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8 September 2026

Home / Leverage

Leverage

1-12 out of 19 results.

Why stocks sometimes fall for no obvious reason

The vast and opaque world of private assets is a powerful gravitational force - and when trouble hits, it's the more liquid public equities that often the feel it first.

Sixteen steps in a typical SMSF borrowing

Getting a mortgage is never an easy process but when an investment property is purchased in a SMSF the complexity increases significantly. Read this before taking the plunge. 

Levered credit: A late cycle ingredient for drawdown pain

As credit spreads normalised through 2025, yield‑hungry investors have turned to leverage for high returns, uncomfortably echoing pre‑GFC behaviours. Investors need to be careful to understand the true risk‑return trade‑off.

Leveraged single stock ETFs don't work as advertised

Leveraged ETFs seek to deliver some multiple of an underlying index or reference asset’s return over a day. Yet, they aren’t even delivering the target return on an average day as they’re meant to do.

A contrarian bet on Magellan Financial Group

Despite recent woes, Magellan offers deep value at current prices. Almost half of its equity value is investments, including cash, and there's significant  potential upside from its investments in Barrenjoey and Finclear.

We need to limit retail investor harm from CFDs

A Contract for Difference (CFD) is a highly-leveraged investment used for speculative and gambling activities by retail investors without the knowledge to take such risks. ASIC is struggling to control the product.

Are bond yields lower forever or is the Big Bang coming?

The signs are that bond yields could stay low for a long time. This has important implications for future returns, but are we heading for the Big Bang, the Big Crunch or the Steady State?

The role of financial markets when earnings are falling

Everything is rising in value because there is excess capital chasing too few opportunities. Capital should be allocated more responsibly with a focus on the future cash flow from a company.

Welcome to the Great Australian Deleveraging

The biggest concern that many analysts ignore is that, after house prices begin falling, the savings ratio climbs, reflecting a lack of consumer confidence, leading to a rapid slowdown in the economy.

Will the Royal Commission end our debt obsession?

The tightening of credit conditions for home lending driven by the Royal Commission has not fully translated into aggregate statistics, and the slowdown may already be worse than we realise.

Bankers must realise they are fiduciaries

The fiduciary duty of banks, while not legislated, is implied by their central role in the economy. Bank deposits are accepted as 'money', and public confidence in banks is fundamental to a functioning economy.

Defaulting into a world without growth

Global debt levels have increased significantly over the last decade, but not to fund new businesses or productive assets. When debt funds growth and growth fuels debt, can we continue to push the problem into the future?

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Why have Australian living standards 'fallen' and how do we fix it?

For the last few years there has been much talk of a 'cost-of-living' crisis in Australia and of 'falling living standards'. Lately this has flared up again with the pickup in inflation resulting in a renewed fall in real wages.

Will you run out of money in retirement?

Fear of running out has become a defining retirement anxiety. Why do some retirees die with substantial wealth while others deplete their nest egg? Evidence suggests the answer is more complicated than we think. 

Four options for an income investor’s next dollar

What if Australia’s golden age of dividends is ending? Rather than overhaul your portfolio, it may be worth considering where new capital can work harder. I discuss four income strategies and the trade-offs behind each.

Why spending more in early retirement can improve lifetime income

Conventional wisdom encourages retirees to preserve superannuation. But if those likely to qualify for the Age Pension later in life spend a little more today, it may deliver higher lifetime income and a more stable retirement.

The investment that sidesteps the new tax traps

Tax rules have changed, but many investors are still using yesterday’s strategies. Insurance bonds may offer advantages for those seeking greater control, tax efficiency and certainty about their wealth.

Testamentary trusts have secured the CGT exemption

Treasury’s latest CGT reform draft delivers a win for testamentary trusts and deceased estates, exempting estate-derived gains from the 30% floor. However, questions on death and divorce rollovers remain unresolved.

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