Register to receive our free weekly newsletter including editorials.
Monday, 21 September 2020
Recently trending Everything my friends need to know about investingWho's next? Discounts on LICs force managers to pivotWelcome to Firstlinks Edition 373Four simple things to do right nowWelcome to Firstlinks Edition 374
John Pearce, Chief Investment Officer, Unisuper: "Out of the (many many) investmentrelated emails I get, Cuffelinks is one that I always open."
Don Stammer, leading Australian economist: "Congratulations to all associated. It deserves the good following it has."
Reader: " Finding a truly independent and interesting read has been magical for me. Please keep it up and don't change!"
John Egan, Egan Associates: "My heartiest congratulations. Your panel of contributors is very impressive and keep your readers fully informed."
Steve: "The best that comes into our world each week. This is the only one that is never, ever canned before fully being reviewed by yours truly."
Rob Henshaw: "When I open my computer each day it's the first link I click - a really great read."
Reader: "Congratulations on a great focussed news source. Australia has a dearth of good quality unbiased financial and wealth management news."
Reader: "Keep it up - the independence is refreshing and is demonstrated by the variety of well credentialed commentators."
Reader: "The BEST in the game because of diversity and not aligned to financial products. Stands above all the noise."
Australian Investors Association: "Australia's foremost independent financial newsletter for professionals and self-directed investors."
Reader: "An island of professionalism in an ocean of shallow self-interest. Well done!"
Scott Pape, author of The Barefoot Investor: "I'm an avid reader of Cuffelinks. Thanks for the wonderful resource you have here, it really is first class."
Reader: "I subscribe to two newsletters. This is my first read of the week. Thank you. Excellent and please keep up the good work!"
Reader: "It's excellent so please don't pollute the content with boring mainstream financial 'waffle' and adverts for stuff we don't want!"
Ian Silk, CEO, AustralianSuper: "It has become part of my required reading: quality thinking, and (mercifully) to the point."
Ian Kelly, CFP, BTACS Financial Services: "Probably the best source of commentary and information I have seen over the past 20 years."
Reader: "Is one of very few places an investor can go and not have product rammed down their throat. Love your work!"
Andrew Buchan, Partner, HLB Mann Judd: "I have told you a thousand times it's the best newsletter."
Jonathan Hoyle, CEO, Stanford Brown: "A fabulous publication. The only must-read weekly publication for the Australian wealth management industry."
Vishal Teckchandani, Content Editor, nabtrade: "Exceptional investment literature of the highest possible quality."
Reader: "Carry on as you are - well done. The average investor/SMSF trustee needs all the help they can get."
Reader: "Great resource. Cuffelinks is STILL the one and only weekly newsletter I regularly read."
Reader: "I can quickly sort the items that I am interested in, then research them more fully. It is also a regular reminder that I need to do this."
Reader: "Love it, just keep doing what you are doing. It is the right length too, any longer and it might become a bit overwhelming."
David Goldschmidt, Chartered Accountant: "I find this a really excellent newsletter. The best I get. Keep up the good work!"
Noel Whittaker, author and financial adviser: "A fabulous weekly newsletter that is packed full of independent financial advice."
Eleanor Dartnall, AFA Adviser of the Year, 2014: "Our clients love your newsletter. Your articles are avidly read by advisers and they learn a great deal."
Reader: "Best innovation I have seen whilst an investor for 25 years. The writers are brilliant. A great publication which I look forward to."
With gold now on the radar of individual investors, SMSFs and institutions, here's what you need to know about the choices between gold bars, gold ETFs and even gold miners, with Jordan Eliseo.
As uncertainty intensifies around geopolitics and markets, gold has rallied strongly in 2020. While most investors think of gold for price growth, does it deliver defensive features to a diversified portfolio?
An investment in gold without hedging the currency risk of the USD price can deliver portfolio diversification and protection, with the AUD price often rising when equity markets are falling.
SMSF trustees are concerned about stock market volatility and low interest rates, and they asked six important questions during this seminar on whether gold has a role in their portfolios.
The ratio of the S&P500 to the gold price is a useful indicator of the mood of the market. A high ratio indicates that equities are expensive relative to gold, and the ratio has been falling recently.
Although gold is not an income-producing investment, the price tends to do well when equity markets fall and interest rates are low. The recent strength is in response to perceived greater risks in financial markets.
It’s been 21 years since the RBA sold the majority of Australia’s national gold reserves. The decision cost the nation AUD5 billion. Is it time to rebuild gold reserves with the opportunity cost now much lower?
For many Asian families, getting money into safe haven countries often takes precedence over what to do with the money when it gets there. This year the hot fad was Australian residential property.
Great speculative mining booms occur about once every 30 years or so in Australia. This year marks the conclusion of my decade-long plunge into mining stocks. I will probably be very old or gone before the next price surge.
The deep financial, economic and political crises came to a head at the end of the 1970s when the US Government defaulted on its debt. It became the dawn of a brand new era of growth and prosperity for Americans.
Falling gold prices this year have scared off many gold investors, and traditional financial asset buyers are unlikely to return in time for a rally.
For much of the last 2,500 years, one ounce of gold has been able to buy items worth the equivalent of around USD500 in today’s dollars adjusted for inflation. But retail buyers are rushing to buy physical gold at current levels.
Based on a long investing career, the author sets out his beliefs without attempting to justify them here. Readers can agree or disagree. It's his guide for friends and family with an actionable variation for risk appetite.
The boards and managers of six high-profile LICs, frustrated by their shares trading at large discounts to asset value, have embarked on radical strategies to fix the problems. Will they work?
It was a milestone for strange times last week when the company with the longest record in the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) index, ExxonMobil, once the largest company in the world, was replaced by a software company, Salesforce. Only one company in the original DJIA exists today. As businesses are disrupted, how many of the current DJIA companies will disappear in the next decade or two?
Markets have recovered in the last six months but most investors remain nervous about the economic outlook. Morningstar analysts provide four quick tips on how to navigate this uncertainty.
Suddenly, it's the middle of September and we don't hear much about 'snap back' anymore. Now we have 'wind backs' and 'road maps'. Six months ago, I was flying back from Antarctica after two weeks aboard the ill-fated Greg Mortimer cruise ship, and then the world changed. So it's time to take your temperature again. Our survey checks your reaction to recent policies and your COVID-19 responses.
Many property trust results are better than expected, with the A-REIT sector on a dividend yield of 4.8%. But there's a wide variation by sector and the ability of tenants to pay the rent.