While all eyes remain focused squarely on whether inflation is “transitory” or not, “persistent” is the adjective that value manager Allan Gray uses to describe the position of the equity market. Speaking in its monthly update, the firm’s Australian managing director and chief investment officer Simon Mawhinney flagged the “exuberance for some stocks and disdain…
The S&P/ASX200 opened the day reasonably well despite growing negativity in the markets ahead of the Federal Reserve’s impending rate decision. But the release of Australian CPI data reversed that trend with the market trading more than 3 per cent lower but ultimately finished 2.5 per cent or 180 points down. At this point, it is important to keep the…
A spate of headlines over the week naturally put pressure on the S&P/ASX200 today, with the index falling 1% at the open but finding support throughout the day to finish down just 0.5%. It was quite a negative day, with the technology, utilities and materials sectors taking the biggest hit, in many cases due to company-specific results. The winners…
“Learning to live with COVID will be the major theme of 2022,” according to Ken Leech, chief investment officer of leading fixed income manager Western Asset. But not necessarily in the way we think. As the Omicron variant ravages Australia and other parts of the developed world, Leech highlights continuing travel restrictions and lower vaccination…
If we are truly honest about the state of the Australian investment industry when it comes to alternatives, we were very much a backwater for many years. That is, at least, at the mass market, retail, or wholesale level. For many years, the best alternative assets advisers could access were the so-called “black boxes” of…
Australian investors ploughed as much as three times more money into equity-focused managed funds in 2021 than they did in 2020. Being the preferred source of investment vehicle for the majority of financial advisory groups and investment platforms, it provides a unique indicator into the sentiment within the advisory market. According to global funds researcher…
The S&P/ASX 200 suffered its worst week since 2020, finishing Friday 2.3% lower and losing 2.9% over the last five days. On Friday, every single sector on the market was lower, in fact just 12 companies in the top 200 managed a positive return, Boral Ltd (ASX: BLD) being one of them, gaining 2.1%. Whilst the threat of higher interest rates…
The S&P/ASX200 (ASX: XJO) managed a small gain, finishing 0.1 per cent higher despite 7 out of the eleven sectors finishing underwater today. The highlight of the session was the materials sector, which gained 3.1 per cent behind a massive surge in gold miners. The biggest detractor was the communications sector with the likes of Seek (ASX: SEK) and TPG Telecom (ASX: TPG) falling by more than…
Leading investment consultancy bFinance this week released its Insurer Investment Survey, which seeks to understand the investment intentions of the holders of about US$5 trillion ($6.9 trillion) in global capital. With insurance statutory funds among the most powerful investors in the world, the survey provided unique insights into their intentions and strategy. Running a profitable…
On Wednesday, Dixon Advisory & Superannuation Services, the division of ASX-listed E&P Financial Group (ASX:EP1) that was focused on delivering financial advice to high-net-worth clients for several decades, filed for voluntary administration. This marks the beginning of the end for what initially appeared to be an Australian success story. According to the ASX announcement, administrators…
