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15 January 2025
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A new managed fund service from ASX, automatic investing, a review of global markets in 2013, the USB bond indexed explained and a look back on portfolio management innovations.
The ASX is almost ready to launch its managed fund service 'mFunds' which will enable investors to invest in and redeem managed funds directly. It may take a while to play out but there are many potential winners and losers.
Where possible, we should be saving more, whether it's for retirement or a rainy day, but our human psyche seems to work against us. The key is to put money aside first and make the payments automatic.
A pictorial look at how the main developed and emerging stock markets fared in a post-GFC world, with an unfashionable conclusion. Which countries came out on top, and which were best avoided?
There's an interesting history of state and federal government finances and innovative merchant bankers behind the UBS bond index often found in annual statements from fund managers.
Modern portfolio analysis has evolved since the 1950s with each innovation building on the existing body of knowledge. The work of the pioneers of funds management analysis is still influential today.
Last year, I wrote an article suggesting returns from ASX stocks would trample those from housing over the next decade. One year later, this is an update on how that forecast is going and what's changed since.
The housing market was subdued in 2024, and pessimism abounds as we start the new year. 2025 is likely to be a tale of two halves, with interest rate cuts fuelling a resurgence in buyer demand in the second half of the year.
The renowned investor has penned his first investor letter for 2025 and it’s a ripper. He runs through what bubbles are, which ones he’s experienced, and whether today’s markets qualify as the third major bubble of this century.
Key lessons include expensive stocks can always get more expensive, Bitcoin is our tulip mania, follow the smart money, the young are coming with pitchforks on housing, and the importance of staying invested.
Check out the most-read Firstlinks articles from 2024. From '16 ASX stocks to buy and hold forever', to 'The best strategy to build income for life', and 'Where baby boomer wealth will end up', there's something for all.
2024 was a banner year for equities, with a run-up in US tech stocks broadening into a global market rally, and the big question now is whether the good times can continue? History suggests optimism is warranted.