Thoughts on money, from a Financial Planner in Perth
Discussion on the various areas of investment, such as shares, property, cash and collectables, as well as interpretation of those markets.
Some would argue that the sharemarket makes no sense in the long term either but that is an argument easily dismissed through 4 or 5 years of intensive discussion, research, correspondence, argument and analysis. So for the moment, let’s just say that it does make sense in the long term but there is room to … Read more
The world is going to end but you can save yourself by subscribing to… These self-help newsletters, websites and email lists are getting a little bit carried away with themselves.
The Reserve Bank today released the minutes of its Monetary Policy Meeting held on the 5th April. You may recall that the end result of that meeting was that rates were left alone, much to the relief of borrowers around Australia. The commentary was interesting, even if only for the suggestion that interest rates were … Read more
Tumultuous times. Is it the case that more catastrophes are happening or are we simply being made more aware of them? Food riots in Algeria, a stall-owner in Tunisia setting himself on fire and triggering a social revolution that is shifting power across the Middle East. Earthquakes wreak ruin and fear on China, New Zealand … Read more
A quick look at the Australian sharemarket reveals a few interesting trends of late. Here is my take on some of the ‘flavour of the month’ trends. Remember the Great Disclaimer – Nothing in this post or on this site is to be considered personal advice. It is information and observations of a general nature … Read more
Gold, like diamonds, holds a fascination much greater than its simple financial value. It is malleable, resistant to tarnishing, highly conductive and a fantastic metal to work with (in a previous life i completed a jewellery making course and came to appreciate just how easy gold is as a medium). In some countries, the open … Read more
Back in the depths of the Global Financial Crisis (the “GFC”…) investors in the United States were paying money for the right to hold Treasury Notes. In other words, the notes showed a negative return. How is that for strange? Why would you put your capital into cash when you know it is going to … Read more
There is a raging debate flowing through academic, economic and financial markets at the moment concerning the future direction of house prices in Australia. It seems everyone has an opinion, and the stronger that opinion the less likely that any facts are going to get in the way of the argument. On one side we … Read more
There is a lot of worry and fright circulating as news and information about investment markets right now. I don’t want to downplay the potential for dire outcomes from the GFC and various government attempts to reduce its impact on their economies. However, there does need to be a little more informed comment on just … Read more
Do you think that Governments in Australia will ever realise the impact their decisions can have in a country to relies on foreign capital to the extent that Australia does? In the face of wildly flutuating commodity prices – driven by massive, temporay global stimulus efforts and a surfeit of hot and fast speculative money – … Read more