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8 July 2025
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In the six years I have been writing these introductions, I have been reluctant to make macro forecasts. There are so many factors at play that predictions become an unsatisfactory 'on the other hand' exercise.
A fund manager on the wrong side of the market must tough it out and have the strength of their convictions, satisfied that their investment process will bear fruit over the long term. The LIC structure gives more time.
Labor's franking credit proposal will reduce the income of many retirees who do not believe they are wealthy. Here's an exchange with a reader who just wants an answer to "Is it fair?"
SMSFs are currently the largest segment of superannuation, but by 2020, industry funds are expected to dominate, having recently overtaken retail funds. Labor's franking proposal will accelerate the trend.
The 'direct investment options' may have structural advantages for franking credit refunds, but that does not mean SMSFs do not have their own specific advantages. What's best for the superannuant?
It's as legitimate an investing technique to short sell an expensive company as it is to buy or go long a cheap company, with the added advantage of less competition on the short side.
With Div. 296 looming, is there a smarter way to tax superannuation? This proposes a fairer, income-linked alternative that respects compounding, ensures predictability, and avoids taxing unrealised capital gains.
An ANU study has found that families with at least one super balance over $3 million have average wealth exceeding $19 million - suggesting most are well placed to absorb taxes on unrealised capital gains.
SMSFs have managed to match, or even outperform, larger super funds despite adopting more conservative investment strategies. This looks at how they've done it - and the potential policy implications.
Stockland’s development chief discusses supply constraints, government initiatives and the impact of Japanese-owned homebuilders on the industry. He also talks of green shoots in a troubled property market.
As the US debt ceiling looms, the usual warnings about a potential crash in bond and equity markets have started to appear. Investors can take confidence from history but should keep an eye on two main indicators.
US mega-cap tech stocks have dominated recent returns - but is familiarity distorting judgement? Like the Monty Hall problem, investing success often comes from switching when it feels hardest to do so.
How does a strategy built around systematically buying-and-holding a basket of the market's biggest losers perform? It turns out pretty well, so why don't more investors do it?