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Edition 35

  •   11 October 2013
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Welcome from Chris Cuffe

Cuffelinks first published eight months ago, and we've had about 65,000 visits to our website, reading 160,000 pages. We know most of this is by word-of-mouth, so thank you for passing on to you friends and colleagues. For myself, reading the articles written by over 50 market professionals has given many fresh insights into investing.

If you're a baby boomer like me, we like to convince ourselves that 50 is the new 40, and when we reach a youthful 60, well, that will be the new 40 too! We're the generation that breaks the rules, that expects to kayak and surf and ski when our parents would have reached for their slippers and cardigans.

So I've often thought the word 'pension' was unfortunate in a superannuation context. It sounds like something you draw on when you're old and no longer working. But as Graeme Colley explains, we need to move beyond the word and see how tax-effective drawing a pension from our super can be even while we are working. And still young at heart.

Residential property continues to dominate the headlines, and Roger Montgomery makes a simple valuation using the same methods applied to other financial assets based on the expected cash flows. There's something about the way we fall in love with bricks and mortar that seems to push prices away from fundamental values.

Mercer has released its annual survey of superannuation systems around the world, and Harry Chemay explains the features of the Danish system that gives it the only 'A' rating in the global index.

Ashley Owen's article last week on the 1979 US Government defaults was given high profile in The Weekend AFR. In response to a reader asking, "What happened next?", he provides a brief summary of events in the following decade. History may repeat, as I cannot see President Obama backing away from this one.

IBISWorld is one of the world's leading providers of business information, and while many readers are intimately familiar with FOFA, it's useful to hear the perspective on the future of advice from such a reputable source.

Chris

Latest posts from Cuffelinks, 11 Oct 2013, Edition 35

  • Hey baby boomers, pension is not a dirty word Graeme Colley
  • Residential property fails simple valuation test Roger Montgomery
  • In super, the Danes are great, Australia a close third Harry Chemay
  • 1979 US Government defaults: what happened next? Ashley Owen
  • Painful transition to FOFA will pay off in the long term IBISWorld

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  •   11 October 2013
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