Register to receive our free weekly newsletter including editorials.
3 July 2024
Recently trending
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: "Keep it up - the independence is refreshing and is demonstrated by the variety of well credentialed commentators."
Reader: "An island of professionalism in an ocean of shallow self-interest. Well done!"
Andrew Buchan, Partner, HLB Mann Judd: "I have told you a thousand times it's the best newsletter."
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."
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"
Jonathan Hoyle, CEO, Stanford Brown: "A fabulous publication. The only must-read weekly publication for the Australian wealth management industry."
Rob Henshaw: "When I open my computer each day it's the first link I click - a really great read."
Noel Whittaker, author and financial adviser: "A fabulous weekly newsletter that is packed full of independent financial advice."
Reader: "Congratulations on a great focussed news source. Australia has a dearth of good quality unbiased financial and wealth management news."
John Egan, Egan Associates: "My heartiest congratulations. Your panel of contributors is very impressive and keep your readers fully informed."
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: "It's excellent so please don't pollute the content with boring mainstream financial 'waffle' and adverts for stuff we don't want!"
Australian Investors Association: "Australia's foremost independent financial newsletter for professionals and self-directed investors."
Reader: "Great resource. Cuffelinks is STILL the one and only weekly newsletter I regularly read."
Reader: "Is one of very few places an investor can go and not have product rammed down their throat. Love your work!"
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."
John Pearce, Chief Investment Officer, Unisuper: "Out of the (many many) investmentrelated emails I get, Cuffelinks is one that I always open."
Reader: " Finding a truly independent and interesting read has been magical for me. Please keep it up and don't change!"
Reader: "The BEST in the game because of diversity and not aligned to financial products. Stands above all the noise."
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: "I subscribe to two newsletters. This is my first read of the week. Thank you. Excellent and please keep up the good work!"
David Goldschmidt, Chartered Accountant: "I find this a really excellent newsletter. The best I get. Keep up the good work!"
Don Stammer, leading Australian economist: "Congratulations to all associated. It deserves the good following it has."
Ian Kelly, CFP, BTACS Financial Services: "Probably the best source of commentary and information I have seen over the past 20 years."
Ian Silk, CEO, AustralianSuper: "It has become part of my required reading: quality thinking, and (mercifully) to the point."
Reader: "Carry on as you are - well done. The average investor/SMSF trustee needs all the help they can get."
Reader: "Best innovation I have seen whilst an investor for 25 years. The writers are brilliant. A great publication which I look forward to."
Australian consumers have held up remarkably well amid rising interest rates and inflation. Yet, there are increasing signs that this is turning, and the weakness in consumer spending may last years, not months.
Accounting losses from a pandemic inspired bond buying spree have wiped out the RBA's equity and more, pushing its balance sheet into negative equity territory. How did it happen and what lessons can be learned?
The recovery in net migration will be much stronger than government forecasts, with +400,000 expected for last year and +350,000 for 2023. This will increase total consumer spending but also expand the labour force.
By the time a recession is confirmed in the statistics, most of the sharemarket fall is probably in the past. Markets often start rise when the headlines are full of doom and gloom, and early investors are rewarded.
The rapid rise in US Treasury yields and widening spreads on almost all other types of credit have pushed down bond prices, but it now means diversified bond funds can give investors returns not seen for many years.
Australians are underestimating the impact of a third Omicron wave, and with a severe flu season, hospitals will struggle over coming weeks. Governments will avoid lockdowns but we will need mask mandates.
Supply chain pressures highlight the important role and economic value created by companies working to make our infrastructure more efficient. We review two logistics companies that are well positioned to perform.
It gives me pain to hear the finance industry telling people to invest in ‘balanced’ portfolios to reduce risk. At no stage do they ever tell people the opportunity cost so they repeat the same stupid mistakes.
The biggest risk for investing in residential property is not rising rates but excess supply. Rising prices create a supply response, but since the GFC, there has never been excess supply. Is that about to change?
Stockmarkets have fallen in recent weeks on the back of worries about inflation, monetary tightening, Omicron disruption and the risk of a Russian invasion of Ukraine. It’s too early to say markets have bottomed.
The focus is on Magellan for its investment performance and departure of the CEO, but Douglass says the pandemic, inflation, rising rates and Middle East tensions have not played out. Vindication is always long term.
For 40 years, recording the market's X-Factor has become an obsession. In weighing up four big candidates for the most likely X-Factor emerging from 2021 and likely to hit in 2022, there is a clear winner.
Two commonly asked questions are: 'How much do I need to retire' and 'How much can I afford to spend in retirement'? This is a guide to help you come up with your own numbers to suit your goals and needs.
There seems to be more confusion than clarity about the mechanics of how the new $3 million super tax is supposed to work. Here is an attempt to answer some of the questions from my previous work on the issue.
Washington H. Soul Pattinson is an ASX top 50 stock with one of the best investment track records this country has seen. Yet, most Australians haven’t heard of it, and the company seems to prefer it that way.
We are often quoted life expectancy at birth but what matters most is how long we should live as we grow older. It is surprising how short this can be for people born last century, so make the most of it.
A new report suggests Australian housing is twice as expensive as that of the US and UK on a price-to-income basis. It also reveals that it’s cheaper to live in New York than most of our capital cities.
Here are 10 rules for staying happy and sharp as we age, including socialise a lot, never retire, learn a demanding skill, practice gratitude, play video games (specific ones), and be sure to reminisce.