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30 June 2022
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During this heightened uncertainty, Value stocks have performed relatively well, coinciding with higher inflation. Expensive Growth stocks, hit by slowing growth and materials shortages, have sold off. Where to now?
There have been few times in the past 140 years when investors were willing to pay for more than 30 years’ worth of earnings, yet here we are around 40. This starting point does not augur well for future returns.
It's a remarkable statistic. In any year since 1875, if you had invested in the Australian stock index, turned away and come back eight years later, your average return would be 120% with no negative periods.
There are many reasons why the market places too much emphasis on the short term, but taking a long view on growth, inflation, markets and sectors will lead to better policies and investments.
The shift in dynamics from growth to value can be seen in the rotation of tech and communications names out of the top 20 performers to be replaced by value-style industrials, energy and financials. Will it continue?
The Australian stock market is skewed towards mining and financial services which account for a whopping 55% of market capitalisation. In the US, these two account for only 17%. But there's more to our underperformance.
On the surface, a diversified fund looks the same as an SMSF with the same asset allocations. But to fund retirement, a member must sell units in the fund, whereas the cash balance is used in an SMSF.
A review of the Listed Investment Company landscape, including where value lies in LICs trading at a discount, but also the healthy premiums where caution is needed in case the popularity of the manager wanes.
Investors in share markets should benefit from letting patience and time do the work for their overall returns. The longer the time periods for rolling returns, the less volatile the market appears.
Contrary to popular belief, there are significant variations in equity returns over long periods such as 20 years. Whether you will earn the 'equity risk premium' is far from certain.
The beginning of 2016 has not been kind to investors holding Australian shares in their portfolios, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. If you take the recommended long-term view, the poor start is history.
Choosing a fund manager who outperforms the market on a pre-tax basis is good, but if you also consider the tax effect on that performance, you really start to identify who the best managers are.
With 62% of Australians aged 65 and over relying at least partially on the age pension, are they better off owning their home or renting? There is an extra pension asset allowance for those not owning a home.
With 700 Australians retiring every day, retirement income solutions are more important than ever. Why do millions of retirees eligible for a more tax-efficient pension account hold money in accumulation?
A fund manager argues it is immoral to deny poor countries access to relatively cheap energy from fossil fuels. Wealthy countries must recognise the transition is a multi-decade challenge and continue to invest.
Equity investing comes with volatility that makes many retirees uncomfortable. A focus on income which is less volatile than share prices, and quality companies delivering robust earnings, offers more reassurance.
At around 10.30pm on Saturday night, Scott Morrison called Anthony Albanese to concede defeat in the 2022 election. As voting continued the next day, it became likely that Labor would reach the magic number of 76 seats to form a majority government.
Using the nine dimensions of well-being used by the OECD, and dividing Australians into Baby Boomers, Generation Xers or Millennials, it is surprisingly easy to identify the winners and losers for most dimensions.