and the ongoing impact on inflation.

Economy

Japan 2026: A new PM heralds a new golden age?

Former Australian Prime Minister, Paul Keating, once said "When you change the government, you change the country." We're about to see whether that holds true in Japan.

Investment strategies

Why are central banks moving from US Treasuries to gold?

Central banks now hold more gold reserves than US Treasuries, signalling a shift in safe-haven asset strategy and portfolio diversification as geopolitical risks increase.

Strategy

Has global human wellbeing peaked? What the data reveals

Historically economic progress is measured by GDP growth but there is an increasing body of work that explores quantitative measures of wellbeing.

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