Next year one for the stock pickers
While there are many macro issues around the world affecting the markets, the outlook for the Australian market is positive – especially if you select the right stocks.
December 15, 2010
Coming, ready or not
Investors need to factor in new building energy efficiency requirements before making decisions on buying property, says Dug Higgins. By the time you read this article, the second step in the Building Energy Efficiency Disclosure Act 2010 (the Act) – part of the Australian Government’s Commercial Building Disclosure program – will be in place. November
December 01, 2010
Winners and losers in this economic rebound
Australia is well into recovery mode. But there are mixed blessings within different parts of the economy. Frank Gelber explains. In the GFC-induced downturn, it was precautionary saving – by households and by businesses – that caused the weakening of growth. Afraid that they had borrowed too much, and afraid of unemployment, households cut spending.
December 01, 2010
A life of its own
Financial planners can help clients structure their charitable giving so it continues long after the clients have gone. Simon Hoyle explains. The philanthropic sector’s pin-up foundations, the Ramaciotti Foundations, this year celebrated 40 years of giving to biomedical research. Vera Ramaciotti set up two foundations in 1970, following the death of her brother, Clive. They
December 01, 2010
Forever blowing bubbles
One thing we know for sure is that every bubble bursts. Ron Bewley looks at the ballooning price of property. As the prospect of a double dip fades away, it seems some foreigners are getting a bit restless – or is it jealousy? Australia was one of the handful of developed countries to walk through
December 01, 2010
Do clients knowingly sabotage their own financial plans?
Understanding how a client thinks is the key to getting your message across, says Robert Skinner. Have you ever had a client seemingly sabotage their own financial plan, be slow to take up your brilliant advice or just not as excited as you are about the strategies you have recommended? You might even feel as
December 01, 2010
FPA 2010: Reassessing portfolio philosophy and policy
Building and maintaining high-quality investor portfolios requires a “robust, contemporary and defensible portfolio construction policy”, according to the speakers at the PortfolioConstruction Masterclass held today. As part of the Financial Planning Association of Australia (FPA) 2010 National Conference, a Masterclass outlined the framework for decision-making in portfolio construction. Graham Rich, publisher of PortfolioConstruction Forum, says
November 25, 2010
Don’t fight the Fed
What was most intriguing about the market reaction to the recent announcement of a $US600 billion ($600bn) injection of cash into the US economy, was the timing.
November 15, 2010
WINNERS: S&P Fund Awards 2010 (in association with Professional Planner)
Standard & Poor’s Fund Services, in association with Professional Planner magazine, has named Colonial First State Global Asset Management (Colonial First State) its 2010 Fund Manager of the Year. Macquarie Professional Series picked up the award for Product Distributor of the Year, for the second year in a row.
October 29, 2010
Why you need to look behind the numbers
“Obsession” is probably too strong a word to describe the investment industry’s focus on manager performance league tables, but they certainly do receive a lot of scrutiny. There’s nothing wrong with the information the surveys contain – they are accurate; they typically cover short, medium and long term periods; they cover diversified funds and sector
October 21, 2010
Overcoming home bias in global equities
One of the biggest challenges facing financial planners today is what to say to investors about global equities. While modern portfolio theory suggests that global equities be around 25 per cent of a portfolio, many financial planners don’t know what to tell their clients after a lost decade of returns for most global funds. The
October 21, 2010
Resource stocks, commodities and portfolio diversification
Mathew Kaleel warns that what might look like effective portfolio diversification might in fact be the opposite, if the correlations between asset classes are not clearly understood.
October 06, 2010
