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2 April 2025
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Are you living your life by default or by design? It strikes me that many people are doing the former and living according to others’ expectations of them, leading to poor choices including with their finances.
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After the recent market slump, it's a good time to brush up on the defensive asset classes – what they are, why hold them, and how they can both deliver on your goals and increase the reliability of your desired outcomes.
Lately, there's been a push by Government for lifetime income streams as a solution to retirement income challenges. We run the numbers on these products to see whether they deliver on what they promise.
The stellar run of the major ASX banks last year left many investors scratching their heads. After a recent share price pullback, has value emerged in these banks, or is it best to steer clear of them?
If you’re struggling to replace the hybrid exposure in your portfolio, you’re not alone. Subordinated debt is an option, and here is a guide on what it is and how it can fit into your investment mix.
Trump’s moves on tariffs, defence, and Ukraine, have awoken European Governments after a decade of lethargy. European small cap manager, Alantra Asset Management, says it could herald a new era for the continent.
Founder-led companies often attract investors due to leaders' personal stakes and long-term vision. But founder presence alone does not guarantee success, and the challenge is to identify which ones will succeed in the long term.
Welcome to Firstlinks Edition 604 with weekend update 6
Here are the key announcements from the Federal Budget and how they will impact you. While the Budget’s centrepiece was tax cuts, there were also potential implications for the proposed $3m superannuation tax.Read More.
Improving housing mobility in Australia is crucial for enhancing both individual well-being and the economy. Potential reforms include ensuring greater rental security and incentivising downsizing among older homeowners.
This may surprise you, but a person's super balance does not automatically form part of their estate. A simple change could bring greater certainty to Australians, quicker payouts for families, and lower super fees.
Your chances of having a comfortable retirement are not only dictated by your super fund's investment returns. Investors must also consider the risks of longevity, inflation, and not sticking to the plan.
Most superannuation products offered to working-age Australians are now performance-tested, and there are calls to extend these tests to account-based pensions. It's likely to result in more pain than gain, though.
The ABS recently released figures which are used to determine key superannuation rates and thresholds that will apply from 1 July 2025. This outlines the rates and thresholds that are changing and those that aren’t.
Understanding investment risk in superannuation is crucial for your retirement account. Here's a guide on how to define, take, and manage risk to select the right investment mix tailored to your unique circumstances.
Over the past few years, the Reserve Bank of Australia has been subjected to a blizzard of criticism. Yet, despite its flaws, it may just have engineered that rarest of beasts: the fabled soft economic landing.
With an election due by 17 May, we are effectively in campaign mode with the Government announcing numerous spending promises since January and the Coalition often matching them. Here's what the election means for investors.
The global economy faces renewed protectionism with President Trump's tariffs sparking retaliatory actions and causing market volatility. Historically, quality companies have shown resilience amid trade tensions and uncertainty.
Money supply provides an early and good read on whether the cash rate setting is transmitting to accelerating, steady or slowing price pressures. This explores recent data on money supply and what lies ahead for inflation.
If Australia is to control its own destiny in an AI-enabled future, it must build its own infrastructure, not rent it from overseas. Creating homemade AI is the first critical step in the long process of building Australia's AI economy.
Strategist Russell Napier says central banks have lifted interest rates too far and a deflationary shock is coming. He believes Governments will react radically and investors should avoid bonds and US stocks, and own more gold.
With fixed term deposit rates declining and bank hybrids being phased out, what are the best options for investors seeking income? This goes through the choices, and the opportunities and risks involved.
The S&P 500's recent correction raises concerns about a bear market. History shows corrections are driven by high rates, unemployment, or global shocks, and that there's reason for optimism for nervous investors today.
Eight of the ASX's top 10 stocks are more than a hundred years old, while in the US there's just one. It points to our market being filled with low-growth dinosaurs compared to the US where innovation and renewal rule.
As part of their global exposure, Australian investors typically allocate most to Developed Markets equities, and a smaller portion to Emerging Markets. This looks at the latter position and whether there might be a better way.
The intergenerational wealth transfer, largely driven by a housing boom, exacerbates economic inequality, stifles productivity, and impedes social mobility. Solutions lie in addressing the housing problem, not taxing wealth.
Major equity indices will need to defy history if they are to deliver anything like the returns of recent years. In a rapidly changing environment, investors may need to look further afield for the next winners.
Untangling assets after a broken relationship can be daunting. But approaching the situation fully informed, in good health and with open communication can make the process more manageable and less costly.
Any discussion on annuities needs to address the credit risk associated with relying on the solvency of a single insurer. Here's a guide on the regulation of annuities and the best ways to assess solvency risk.
A person's criminal record can impact whether they can benefit under a will or remain as an executor, trustee or testamentary guardian. A lot depends on the nature of the crime.
Unlike family trusts, testamentary trusts are activated posthumously, empowering you to exert post-death control over your assets. Learn how testamentary trusts offer unique benefits and protective measures.
Australia is in the early throes of an intergenerational wealth transfer worth an estimated $3.5 trillion. Here's a case study highlighting some of the challenges with transferring wealth between generations.
As we get older, many of us start to think about how we’ll be remembered by those left behind. This looks at why that may not be the best strategy to ensure that you live life well and leave loved ones in good stead.
Despite a recent pullback, gold has been one of the best performing assets this year. What are the key factors behind the rise and what's needed for the bull market in the yellow metal to continue?
MFS chief investment officer and CEO elect Ted Maloney talks market risks, similarities between Trump and Harris, and the most important thing investors can do to avoid destroying value.
In a recent interview, Morningstar CEO Kunal Kapoor explains why low-cost investing wins, how artificial intelligence and ESG will bring lots of opportunities, and why distractions are an investor's worst enemy.
The distortions in our tax system have been ignored for too long, and we're now paying the price. It's time Australia got real and addressed the problems to prevent an even greater intergenerational tragedy.
We interviewed Sir Michael Hintze while his credit-focused hedge fund CQS was at the height of its powers. Since then, he's changed the firm's investment strategy and found a buyer in Canadian giant, Manulife.
The dream of many investors is to be able to live off the dividend income from their shares. There is a relatively simple way to do this though it requires a mental fortitude that may not be for everyone.
Donald Trump has made the rest of the world great again. His policies have crushed US stocks, while Europe and Emerging Markets have flown, and they could prove the catalyst for a turnaround in ex-US GDP and earnings.
Markets are undergoing a mini-crash and there’s a whiff of fear in the air. The challenge for investors is emotional rather than intellectual, and here are three rules to ensure that your portfolio remains on track.
New figures show Australia’s household wealth has reached a record-high $17.2 trillion, or $623,000 per person. It’s been driven by continued growth in superannuation assets, including SMSFs, as well as resilient property prices.
Welcome to a special 600th Edition of Firstlinks. Over 12 years, Firstlinks has become one of Australia’s leading financial newsletters. We mark the occasion as well as delve into the best ways to find a good fund manager.
The world’s largest mutual fund company, Vanguard, says AI will drive a US economic renaissance and tame inflation. And it believes the biggest beneficiaries of the transformation won’t be the large-cap tech companies.
Advisers and newsletters such as ours invariably focus on financial aspects of retirement. But retirement is about more than money; it’s about having goals, finding purpose, and connecting more deeply with family and friends.
The structure of many dividend ETFs leads to lacklustre or non-existent dividend growth. Balancing high yields with long-term dividend growth is essential for effective income investing.
One of Buffett's most successful investments has been a confectionery company that he bought more than 50 years ago. The investment demonstrates that stocks need not be growth companies to create fortunes.
Shani Jayamanne takes a deliberately uninterested approach to investing. She outlines the technical and circumstantial reasons for why she goes against the grain and focuses on the real drivers of investment success.
Why do people have trouble shifting from a saving to spending mindset in retirement? Researchers have plenty of theories though can't identify an exact cause, nevertheless there are things that can enable the shift.
For those with the patience to own an investment as volatile as the AI sector, buying and holding a stock basket might make sense. However, based on internet stocks’ history, you need not rush to do so.
With the Treasury Department's review of superannuation in retirement, decumulation is firmly on the agenda, yet advisors have been grappling with this issue for years. So, what could super funds learn from advisers?
In The Know podcast: Xcel Energy – A bright spark to power growth
Global Listed Infrastructure Fund will be available as an active ETF (ASX:RIIF) from 25 March 2025.
podcast: ASX reporting season: The market is not the economy
As we start 2024, the 12th year of publishing Firstlinks, we have gone back over 540 editions and about 1,000 articles by me to find some of our most popular and standout articles. Enjoy a look back!
Stocks always outperform bonds in the long-term, right? New research challenges that assumption, raising questions about historical financial data, and forecasts for future performance from the two largest asset classes.