The importance of rebalancing

Investing is more than choosing different assets. It also involves managing your portfolio on an ongoing basis to achieve personal goals. Your starting point In the initial stages of constructing a portfolio of diverse investments, it is likely you will have made a deliberate decision about how much money to hold in different asset classes. …

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Super fund performance and unlisted assets

Differences in the returns of various super funds have primarily been driven by whether the funds are invested in unlisted or listed assets. Super fund returns are always in the spotlight around the end of the financial year. This is when funds publish their annual performance results and send statements to members, and when researchers …

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Should you fix your home loan?

Key takeaways An understanding of the benefits of fixing your home loan, including payment stability, protection from rate hikes and certainty over long term financial planning. The potential drawbacks to consider when choosing to fix, such as missing out on rate drops, higher initial repayment rates and restrictions on the level of additional repayments. When …

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Seven key charts for investors to keep an eye on

Introduction At the start of this year, we thought shares would have reasonable  returns albeit it wouldn’t be smooth sailing given ongoing issues around inflation, interest rates, the risk of recession and geopolitics. So far so good. This note updates seven key charts we see as critical for the investment outlook. Chart 1 – global …

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Seven key charts for investors to keep an eye on

Introduction At the start of this year, we thought shares would have reasonable  returns albeit it wouldn’t be smooth sailing given ongoing issues around inflation, interest rates, the risk of recession and geopolitics. So far so good. This note updates seven key charts we see as critical for the investment outlook. Chart 1 – global …

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Factor Investing explained

Global markets are made up of dozens of asset classes and millions of individual securities, making it challenging to understand what really matters for your portfolio. But there are a few important drivers that can help explain returns across asset classes – these are known as Factors. Factor investing, also commonly called “smart beta” has …

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Economic update

October was another difficult month for financial markets, partly reflecting an acceptance among investors that interest rates are likely to remain high for longer than was previously anticipated. Geopolitical risk ramped up too, following conflict in Israel and Palestine. Australian shares were down nearly 4% over the month and overseas stock markets closed lower too, …

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Boosting confidence in retirement

Every retirement is unique. Maybe dining out isn’t your thing, but you couldn’t bear to give up your weekly exercise classes. Figuring out how much you can spend in retirement requires planning. And knowing what you can afford to safely spend, based on the savings you have, will also help you to identify any gaps …

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Stressed but surviving – Aussie women and their finances

Taking control of your finances starts with your super. As we battle rising interest rates, cost of living pressures and a general COVID-related economic hangover, it’s fair to say that financial stress is affecting most Australians, regardless of age, background or gender. But the reality is that Australian women are feeling the pinch more than …

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