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Why spending more in early retirement can improve lifetime income Is it time to bail on Australian stocks?Meg on SMSFs: What do we think about reversionary pensions these days?Testamentary trusts survived the trust tax. The drafting battle has just begun.How does the 4% rule stack up?

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Home / White Papers 2024

2024 Asset Allocation Outlook

VanEck
1 February 2024

Executive summary

If 2023 taught investors anything, it’s that being selective and diversified is key to riding the economic cycle. Had investors avoided risk assets on the back of many economists calling the “most anticipated recession” that never happened, they would have missed the artificial intelligence boom that sent the S&P 500 and the MSCI World ex Australia Index up more than 20%. One of the riskiest asset classes, private equity as represented by LPX 50 index returned more than 35%.

As we turn the page on another year, VanEck’s 2024 Asset Allocation Outlook dissects our views on inflation, policy rates, economic growth and exogenous risks as the lagged effect of the one of the sharpest rate hike cycles hits hardest. On balance, Australia and US should avoid a recession without the need for central bank policy rate cuts to smoothen the landing. Inflation will prove to be stickier than the market anticipates which reaffirms our tightening bias.

Stay the course and seek quality exposure across all risk asset classes including equities and fixed income. Emerging market equities, small caps, listed private equity and gold are cheap from a valuation standpoint. Investment grade and select government bond exposures are attractive.

Download the full paper

VanEck

1 February 2024

Most viewed in recent weeks

Why spending more in early retirement can improve lifetime income

Conventional wisdom encourages retirees to preserve superannuation. But if those likely to qualify for the Age Pension later in life spend a little more today, it may deliver higher lifetime income and a more stable retirement.

David Knox
2 September 2026

Is it time to bail on Australian stocks?

For generations, Australian investors have backed banks, miners and dividends. But has that loyalty come at a cost? A look at the numbers raises an uncomfortable question about where future returns will come from.

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Meg Heffron
26 August 2026

Testamentary trusts survived the trust tax. The drafting battle has just begun.

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Rachael Rofe
16 September 2026

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Amy C. Arnott
26 August 2026

The new capital gains tax trap for your portfolio

Investors have long accepted one portfolio rule without much question. A major tax shift could change that calculation entirely, forcing difficult trade-offs between risk, discipline and an overlooked cost lurking beneath.

Shani Jayamanne
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Latest Updates

Exchange traded products

It’s time for LICs to die

A high-profile dividend cut and a prominent fund manager’s apology have reignited a long-running debate. If investors can access similar exposures more cheaply and efficiently elsewhere, what exactly is keeping LICs alive?

David Tuckwell
30 September 2026
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Taxation

Will investors be better or worse off under new housing tax changes?

Housing tax reforms have sparked warnings of market turmoil and promises of greater fairness. But after modelling nearly two decades of property data, the results suggest winners and losers may not be who many investors expect.

Elyse Dwyer, Nick Garvin
30 September 2026
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Retirement

Three considerations before reshaping your legacy plan

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30 September 2026
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Investment strategies

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Neil Rogan
30 September 2026

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Conditions were stacked in favour of professional investors in 2026. Most still fell short, raising questions about where investors should look for value. Meanwhile, an alternative strategy continued to make its case.

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30 September 2026

Investment strategies

Bleeding air out of the bubble

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Amr Hanafy, Jeff Blazek
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Strategy

Has AI gone rogue?

We worry about AI becoming conscious. But what if consciousness isn't the issue? The more unsettling possibility is a machine capable of pursuing objectives relentlessly, without motives, emotions, or awareness of any kind.

Tony Dillon
30 September 2026

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