Reflecting on the history of the ASX, may seem an unusual way to start a discussion on investment product structures, however the history of ASX has also been transformational in delivering the range of investment products ASX now offers Australian investors. Once, the primary reason sharemarkets existed was to facilitate the formation of capital. Individuals…
Issue 24: Now is not the time for complacency with your investment portfolio
There is no question that investment returns this financial year have been extremely strong. In the early weeks of the new financial year, equity markets have set and reset records and of course there is plenty of commentary around why markets and certain sectors could continue to perform strongly as well as why there may…
Issue 23: Psychology of selling or knowing when to hold and when to fold?
In last month’s edition, we talked about buy, hold or sell concepts and in fact that buy and sell decisions may be the result of two investors having a different perspective on the same investment; as one sees it as a buy and the other a sell, as logic suggests that for every seller, there…
Issue 22: Is it a buy, hold or sell…or something else?
Many of us will be familiar with the concept of a stockbroker, fund manager or analyst making a call on a stock; as to whether an investor should sit on it, if they hold it, sell it or buy it. Sometimes these are run as sessions, such as at seminars or published in investor newsletters…
Issue 21: What risks do I need to be aware of in my SMSF?
When we talk of risk in investing, we often think of things that maybe out of our direct control, such as ‘market risk’, which is the losses that may stem from adverse movements in markets. Who really saw the COVID-19 shock coming? There is also a range of other types of risk that may spring…
Issue 20: What a difference a year makes…or does it?
Written by Name, Title, Company Hindsight is an amazing thing, so let’s use a little and reflect on the past 12 months. At the end of March a year ago, we did not know that it marked the beginning of an unexpected and relatively speedy recovery in financial markets as measured by key indices. At…
Issue 19: Don’t let moving from four to six members overcrowd your SMSF investment objectives.
As the legislation to allow the number of SMSF members to increase from four to six makes its way through The Parliament, now may be the time for SMSF trustees to consider the benefits and any downside to increasing the number of members in their funds. While the number of members in the majority of…
Issue 18: 2020 in review and what it means for your SMSF in 2021
I’m sure there will be much discussion on the outcomes of the last 10 months of 2020 through December and into early 2021. If I had any idea of what a story that reflected on 2020 would look like a year ago, there may have been only one discussion point that I would have been…
Issue 17: The investment emotional cycle
Quite often a discussion about the investment emotional cycle starts as markets tend to head south. I recall a number of media articles circulating earlier this year following the February market correction. The basis of these discussions is often to provide hope that after the crash comes the correction and it’s true to say, that…
Issue 16: The changing nature of Australian share indices
In our last instalment, we took a look at reporting season and asked how your SMSF portfolio survived? In that instalment, we looked at how there may be a two-tier reporting outcome for companies and sectors with some doing well and others not so well; introducing the concept of the ‘K’ shaped outcome. By now…