Like the UK, Latin America has suffered greatly during the pandemic – perhaps even more so. The World Bank estimates that regional GDP may slip by as much as 8%, with more than four million…
Market review: playing the game
Risk made a comeback this week – and we don’t mean the perennially popular, seemingly never-ending board game. Rather, investors – who recoiled as volatility struck equity markets early in 2016 – returned in their…
Market review – China will bounce back
Economists have often said “when America sneezes, the world catches a cold” reflecting the importance of the US to the global economy. But the past 12 months suggest the world’s immune system is more sensitive…
A simple exposure to markets
It is possible to introduce a lot of complexity into the selection of investments. Is it better to invest in large or small companies, for example? Or with this fund manager or that fund manager?…
Why gold is performing well right now
While cyclical assets and the oft-cited safe haven of the dollar have started to struggle the traditional ‘port in a storm’ asset of gold has started to reclaim its place as the ‘true safe haven’…
Tracking the market
How best to track the market Understandably, most investors assume that if a fund claims to track an index, their return will be exactly the same as the index. There are a number of reasons…
FTSE All Share versus FTSE 100
Once an investor has made the thorny decision over whether they want to look for an active fund manager, or simply to track an index, it may feel like all the hard work is done.…
Policymakers and Markets Face a Critical Period
Despite a bounce in risk assets in the last two weeks, February has been pretty brutal for many investors. Yes, losses are a lot less than those seen at mid-month, but long term confidence in…
Week in review – the impending ‘Brexit’ referendum
The main topic du jour for most commentators has been the impending ‘Brexit’ referendum, the date of which was revealed at the weekend (23 June). Conservative politicians were not particularly EUphoric following Mr Cameron’s trip…
The buy and hold strategy has had a miserable time in 2016, so what is the alternative to market exposure?
Buy and hold investors have had a miserable time so far in 2016. The FTSE 100 index lost more than 9 per cent between 25 January and 11 February alone, while a spate of ferocious…
Big Picture Thoughts on Financial Markets
In an attempt to keep an open mind on the future outcome for the global economy and financial markets, we thought we would share some thoughts and see how they fit into the economic and…
Should you look at cheap funds for your portfolio in the hope of enjoying their recovery?
Are you in search of an effective ‘system’ through which to build your portfolio? One option is momentum investing. Momentum investors in effect ride the crest of the wave of the most successful stocks or…
Macri’s Momentum
On coming to power on December 10, Macri took control of a country that had experienced a decade of unorthodox macroeconomic management. The rule of first Nestor, then Cristina Kirchner, had created a number of…
Market review: A bite of the apple
Leading tech firm Apple Inc announced on Tuesday its fifth multi-billion dollar offering of corporate bonds since 2013. Likely inspired by low interest rates, the household name synonymous with smart technology issued $12 billion of…
Regular as clockwork: 43% of investment companies pay quarterly dividends compared to 17% in 2010
AIC publishes dividend payment dates for member companies. It’s no secret that in today’s low interest rate environment, investors are on the hunt for yield. And it would seem that many investors also value…
Using investment companies to generate regular income in retirement
The AIC has collated adviser views on which investment companies work well in a pension portfolio to generate income. It’s coming up to a year since the pension reforms were put in place and,…
The Concept of a Long Term Bear Market
We were initially going to have a bit of a rant about how Central Bank policies are not just ineffective at generating sustained economic growth, but how investors appear to be revolting against said policies…
What I’ve learned about investment trusts
A guest article by Neil Mumford, chartered financial planner. Neil Mumford, Chartered Financial Planner at Milestone Wealth Management Limited, put his own money into investment trusts for five years before recommending them to clients. He…
Market review – Markets get the jitters
It’s been an edgy week for investors. Fears of a US recession are rising, with recent industrial production and manufacturing data proving disappointing. Exports have been hit by the strong dollar and weakness in…