Register to receive our free weekly newsletter including editorials.
20 April 2025
Recently trending
Rob Henshaw: "When I open my computer each day it's the first link I click - a really great read."
Steve: "The best that comes into our world each week. This is the only one that is never, ever canned before fully being reviewed by yours truly."
Andrew Buchan, Partner, HLB Mann Judd: "I have told you a thousand times it's the best newsletter."
John Egan, Egan Associates: "My heartiest congratulations. Your panel of contributors is very impressive and keep your readers fully informed."
Australian Investors Association: "Australia's foremost independent financial newsletter for professionals and self-directed investors."
Eleanor Dartnall, AFA Adviser of the Year, 2014: "Our clients love your newsletter. Your articles are avidly read by advisers and they learn a great deal."
Reader: "Congratulations on a great focussed news source. Australia has a dearth of good quality unbiased financial and wealth management news."
David Goldschmidt, Chartered Accountant: "I find this a really excellent newsletter. The best I get. Keep up the good work!"
Ian Silk, CEO, AustralianSuper: "It has become part of my required reading: quality thinking, and (mercifully) to the point."
John Pearce, Chief Investment Officer, Unisuper: "Out of the (many many) investmentrelated emails I get, Cuffelinks is one that I always open."
Reader: "Keep it up - the independence is refreshing and is demonstrated by the variety of well credentialed commentators."
Reader: "Is one of very few places an investor can go and not have product rammed down their throat. Love your work!"
Professor Robert Deutsch: "This has got to be the best set of articles on economic and financial matters. Always something worthwhile reading in Firstlinks. Thankyou"
Reader: "An island of professionalism in an ocean of shallow self-interest. Well done!"
Ian Kelly, CFP, BTACS Financial Services: "Probably the best source of commentary and information I have seen over the past 20 years."
Scott Pape, author of The Barefoot Investor: "I'm an avid reader of Cuffelinks. Thanks for the wonderful resource you have here, it really is first class."
Reader: "The BEST in the game because of diversity and not aligned to financial products. Stands above all the noise."
Reader: "It's excellent so please don't pollute the content with boring mainstream financial 'waffle' and adverts for stuff we don't want!"
Reader: "Love it, just keep doing what you are doing. It is the right length too, any longer and it might become a bit overwhelming."
Reader: "Best innovation I have seen whilst an investor for 25 years. The writers are brilliant. A great publication which I look forward to."
Reader: "I can quickly sort the items that I am interested in, then research them more fully. It is also a regular reminder that I need to do this."
Reader: " Finding a truly independent and interesting read has been magical for me. Please keep it up and don't change!"
Noel Whittaker, author and financial adviser: "A fabulous weekly newsletter that is packed full of independent financial advice."
Reader: "Great resource. Cuffelinks is STILL the one and only weekly newsletter I regularly read."
Reader: "Carry on as you are - well done. The average investor/SMSF trustee needs all the help they can get."
Jonathan Hoyle, CEO, Stanford Brown: "A fabulous publication. The only must-read weekly publication for the Australian wealth management industry."
Don Stammer, leading Australian economist: "Congratulations to all associated. It deserves the good following it has."
Reader: "I subscribe to two newsletters. This is my first read of the week. Thank you. Excellent and please keep up the good work!"
Although investors should not aim only to minimise costs, fees eat into compounded returns over the long term. Markets are competitive and it is possible to invest a diversified portfolio for negligible cost.
Young people hold the majority of home loans while older people have the vast majority of deposits. It's not hard to see why rising interest rates are hurting the young and resulting in increased intergenerational tension.
One of the major questions confronting investors is the portfolio weighting towards Australian banks in an environment of rising rates. Do the recent price falls represent value or are too many bad debts coming?
Continuing our look at 'safe havens', gold and bank deposits are often considered alternatives to 'risky' shares. How have they performed in times of stress, and do they rate as long-term investments at other times?
A range of factors determine interest rates, and the yield curve reflects expectations of the future. Even if interest rates look low, waiting to invest is attempting to outguess the market.
Whether you borrow or deposit or pay fees, a general understanding of how bank pricing committees determine the rates and charges for their products could provide the negotiating edge you need to get a better deal.
* APRA has announced the final version of the government guarantee on deposits, requiring a Single Customer View from any ADI.
Anyone responsible for product design and pricing in the superannuation industry needs an understanding of the revised Australian Prudential Standards on bank liquidity. Some creative solutions may be needed.
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.
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.
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.
The famed investor says the rapid switch from globalisation to trade wars is the biggest upheaval in the investing environment since World War Two. And a new world requires a different investment approach.
Trump's tariffs and China's retaliatory strike have sent the Nasdaq into a bear market with the S&P 500 not far behind. What are the implications for the economy and markets, and what should investors do now?