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21 May 2025
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Duration is back. After years in the doghouse, shifting markets and higher yields are restoring its role as a reliable diversifier and income source - offering defensive strength in today’s uncertain environment.
After the recent market slump, it's a good time to brush up on the defensive asset classes – what they are, why hold them, and how they can both deliver on your goals and increase the reliability of your desired outcomes.
Recent volatility has reflected nervousness about tech stocks in the US and whether they can deliver returns on massive AI investment. With rates set to fall, these stocks and the broader US market should continue to find favour.
High bond-equity correlation suggests increased overall portfolio risk, making greater fixed income allocations crucial for managing volatility. While bonds no longer diversify portfolios as much, elevated yields make them attractive.
After more than a decade of pitiful yields, bonds are back offering better prospects for income investors. What are the best ways to take advantage of the market inefficiencies in Australian fixed income?
As long as the banks have no desire to pay up for term deposit funding - which looks likely for a while yet - investors will continue to pay a premium for the higher yielding, but riskier hybrid instrument.
Bonds have had a miserable time of it for the past three years. Yet with central banks almost done with interest rate hikes and inflation set to fall towards central bank targets, bonds look primed for a bounce back.
As investors navigate a potential recession and the possibility of higher interest rates for longer, the lure of fixed income is understandable. Here a primer to help investors decide which bonds may be best for them.
It's carnage in bond markets now with bonds potentially heading for a third straight year of losses, something that hasn't happened over the past 100 years. Is this the beginning of a decades-long bond bear market?
Australian investors have been allocating more to fixed income assets this year. Persistent inflation is a key risk for bonds, and that's where gold can play a diversifying role within an investment portfolio.
While private investments remain a potential source for differentiated equitylike return streams, their structure merits caution for retail investors. These investments can easily turn south without access to high quality teams.
About 20% of the $890 billion in SMSFs is allocated to cash and term deposits. While understandable to an extent, more of this money is likely to make its way into bonds given the now attractive yields on offer.
Labor has announced a $2.3 billion Cheaper Home Batteries Program, aimed at slashing the cost of home batteries. The goal is to turbocharge battery uptake, though practical difficulties may prevent that happening.
The famed investor says the rapid switch from globalisation to trade wars is the biggest upheaval in the investing environment since World War Two. And a new world requires a different investment approach.
The boss of Australia’s fourth largest super fund by assets, UniSuper’s John Pearce, says Trump has declared an economic war and he’ll be reducing his US stock exposure over time. Should you follow suit?
Every crisis throws up opportunities. Here are ideas to capitalise on this one, including ‘overbalancing’ your portfolio in stocks, buying heavily discounted LICs, and cherry picking bombed out sectors like oil and gas.
While many chase high yields, true investment power lies in companies that steadily grow dividends. This strategy, rooted in patience and discipline, quietly compounds wealth and anchors investors through market turbulence.
Behind market volatility and tariff threats lies a deeper strategy. Trump’s real goal isn’t trade reform but managing America's massive debts, preserving bond market confidence, and preparing for potential QE.