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Friday, 29 October 2021
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Battle lines: Coalition v Labor super, Zali v Tony, industry funds v the rest, Value v Growth stock picks, 5 myths, 35% recession, does diversity work?
Rarely do we go into an election with such contrasting policies from the major parties, and no more so than in superannuation. The nation's decision on 18 May will have a big impact on retirement savings.
Many investors assume infrastructure is simply a sub sector of the stockmarket, and will behave as other shares. But the myths fail to recognise the special long-term characteristics that give more resilience.
Despite some challenges, not all companies that are consumer-focussed face difficult times. Some are well-positioned, and the market has sold them off to relatively low valuation multiples.
As heads turn to the hottest tech or niche stock, some companies in traditional business sectors get left behind because they are boring. But overlooked means not overcooked.
SMSFs are currently the largest segment of superannuation, but by 2020, industry funds are expected to dominate, having recently overtaken retail funds. Labor's franking proposal will accelerate the trend.
The US inverted yield curve has many worried about whether it indicates a coming recession, but the Fed has moved to a more dovish stance. A diversity of equity and bond exposures is the best way to cope.
Most companies recognise the benefits of employee diversity for better decision-making, but it's not only about choosing people from different backgrounds. There must be an effective means of aggregating views.
We tend to forget that house prices often fall. Direct lending controls are more effective than rate rises because macroprudential limits affect the volume of money for housing leaving business rates untouched.
The survey drew a fantastic 2,000 responses with over 1,000 comments and polar opposite views on what is good policy. Do most people believe the home should be in the age pension asset test, and what do they say?
Any policy decision needs to recognise who is affected by a change. It pays to check the data on who pays taxes, who owns assets and who earns the income to ensure an equitable and efficient outcome.
With articles on the pensions assets test read about 40,000 times, 3,500 survey responses and thousands of comments, there was a lot of great reader participation. A few comments added extra insights.
It is hard to think of any area of widespread public concern where the same policies have been pursued for so long, in the face of such incontrovertible evidence that they have failed to achieve their objectives.
There are reasons to believe inflation will stay under control, and although we may see a slowing in the global economy, two companies should benefit from the themes of 'Stable Compounders' and 'Structural Winners'.