Setting up your SMSF is just the beginning. Make sure you’re aware of your obligations as an SMSF trustee and get the most out of your fund with this quick guide. While the list of SMSF administrative tasks and responsibilities may seem daunting, it’s there for a good reason: to ensure your fund’s decisions protect … Read more

Many investors become concerned when volatility occurs in global financial markets – particularly about the impact on their superannuation and other investments. In times like these, it’s important to understand the causes of market movements and how to minimise your risk. Why do markets move so much? Markets are influenced by many things – industrial, … Read more

Introduction The “news” as presented to us has always had a negative bend, but one could be forgiven for thinking that it’s become even more negative with constant stories of disasters, conflict, wrongdoing, grievance and loss. Consistent with this it seems that the worry list for investors is more threatening and confusing. This was an … Read more

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. … Read more

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 … Read more

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 … Read more

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 … Read more

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 … Read more

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, … Read more