Thousands of years ago, Polynesian explorers using basic, wooden outrigger canoes embarked on long-distance voyages across the vast Pacific Ocean to travel between regional islands. They did so long before the advent of any maritime navigational instruments, relying heavily on the night sky to guide them. More precisely, they used two stars in particular –…
The just-finished Australian Open had most spectators gripping the edge of their seats at times over its 14 days of play. From the opening round, right through to the women’s and men’s finals, you could say the first Grand Slam tennis tournament of 2023 had it all. Top-seed upsets, unexpected withdrawals, unforeseen events, and on-and-off-court…
How have share markets around the world performed this year? And what investment lessons can we learn from 2022? Read on to find out. Volatility has been constant on global investment markets throughout this year. It has largely been driven by fears over surging inflation, rising interest rates, energy price shocks, the likely prospect of…
Be deliberate The first step to building a sound investment portfolio is to know why you’re investing. Setting measurable investment goals gives investors clarity and direction, and prevents them from falling into common investment traps like chasing unrealistic market returns or being overly influenced by transitory factors like product fads or short term performance. Before…
Higher interest rates can present unique opportunities for saving and potential portfolio rebalancing. As inflation continues to challenge the economy, it’s likely we’ll see interest rates rise and economic activity slow. However, that doesn’t have to be cause for panic—higher interest rates can present unique opportunities for saving and potential portfolio rebalancing. What do interest…
Despite much talk of rising interest rates and possible recession, here are a few reasons to stay the course and stick to your long-term investment strategy. There has been much discussion of rising interest rates, recent inflation spikes and ongoing market volatility impacting investment and super balances. Add to that the increased chatter about the…
When markets fall, it’s natural to want to take action to prevent further losses. Doing so however can do more harm than good. Here’s why timing the market to buy low and sell high is not as easy as it sounds. If you’re invested in the financial markets and also keeping up with the news,…
With markets falling and inflation ramping up, investors might feel they need to ‘do something’ to avoid further losses. However, when it comes to investing, taking action in response to market turmoil may derail a sound investment strategy. To say that conditions have changed since Vanguard’s initial 2022 outlook would be an understatement. We welcomed…
Tips to avoid investing badly While it’s difficult to be the best investor in the world, we can all actively avoid being a ‘bad investor’ by learning from history and staying the course. Extended periods of market volatility regularly spark discussions around great investors and the traits that qualify folks to be included in…
Recent RBA announcements are a reminder for investors to take stock of the risks they are taking, and to stay focused on their long-term goals. The recently announced 0.5 percentage point rate rises might have come as a surprise to many, after years of ultra-low interest rates. But the RBA announcements – a step to…